Mitch Malloy

Singer who briefly worked with the band recalls his negative reaction to 1996 demos.

Mitch Malloy says he turned down an offer to join Van Halen because it was clear something was amiss.

Mitch Malloy has released an unfinished Van Halen demo that he completed after a brief period as a singer with the group.

He wasn't in the band long enough to record anything more than a couple of jam sessions, but vocalist Mitch Malloy's time in Van Halen is still one of the more interesting footnotes in the group's history -- and one Malloy sounds like he's still trying to figure out.

Van Halen fans are well aware of the different eras of the band -- the classic era featuring lead singer David Lee Roth, the "Van Hagar" period with Sammy Hagar, and the less successful lineup with former Extreme singer Gary Cherone. But many fans are unaware that for a brief period, it seemed likely that well-respected AOR singer Mitch Malloy would take over for Hagar as Van Halen's lea