Van Halen Tour Dates 2012: New Album + NYC Performance on Jan 5

Van Halen announced plans to tour in 2012 with frontman David Lee Roth, guitarist Eddie Van Halen, drummer Alex Van Halen and bassist Wolfgang Van Halen. Now there is news of a new album plus an impromptu performance in New York City.

The band will perform on Thursday, Jan. 5, at Café Wha? at 115 Macdougal, between Bleecker and West 3rd, in Greenwich Village, according to Rolling Stone. Nothing is official yet, but journalists across New York have been invited to what is speculated to be a 45-minute set.

Roth's uncle Manny Roth owned and operated Café Wha? and booked legendary acts like Jimi Hendrix, Bill Cosby, Bob Dylan, Richard Pryor and others. The 250-seat setting will surely be an exciting venue to launch Van Halen's 2012 tour.

Van Halen has not played in public since their 2007 reunion tour with Roth. Prior to that, Roth had not performed with the band since 1996. Roth left the band in 1985 and was replaced by Sammy Hagar and Gary Cherone as lead singer.

They are said to have been rehearsing for the 2012 tour at the Roxy in Los Angeles for the past few months.

Along with the Jan. 5 performance, the band is set to release a new album based on leaked cover art. The new album has a release date for Feb. 7. Rolling Stone reports that a new single and video will hit sometime this month.

According to the fansite VHLinks, the band has been busy booking rehearsal space and hotel rooms for the band and their crew for [this] week in NYC.

Tickets for the tour will go on sale Jan. 10. No dates and locations have been released as of yet.

Click here to watch the band's top 5 pre-reunion performances including: Eruption, Dance the Night Away, Jump, Hot for Teacher and Panama.