Mangini's 5th Anniversary

[RoeDent]

Today (April 29th) marks 5 years since Part 3 of The Spirit Carries On was uploaded to YouTube, and DT's new drummer was revealed. Since then, we've had 3 albums, two of which are in my personal top 3 DT albums. But going back to that 2011 day, it was a pretty awesome day. The excitement in the DT community, everyone gathering together, whatever the time where they were, to witness this important event in the band's history.

Your memories of the day, please.

(For the record, I'm aware the auditions were held some time before the videos came out, but the day he was revealed to the fans counts as the anniversary as far as we're aware.)

[Mladen]

Yeah, that was one hell of a day, I remember it vividly. Happy anniversary, guys, we need to celebrate this day. Especially five years later, I personally like Mangini even more than I did those several years ago as I'm sure many of us do.

[Bolsters]

I was disappointed that they didn't pick Marco Minnemann.

[Dream Team]

I was disappointed that they didn't pick Marco Minnemann.

Wow, nice job shitting on the thread.

[SebastianPratesi]

I watched all parts of the docummentary on their respective release dates, so I found out at the same time as most of you. I remember I didn't care too much about their choice, because I didn't know any of the 7 drummers, and I was still in my 'no MP no DT' phase. Nontheless, it was cool seeing the band perform and talk to other musicians (and among themselves) in such an intimate setting.

By the way, I agree with you RoeDent. Two of the last 3 albums (the last 2) are among my personal favourites, and with time I've come to appreciate MM's superpowers in the band. My favourite of his input on a song is "Illumination Theory", but to me that whole album has so many great drumming, really.

[Aythesryche]

I was disappointed that they didn't pick Marco Minnemann.

Was? Cool that you changed your mind. In my opinion, of course, I thought and still think that Mike Mangini is a grand choice for the band. Here's to looking forward to the subsequent anniversaries.

[goo-goo]

Shit. ...5 yrs already?! Time flies for sure.

I am not sure if I should buy the VIP for the Denver show but I just remembered it was 14 yrs ago since I won VIP passes for an Albuquerque show back in 02 when they toured with Satriani. Would love to get a pic with the current lineup.

[Outcrier]

I was disappointed that they didn't pick Marco Minnemann.

Wow, nice job shitting on the thread.

 

[mikeyd23]

I was disappointed that they didn't pick Marco Minnemann.

I kinda was until I realized that Marco would have probably flaked out on DT by now, seems to be the trend of his career that he can't commit to be a part of an actual full time band. MM was the better choice IMO, playing aside, merely because he's actually passionately committed to DT. Good quality in a band member.

[erwinrafael]

Thank you, Mike Mangini. You have been my favorite drummer for so long that when you joined my favorite band, I could not believe it.

[Madman Shepherd]

That was a great year.  I was at my height of DT fandom (listened to them since 2000) but the "reality show" made me fall in love with Mangini.  In fact, I met my wife not too long after that and while she likes DT (enough to let me drag her to all the shows) she really grew to love Mangini as well.  He did a clinic in my area not too long after that and we met him (I had also met him at the M&G before I met her) and he is the nicest guy in the world. 

While MP may have done some things that soured me to him, I still love his drumming (and I dont shit on his technical ability like a lot of people, I think he is an excellent technical drummer).  Regardless, I consider Mangini *the* drummer for DT and I hope they finish out their careers with him. 

[Kotowboy]

I really hated Mike 5 years ago.


So I'm glad he quit and they got Mike instead.

[t-bone2112]

Wow, seems like a long time ago.  I remember watching that video of the drummer auditions over and over again.  My daughter (who I have taken to a DT show) just rolls her eyes when I play it; "really Dad, you're watching it again?!"

I really liked Marco also, but I don't think he was a good fit for the band overall; I really don't think it's his type of music.  I really liked Thomas Lang and Peter Wildoer's auditions.  I maybe liked their playing as much as Mangini, and I especially liked Thomas' playing of the DT stuff and especially his drumming style; who knows what they would have done in the band, what their interpretation of the new music would have turned out to be.

Let's face it, every one of those drummers were awesome; I loved "meeting" them and seeing them in the auditions.  The guys in DT were lucky for the opportunity to meet them and play with them.

Mangini played the stuff perfectly, but his style on these three records is really different than what I saw in the video, different than what I expected.  Still not sure how much I like his drumming style, but I think he's an awesome guy and he really seems to fit in with the guys well, so I think he was a good choice overall.  Would love to meet him, I bet it would be great to meet him and hang out with him!

BTW, I've met Marco twice since his audition.  He is the nicest, most humble guy you can imagine.  Really, really cool guy!!

[Kotowboy]

Wow, seems like a long time ago.  I remember watching that video of the drummer auditions over and over again.  My daughter (who I have taken to a DT show) just rolls her eyes when I play it; "really Dad, you're watching it again?!"

I fucking LOVE this argument....

" Oh. You're doing something you enjoy.....AGAIN ?? "

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

I wasn't a member here back then, I joined a year after I think. Anyway I remember thinking Mangini was the right fit for the band as soon as I heard his name amongst the selected and before I saw the auditions and that's not because I liked him more as a drummer, he just felt right for the band. I already knew the other drummers before hand and the amount of respect I had for some of those names made me even think they're to good for DT honestly.

I remember when I first heard Virgil Donati playing doubel strokes with his feets I was blown away. I even believe that was before drummers used high tensions on their pedals to have more rebounds with every stroke, he bluntly did everything with his feets atleast that's what I remember, I may be wrong though. He's always been a highly regarded session and clinic drummer so him settling in with a band fulltime felt weird.

When I heard Derek Roddy playing blast beats with his hands and not fingers I was blown away. I just find it ridiculous seeing metal drummers play with so little movement and instead use triggers to boost up and even out the sound. Seeing guys like Derek Roddy play with power and still blasts with insane speeds is impressive imo. Given Derek Roddy is a house hold name within extreme metal and a session drummer I also felt he wouldn't commit full time with a band that's not even playing his kind of music.

Thomas Lang can play anything, he's insane and always been a master at his instrument and well sought out session and clinic drummer which I knew long before the audition. Him settling in for a fulltime band didn't feel right either.

The same can be said about Marco Minemann basically.

I grew up in the same area as Peter Wildoer and his band Darkane so I know him well, not personally but i've known the band for along time and seen them several times. I've met Peter several times and he's super nice and a brilliant drummer that can play everything. He also works as a teacher in that area. Him commiting fulltime with a band like DT and most likely moving to the US just felt weird but then again that's just me speculating.

Wasn't a big fan of Aquiles or atleast not like the others but I respect his work with Angra which I like. Yea didn't feel right either.

Then of course we have Mike Mangini which I knew from Extreme and Annihilator. His hand technique was well known to me. While he also wasn't known for playing progressive metal he still felt right for some reason and maybe that's because his playing style felt more align to DT or something. I don't know but i'm glad he got the gig, he's one of the reasons that made me forget JLBs voice the last time I saw DT, he played like a champ that night.

[MirrorMask]

I remember being happy, I'm not a super expert on drumming so his name was the one I recognized the most since his work with James among other things, and as scripted as it may have been, the phone call giving him the job with The Count of Tuscany's ending playing beneath was a great moment. Life was about to go on again for DT!!!

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

I remember being happy, I'm not a super expert on drumming so his name was the one I recognized the most since his work with James among other things, and as scripted as it may have been, the phone call giving him the job with The Count of Tuscany's ending playing beneath was a great moment. Life was about to go on again for DT!!!

Oh yeah, the ending was pretty emotional. That video leading to ADTOE was one of the moments I will most cherish in my DT fandom.

[BlobVanDam]

I remember how manufactured and reality TV that whole drummer documentary was, and how long it took to get it, but I was happy with their choice.
Mangini and Minneman were the two I felt would be best for the band, and I still think Minneman would have been the most musically interesting choice (more so now), but personality-wise, MM was the perfect fit for the band.

[KevShmev]

I didn't know much about any of their drummers they auditioned, and I don't get into watching auditions and that kind of thing, but Mangini seemed like the obvious choice, especially after he was so overcome with joy when they told him he was in.  Plus, he's a class act all the way, and that is always nice.

[arkdtmp]

I don't want to think about that day. That day, my favorite drummer in the world was replaced by someone else. I don't hate Mangini. I probably wouldn't like anyone to replace my hero, Mike Portnoy. I was 14, when they made that announcement, and for me, it's been all downhill for the band ever since. To this day, I hope that Mangini will leave, and the real Dream Theater will reunite again. His (Portnoy's) drumming made we want to switch instruments, from guitar to drums, because of the sheer amount of creativity and genius that he possesses. I'm afraid Mangini, or anyone else cannot begin to scratch the surface of his playing, and his overall influence in the band's sound. My favorite era is from 1999-2009, and I can only hope that we get music of that quality from them again-they're the best band on Earth for me and I have incredibly high expectations from them.

[Adami]

It would be cool to be able to look into different possible realities, one where different drummers got the job.

It would be neat to see what would have happened in the past 5 years if Minneman, or Donati or my favorite, Lang had gotten the job, just to see.

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

I don't want to think about that day. That day, my favorite drummer in the world was replaced by someone else. I don't hate Mangini. I probably wouldn't like anyone to replace my hero, Mike Portnoy. I was 14, when they made that announcement, and for me, it's been all downhill for the band ever since. To this day, I hope that Mangini will leave, and the real Dream Theater will reunite again. His (Portnoy's) drumming made we want to switch instruments, from guitar to drums, because of the sheer amount of creativity and genius that he possesses. I'm afraid Mangini, or anyone else cannot begin to scratch the surface of his playing, and his overall influence in the band's sound. My favorite era is from 1999-2009, and I can only hope that we get music of that quality from them again-they're the best band on Earth for me and I have incredibly high expectations from them.

It's nice that you love MP so much, but if I were you I wouldn't get my hopes too high with the returning to the band thing.

[Sycsa]

I remember how manufactured and reality TV that whole drummer documentary was, and how long it took to get it, but I was happy with their choice.
Mangini and Minneman were the two I felt would be best for the band, and I still think Minneman would have been the most musically interesting choice (more so now), but personality-wise, MM was the perfect fit for the band.

Yeah, it was like a cheesy reality show, but I loved it. It actually prompted me to pick up the sticks and start playing drums, an activity from which I got a stupendous amount of fun & joy and a handful of gigs in the past few years. It was one of those magical nights, I was traveling abroad and had some time to kill, so I went to an internet café. All 3 videos were out by then and I stumbled upon them. I wasn't much of a DT fan at the time, but, by the time the documentary got to Virgil Donati, I was dead set on the path of becoming a drummer and a hardcore DT enthusiast.

I'm really happy with Mangini, I would not have taken Minnemann instead, but I feel that the most interesting choice would have been Virgil. DT is in the danger of growing stale, and he would have taken them to strange new places. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGJNOcMykiU

[emtee]

I knew that MM was the logical and safe choice. He has a similar mind set and demeanor to the rest of the guys and can re-create MP's
parts consistently.

I've come to appreciate his place in the band and his style however I don't think it brought any new dimension to the band. He seems to
pour his heart and soul into the music and seems to care tremendously for the finished product so all in all I think he is an acceptable
fit.

This is no slight against him in any way but if I'm being totally honest I much prefer DT with MP. In a live setting I prefer his fluid
energetic style and in the studio it's not even close for me. MP by a long ways.

[rumborak]

^^^ That's exactly my view. He was the obvious and clear choice back then, because DT tried to maintain the "brand". I think they were very much afraid that MP leaving could be the end of the DT. So, they got  a drummer who is likable, competent, and somewhat, but not excessively so, like MP.
But as you say, it didn't add a new dimension to the band, or rather, given that MP was one dimension of the band, the missing one was not replaced. MM does cool stuff, but it's often more on an intellectual/technical level.

[King Postwhore]

It's a bit like Chad Smith of the RHCP.  There are other drummers better but that guy can hit a groove, emote through one hit of the tom or cymbal and his phrasings are dead on.  I feel that way about MP.

I love MM.  I hope they get him a better sound on future albums.  I miss the resonance of the toms in DT's music.

[hefdaddy42]

Yay Mike!  Hopefully, some day we can smoke cigars together.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

I'm a big fan of Mangini both before and after he joined DT, I think he's done a great job in DT and even better live, I was really impressed with him on this tour. You could tell he really enjoyed playing with the band and NO you won't find a "but" before the next sentence from me.

MP brought alot of fun to DT, all the behind the scenes from albums and tours comes to mind for example. He was a great spokesperson for the band even though he could be a bit to much sometimes, he promoted DT with his life and that's admirable. In all honesty I liked his personality and passion for DT more than his drumming atleast in later years with the band. I just never been a diehard fan of his drumming I guess even though I have tremendous respect for what he's done with and for DT.

I see alot of comments all around the internet on how important Portnoy was for alot of fans, some are almost worshipping him and that to me speaks on the influence he brought to alot of young musicians and that's pretty astounding. So when I see comments like arkdtmp and how important MP was for him I can't help but wonder about the absolute meltdown the entire pre-2010 DT fanbase will have if the day will ever come when MP joins DT again either as special guest or as a permanent member. Even fans that enjoy Mangini will be caught in the tremendous hypewave that will sweep across the entire prog metal community that day.

If that day ever comes I wish I could be in a bar with MM and salute his stint with DT because I don't think anyone fan or not can deny that MPs drum seat was the most impossible to replace and that poor soul had to live up to impossible expectations in order to please everyone.

If you ask me I really believe that MM succeeded and did his own thing and as I said he really elevated DT on the recent tour and that's pretty damn impressive.

[KevShmev]

See, MrBoom_shack-a-lack, I have nearly a completely opposite view of things. 

There are aspects of Portnoy's playing I miss in the band, namely how much fun a lot of his playing is to air drum. Mangini, on the flip side, as awesome as he is, didn't have a lot of air drum-worthy moments on ADTOE and DT12; he does, however, have a lot of them on TA, so that is major progress in that regard.

However, I certainly do not miss Portnoy being their spokesperson, as it got tiresome seeing him dominate the vast majority of interviews, behind the scenes documentaries, etc. the band would release.  It's more fun being a fan of the band now than it was the last few album cycles with Portnoy (when his presence got overbearing).

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

That's fine  I agree on the last part, Portnoy did get a bit to much in later years when he as you said was pretty much the only face you saw in interviews. Now it's much more balanced I think.

[Kotowboy]

It's a bit like Chad Smith of the RHCP.  There are other drummers better but that guy can hit a groove, emote through one hit of the tom or cymbal and his phrasings are dead on.  I feel that way about MP.

I love MM.  I hope they get him a better sound on future albums.  I miss the resonance of the toms in DT's music.

Chad is so wasted in that band, as is Flea. Listening to RHCP - you'd assume that one groove is all Chad can do - but hear him solo and you realise he can actually play a lot.





I really wanted Thomas Lang to get it - he's really super technical but has a great sense of humour too and would have been a good replacement for Portnoy's stage presence.

[SebastianPratesi]

Speaking of Chad Smith:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6i8rDsyrenE
Posted just yesterday. Other drummers and actors play as well.

[rumborak]

I really wanted Thomas Lang to get it - he's really super technical but has a great sense of humour too and would have been a good replacement for Portnoy's stage presence.

It has always been my theory, and there's virtually no direct evidence to back that up, that most drummers in the documentary weren't really all *that* interested in joining a band full-time. Roddy said so, Donati being there was kinda silly to begin with, and Minnemann was likely already working on The Aristocrats. So realistically it was Priester, Mangini and Lang (with Lang probably also a big if). I think most of them will have said "I can *tour* with you, but I won't tie myself down".

[pdurbin22]

The second Portnoy left, shocked and devastated as I was, I immediately thought "well, Mangini would be a logical fit." I'd say everything has worked out just fine. 

[Sycsa]

I really wanted Thomas Lang to get it - he's really super technical but has a great sense of humour too and would have been a good replacement for Portnoy's stage presence.

It has always been my theory, and there's virtually no direct evidence to back that up, that most drummers in the documentary weren't really all *that* interested in joining a band full-time. Roddy said so, Donati being there was kinda silly to begin with, and Minnemann was likely already working on The Aristocrats. So realistically it was Priester, Mangini and Lang (with Lang probably also a big if). I think most of them will have said "I can *tour* with you, but I won't tie myself down".

Yeah, that's my impression as well.

Guys who really wanted to join: Mangini, Priester, Wildoer.

Guys who showed up just to be polite and professional, but made it obvious even in the documentary that they wouldn't join: Roddy, Donati.

Guys who said some overzelous words about wanting to join in the doc, then backpedalled in subsequent interviews: Marco, Lang. Marco handled it especially tactlessly.