Portnoy leaves Dream Theater

[Sinistas]

Looks like a Rock Star-esque DVD to me. I'll buy it, I love this sort of thing.

I also have a feeling it's Mangini...he left his teaching gig at Berklee recently, so it would fit.

[BenoA]

[Deneb]

Wow, i step out of the loop for a little bit and I miss everything.

[joshulator]

Hey Ben, thanks for posting that video. I spent the last hour or so watching.
Who knows? Maybe I'll buy the next album.

[VitaminG]

heh, looks like DT is doing Metallica style next top model reality crap or whatever http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yljVzWLlNa0

I personally hoped they'd get Steven Adler, at least he would have made the bore-fest exciting.

Got the best (who are not Vinnie Colaiuta) tech players there though... Mangini, Minnemann, Lang and Donati. All much more technical than Portnoy. Mangini is the sickest though and I believe Lang and Donati have bunch of gigs and clinics coming anyway. A couple of metal guys auditioned too but I've seen them (Roddy and Wildoer) posting at drummerworld already.

Mangini was fantastic when I saw him with Vai. Mesmerising player

[Endrik]

I regret watching those 3 episodes, bad reality tv.

But one thing that surprised me was that there was not much room for creativity. Does the band really want everything played note for note or they think their fans aren't as open minded like they think they are?
Kinda goes against prog. philosophy, for example in King Crimson improvisation and creation of new musical language was an obligation.
I think DT needs some fresh approach as their music has been very stale for a while.
But if they just want note for note playing I'm glad that highly creative guys like Minnemann or Donati didn't get the gig. I do hope such an incredible talent like Mangini gets some room to play but looking the band's direction someone like Priester would have been more suitable, just an accurate and boring heavy metal drummer, I'm sure with practice he'll get the off-beats down.

[javert]

Endrik, yeah, it doens't really sound like a band moving forward. They kept going on and on about how this was such an important decision for them, but in the end, they took the safe route. They could have picked Mangini without any auditions. Didn't they also kind of contradict themselves? I seem to recall them talking about not just wanting somebody who could play Portnoy's parts, but then they hold it against Minnemann and some other dude that they put their own fingerprint on the songs.

[lerxstcat]

They didn't JUST want someone who could play Portnoy's parts, but they DID want someone who could do exactly that and more. I see no contradiction whatever in that. Mangini was the obvious choice, but they owed it to themselves, and even to Mangini, to try some other guys who were very talented and see if the obvious choice was also the correct one. I really think any of those guys COULD have done the job based purely on their drumming abilities. I don't really think they held anything against Minneman, but Mangini is a berklee guy like they are, already a mamber of the extended family because he's a good friend of Portnoy.

[javert]

But he's only supposed to do more when told, right? You're probably right that being able or willing to do both is not necessarily contradictory, but it appears to me that it often is. Anyways, haven't we seen this so many times with guitar players? The new guy is supposed to play the parts exactly like old guy, yet have enough personality in his playing to stick out with new material. You can't just switch personality on and off.

[lerxstcat]

Chris Broderick does...

[RobRR]

Being on our 4th drummer as a band, we have some experience with this... as a band, you NEED the new drummer to play existing songs the right way. Its all about the feel and sound of the song that you are used to. When someone comes in and changes stuff up, it WILL throw you off, I dont care how skilled you are. Especially in a band technical like DT, everything needs to be as it is supposed to be, and perfect. Change is good, on the NEW songs to be written. You cant change the old stuff, it just doesnt work like that. The band as well as all the fans have come to know and love those songs as they are, and thats how they must stay.

I really enjoyed all those episodes and was really excited to watch the next one. Its a chance to get a glimpse of band functions that we wouldnt normally see. I for one thank DT for those vids and the chance to witness a small piece of their selection process! Im also really surprised at how humble and nice people they all seem to be.

[markD]

+ 1000000000000000000000

as another guy that has gone through many drummers in his band, i totally concur. your existing material has to be "right". the new guy can be himself on the new shit.....

[javert]

Chris Broderick does...

Wans't the concensus in the Broderick thread that we have yet to see his contributions to Megadeth? A bit early to call that one... I hope he does, though.

[javert]

I was not under the impression that the drummers here didn't play the songs "the right way", but rather that we are talking more subtle things here. I of course agree that they should not change the songs and stay true to the spirit of them (I sure would hate having to re-make an old song for the umpteenth time due to a new drummer). Since Megadeth was brought up, it's not like you're going to mix up any of their guitarists or drummers - they are simple too different, and the guiratists would often improvise new solos that sound like the old ones rather than learning them.

[texasfury]

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