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Catcher10 View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 01 2011 at 15:27
I think he is an accomplished drummer and writer........Nobody says you have to 100% like what he does, I certainly do not. But the majority of the body of work he has done is excellent IMO. We talk about influence and all that on this site like its the #1 quality of a band...well other than Neil Peart, I don't know of any other drummer in the last 20yrs that has influenced more "new" drummers than Mike Portnoy....I fail to see how that could be if he is so horrible.
 
I don't really care much to know about his personal life, unless he wants us to know about it in a book or bio DVD...so most of what I hear I take with a small grain of salt.
 
We buy music albums and discuss that stuff.....I don't think his comments to people mean much, heck 90% of all musicians are drug addicts, alcoholics, womanizers and suffer from severe marital infidelity while touring....but we don't trash them for that do we.
 
But I guess if you are OK with an artist being a known alcoholic, drug addict, womanizer and cheater...then I can see how Mike Portnoy telling some kids his personal opinons on other music might bother you...really??
 
 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 01 2011 at 15:32
Everyone who does not like DT will die in a fire after they already died from natural causes.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 01 2011 at 15:47
Originally posted by Catcher10 Catcher10 wrote:

I think he is an accomplished drummer and writer........Nobody says you have to 100% like what he does, I certainly do not. But the majority of the body of work he has done is excellent IMO. We talk about influence and all that on this site like its the #1 quality of a band...well other than Neil Peart, I don't know of any other drummer in the last 20yrs that has influenced more "new" drummers than Mike Portnoy....I fail to see how that could be if he is so horrible.
 
I don't really care much to know about his personal life, unless he wants us to know about it in a book or bio DVD...so most of what I hear I take with a small grain of salt.
 
We buy music albums and discuss that stuff.....I don't think his comments to people mean much, heck 90% of all musicians are drug addicts, alcoholics, womanizers and suffer from severe marital infidelity while touring....but we don't trash them for that do we.
 
But I guess if you are OK with an artist being a known alcoholic, drug addict, womanizer and cheater...then I can see how Mike Portnoy telling some kids his personal opinons on other music might bother you...really??
 
 
I agree with you.
if there is one thing i don't care about is their attitude or their personal life. I listen to music because I like music it as nothing to do with who or what they are. and even less how they act or in what they believe in.
 
but I saw DT a bunch of times and enjoyed it! but i don't know if it's a coincidence but he didn't have the same attitude with Transatlantic... but i can be wrong i was really drunk at that show...
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 01 2011 at 16:23
Originally posted by Catcher10 Catcher10 wrote:

I think he is an accomplished drummer and writer........Nobody says you have to 100% like what he does, I certainly do not. But the majority of the body of work he has done is excellent IMO. We talk about influence and all that on this site like its the #1 quality of a band...well other than Neil Peart, I don't know of any other drummer in the last 20yrs that has influenced more "new" drummers than Mike Portnoy....I fail to see how that could be if he is so horrible.
 
I don't really care much to know about his personal life, unless he wants us to know about it in a book or bio DVD...so most of what I hear I take with a small grain of salt.
 
We buy music albums and discuss that stuff.....I don't think his comments to people mean much, heck 90% of all musicians are drug addicts, alcoholics, womanizers and suffer from severe marital infidelity while touring....but we don't trash them for that do we.
 
But I guess if you are OK with an artist being a known alcoholic, drug addict, womanizer and cheater...then I can see how Mike Portnoy telling some kids his personal opinons on other music might bother you...really??
 
 

Oh I definitely don't give a sh*t about personal issues, I was just stating that from personal experience of having been in the same room with the guy. It takes nothing away from his skill or music nor should it; I was simply stating a personal experience that verified some people's claims here, that's all. If we were to judge everyone we'd be in for a hell of a debate! Douche bag? Yes. Good drummer? Of course. Neither has any effect on the other, just stating what I witnessed good sirs.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 01 2011 at 17:17
I met Mike twice and while he does come off a little  sarcastically  he talked to me just fine.  He looked at me strangely when I told I had seen him play three times but never with Dream Theater but was happy to hear I saw LTE and at the time I was talking with him, Transatlantic.  Just saw him again Friday night with Yellow Matter Custard and I said hi and he just smiled and nodded at us. While he isn't the greatest drummer I have seen he certainly is versatile  in his styles and i hope to hear him someday with Neal's solo work live and really can't wait for the Steve Morse stuff too.  I have two DT cd's that I hardly ever play as this is just not my cup of tea.  I will give the project a listen but unless James Labrie has changed his style I doubt I will like it. 


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 02 2011 at 04:08
Referring back to my original post, now I've given it a bit more thought, I think that what makes DT popular, is their quirkiness in the mainstream metal scene (Also known as their prog side).

Their most highly rated albums: Six Degrees, Scenes From A Memory, Images and Words. The proggiest things they ever did. And their worst? (Not counting Falling Into Infinity and When Dream And Day Unite) Systematic Choas, the most straightforward metal thing they did. Octavarium, only worth it for the title track, which sees them in full out Prog mode, while the other tracks are rather throwaway. Black clouds and silver lining turned up the metal and the prog, and the worst parts about it? The terrible lyrics (metal), the odd grunts from Portnoy (metal) and 'A Rite Of Passage' (metal). 

I see a pattern forming! I think if they keep the prog, they may stay afloat without Portnoy, ditch it completely and they'll sink without a trace.

PS. Yes we all know Portnoy is a complete A-hole, but he's a damn good drummer, I fail to see how the two are connected?


Edited by JS19 - March 02 2011 at 04:09
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 03 2011 at 14:43
Originally posted by JS19 JS19 wrote:

PS. Yes we all know Portnoy is a complete A-hole, but he's a damn good drummer, I fail to see how the two are connected?


So true.  I really don't care what they do in their free time, if they kick ass as a musician, they kick ass as a musician.  End of story.

(If anything, it's that "a-hole" side of Portnoy that's endearing in a weird way due to how genuine it makes him come off, rather than trying to do the whole faked enthusiasm bit)
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 03 2011 at 19:24
New favorite DT tune: "Blind Faith" My goodness, that is a killer tune.

Still no announcement on who's filling the drummer's seat?

E
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 03 2011 at 21:03
The Ghost of John Bonham
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 03 2011 at 23:46
Originally posted by E-Dub E-Dub wrote:

Still no announcement on who's filling the drummer's seat?

I'll give you a hint: his name's Mike, but his last name ain't Portnoy. Wink
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 04 2011 at 00:19
I'm still crossing my fingers for Gavin
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 04 2011 at 00:43
Mangini I guess. It seems Labrie runs the show now. 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 04 2011 at 23:19
Originally posted by JS19 JS19 wrote:

Referring back to my original post, now I've given it a bit more thought, I think that what makes DT popular, is their quirkiness in the mainstream metal scene (Also known as their prog side).

Their most highly rated albums: Six Degrees, Scenes From A Memory, Images and Words. The proggiest things they ever did. And their worst? (Not counting Falling Into Infinity and When Dream And Day Unite) Systematic Choas, the most straightforward metal thing they did. Octavarium, only worth it for the title track, which sees them in full out Prog mode, while the other tracks are rather throwaway. Black clouds and silver lining turned up the metal and the prog, and the worst parts about it? The terrible lyrics (metal), the odd grunts from Portnoy (metal) and 'A Rite Of Passage' (metal). 

I see a pattern forming! I think if they keep the prog, they may stay afloat without Portnoy, ditch it completely and they'll sink without a trace.

PS. Yes we all know Portnoy is a complete A-hole, but he's a damn good drummer, I fail to see how the two are connected?

But, commercially, Black Clouds was a rebound.  As with SX, metal and prog crowd have divergent views on which are the better DT albums.  The metal crowd likes the more metal side of both bands and since metal fills the arenas to this day, I guess metal will win the day. LOL  Then again, Petrucci loves fusion so he might want to ease up on the metal and lean more towards fusion and since he is likely to be the chief songwriter in the absence of Portnoy, he might exert a lot of influence over the rest of the band.  
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 05 2011 at 06:14
Originally posted by rogerthat rogerthat wrote:

Originally posted by JS19 JS19 wrote:

Referring back to my original post, now I've given it a bit more thought, I think that what makes DT popular, is their quirkiness in the mainstream metal scene (Also known as their prog side).

Their most highly rated albums: Six Degrees, Scenes From A Memory, Images and Words. The proggiest things they ever did. And their worst? (Not counting Falling Into Infinity and When Dream And Day Unite) Systematic Choas, the most straightforward metal thing they did. Octavarium, only worth it for the title track, which sees them in full out Prog mode, while the other tracks are rather throwaway. Black clouds and silver lining turned up the metal and the prog, and the worst parts about it? The terrible lyrics (metal), the odd grunts from Portnoy (metal) and 'A Rite Of Passage' (metal). 

I see a pattern forming! I think if they keep the prog, they may stay afloat without Portnoy, ditch it completely and they'll sink without a trace.

PS. Yes we all know Portnoy is a complete A-hole, but he's a damn good drummer, I fail to see how the two are connected?

But, commercially, Black Clouds was a rebound.  As with SX, metal and prog crowd have divergent views on which are the better DT albums.  The metal crowd likes the more metal side of both bands and since metal fills the arenas to this day, I guess metal will win the day. LOL  Then again, Petrucci loves fusion so he might want to ease up on the metal and lean more towards fusion and since he is likely to be the chief songwriter in the absence of Portnoy, he might exert a lot of influence over the rest of the band.  

You also have Rudess with a huge classic prog influence so maybe we'll eventually see something that even the current DT haters respect, or call unoriginal, either way exciting times hopefully
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 06 2011 at 15:53
Originally posted by JS19 JS19 wrote:

Referring back to my original post, now I've given it a bit more thought, I think that what makes DT popular, is their quirkiness in the mainstream metal scene (Also known as their prog side).

Their most highly rated albums: Six Degrees, Scenes From A Memory, Images and Words. The proggiest things they ever did. And their worst? (Not counting Falling Into Infinity and When Dream And Day Unite) Systematic Choas, the most straightforward metal thing they did. Octavarium, only worth it for the title track, which sees them in full out Prog mode, while the other tracks are rather throwaway. Black clouds and silver lining turned up the metal and the prog, and the worst parts about it? The terrible lyrics (metal), the odd grunts from Portnoy (metal) and 'A Rite Of Passage' (metal). 

I see a pattern forming! I think if they keep the prog, they may stay afloat without Portnoy, ditch it completely and they'll sink without a trace.

PS. Yes we all know Portnoy is a complete A-hole, but he's a damn good drummer, I fail to see how the two are connected?


I think this has something to do with James LaBrie. I definitely really love his vocal style, but it doesn't really fit with a metal approach. He's definitely better off in the pure progressive areas where singers with decent ranges and lots of falsetto are the norm, considering I think he actually is a better vocalist than most of them. It just doesn't fit with the metal style. That, and Dream Theater have just always been better at writing progressive tunes, as opposed to metal ones. And generally, their heavy songs that I absolutely love also have an abundance of progressiveness to them. (See: the Glass Prison).

Still, Portnoy's been writing more of the heavy material than the other members, so I think this may finally give DT a chance to get back to the more progressive side!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 06 2011 at 16:29
Alright, so what's been annoying the crap out of me lately is I've seen a lot of people, including here at progarchives, hate on Dream Theater for being "emotionless" or "sterile."  That really gets to me.  I don't understand music at all, so I don't appreciate pointless w**kery, yet somehow I love a good deal of Dream Theater's output.

Have these people just not heard Dream Theater's music?  I know appreciation of music can be subjective, but it just seems incredibly strange that the band that put out songs like "Finally Free" or "Sacrificed Sons" would have that criticism leveled against it.  What songs are these people listening to?
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 06 2011 at 16:35
Originally posted by Hanyou Hanyou wrote:

Alright, so what's been annoying the crap out of me lately is I've seen a lot of people, including here at progarchives, hate on Dream Theater for being "emotionless" or "sterile."  That really gets to me.  I don't understand music at all, so I don't appreciate pointless w**kery, yet somehow I love a good deal of Dream Theater's output.

Have these people just not heard Dream Theater's music?  I know appreciation of music can be subjective, but it just seems incredibly strange that the band that put out songs like "Finally Free" or "Sacrificed Sons" would have that criticism leveled against it.  What songs are these people listening to?


I think the hate was inevitable the instant they released anything that wasn't Images and Words. Unfortunately, any band that receives this level of fame in the progressive scene that wasn't around in the 1970s is inevitably going to get jumped on, regardless of quality. Although they did take two steps back with Systematic Chaos, even I must admit.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 06 2011 at 20:01
Originally posted by Hanyou Hanyou wrote:


Have these people just not heard Dream Theater's music?  I know appreciation of music can be subjective, but it just seems incredibly strange that the band that put out songs like "Finally Free" or "Sacrificed Sons" would have that criticism leveled against it.  What songs are these people listening to?


I don't even remember much about Sacrificed Sons but Finally Free is like an 80s cliches epic.  I don't like that kind of cliched pop/rock expression - and I don't mean just LaBrie but the whole band here - and I don't discriminate there, I dislike it in whatever band I find it. Ayreon is another.  Because DT is a big band, they get picked on more, it's natural. Focus also made Anonymous and yet it's ELP who always get picked on for criticism. You are free to like songs like Finally Free, but I'd not be surprised that people whose appetite has earlier been whetted by Firth...or Fallen Angel would call it soulless.  Hardly any music is OBJECTIVELY soulless, so that's not what they are saying anyway, they just mean it's not soulful enough for their liking.   As for sterile, compare DT's covers of Hallowed Be Thy Name or Love Lies Bleeding with performances by the original artists.  Do you really not hear the flatness and obtrusive loudness in DT's delivery and specifically Portnoy?  I do and so, again relatively speaking, find their approach a little sterile.   And I only mentioned covers to make a comparison, their approach is not very different even when they play their original songs. 


Edited by rogerthat - March 06 2011 at 20:04
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 06 2011 at 23:07
Originally posted by Hanyou Hanyou wrote:

Alright, so what's been annoying the crap out of me lately is I've seen a lot of people, including here at progarchives, hate on Dream Theater for being "emotionless" or "sterile."  That really gets to me.  I don't understand music at all, so I don't appreciate pointless w**kery, yet somehow I love a good deal of Dream Theater's output.

Have these people just not heard Dream Theater's music?  I know appreciation of music can be subjective, but it just seems incredibly strange that the band that put out songs like "Finally Free" or "Sacrificed Sons" would have that criticism leveled against it.  What songs are these people listening to?

I agree with this.
PROG ON!!!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 06 2011 at 23:15
For anyone needing to remember why Dream Theater is the best, here you go.

PROG ON!!!
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