MM vs MP?

[theseoafs]

i do have the feeling that DT will constrain him a bit though.

We have no reason to believe that.

[Tis BOOLsheet]

i do have the feeling that DT will constrain him a bit though.

We have no reason to believe that.

given the way that JP and MM collaborated on the drums, its reasonable to think that. we'll see, but the opportunity was there to let mangini go nuts

[Bertielee]

Portnoy is the best...his drumming is so connected to the songs and unique plus he wrote about half of the songs...

Mike Mangini at least for now didn't show any superior skills or uniquness in the drumming but we'll wait for the next album

IMHO :

He wrote half of the songs? Are you kidding?
PlusMP's drumming more connected to the song? Really? MM is much more connected to the songs ;  with MP, it was just a matter of showing off, which I liked for almost all his time in DT.
No uniqueness in MM's drumming? Can't you hear the dynamics he's providing in ADToE, his crazy footwork?

I have loved MP's playing up to 8vm, but then came SC and BC&SL and then you could really hear his lack of practise.

I love both drummers : it's a tie for me.

B.Lee

[chwik]

i do have the feeling that DT will constrain him a bit though.

We have no reason to believe that.

given the way that JP and MM collaborated on the drums, its reasonable to think that. we'll see, but the opportunity was there to let mangini go nuts

Why should he go nuts? Shouldn't he play to fit the music? I think he did that very well on the new album.

[BlobVanDam]

i do have the feeling that DT will constrain him a bit though.

We have no reason to believe that.

given the way that JP and MM collaborated on the drums, its reasonable to think that. we'll see, but the opportunity was there to let mangini go nuts

The only reason JP had any involvement in the drums is because MM was not there for the writing of the album, so they needed a guideline for the demos/recording.
Everything has indicated that MM will be as much as an individual contributing member as anyone else for the next album. If MM shows constraint, it will be because it's what he/they've decided fits the song, not because they're keeping him on a leash.

[nikatapi]

1. let's be clear about the fact that mike mangini is FAR more technically skilled than mike portnoy. he's not just a little bit more technical, he's a LOT more technical. every one of the guys they brought into the auditions is FAR more technical than portnoy. im not saying theyre better drummers (the complete package), im just saying theyre more technical. His footwork is much more advanced. you can hear this on the new record. his hand work is FAR FAR FAR more advanced than portnoys. his single stroke is actually pretty insane. so the bottom line is that technically, mangini is way beyond portnoy. it'd be rather like comparing petrucci to slash. once again, not saying who is a better musician, but who is better technically. that needs to be cleared up.

2. mangini has a better feel than portnoy. mangini has an underrated feel because hes primarily a rock and metal drummer but he actually does have a very good feel. you'll recall jordan saying mm plays slightly behind the beat and has a great feel. its also pretty evident on the new record. for guys with a GREAT feel see marco minnemann (especially) and thomas lang.

3. portnoy is a very musical drummer. i love his work on images, and on various other tracks. that is his primary strength, he plays parts that complement the music extremely well. there are numerous numerous examples and it would take too long to list them all.

it's a matter of taste really. do some guys like slash more than petrucci? sure. what it comes down to is the music they play and if you like it. but one thing that needs to be established for sure, that is factual, is that mm is far more technically advanced than mp in terms of drumming.

I completely agree with this post.

[Mladen]

I honestly can't choose because we still haven't heard enough of Mangini.

MP is great and I love his overall style, but Mangini proved to be outstanding from a technical aspect, but still, musically, I'd say we still don't know what he's like. He had problems recording This is the life, maybe he's not into simple playing? It shows how requiring it can be to play a ballad. 

[m0hawk]

To be honest, no matter how technical MM may be, the mix of the drums in ADTOE was far too low for me to enjoy fully. On all MP albums, the drumming has been a primary focus, thankfully because he was quite prominent in the mix. I guess a live setting will truly show off MM in all his glory.

[hefdaddy42]

In his recent interview, JP made it clear that the drum parts he "wrote" during the demo sessions were nothing more than guidelines for Mangini and so the demos would be full-sounding songs.

[rumborak]

Right now MM has to play catch-up to MP, IMHO. MM is clearly the technically superior drummer, but that often means jack shit (Rusty Cooley, anyone?). MP in the 90s was the plain leader in prog drumming, and I'm not sure MM would have walked the same distance.
Then again, it's also very clear that MP was very lucky to have the musicians around him that would enable him to walk that distance. With AM he fell flat on his nose.
To me it's the classic "what if" scenario in history. We will never know.

rumborak

[johncal]

For years, Mike Mangini has had this great big toy in the garage and no one to play with, and when he did go outside to play, it was like a teenager playing with 5 year olds.. Now that he's got some playmates his own age, let's see what new games they come up with. Mangini's just a big overgrown ( or maybe not so much) kid just bursting at the seams with enthusiasm and joy.

His skills are beyond belief. When a guy like Portnoy says MM's better.... I believe it. To me, it's easy to see he's done stuff on the new album that's never been done before. Every member of the group say's he's superhuman, I guess I'd believe them too. like I said before, his playing style is complimentary not confrontational. It fits better. Don't get me wrong, I'm still a huge MP fan and cherish all he did for DT in the past. They wouldn't be the same group today without him.

IMO

[Cruithne]

This thread is only about MUSIC ability! Please leave the drama for someplace else.

Define what "music" ability is?

If it's raw technical ability then MM is objectively better.

If it's about more subjective matters such as taste, feel, composition of drum parts, and so on, then I'm more inclined towards voting for MP.

[emtee]

I don't care who is 'better' or 'more technical' I only care about whos music I like better and while on stage who
provides me with the best experience. In both departments Portnoy wins by a mile. On top of that he has a huge
back catalog that is extremely varied and he has probably influenced more drummers and sold more kits than
Buddy Rich.

They seem happy with Mangini and so do most fans and that's great but Portnoy is up there with the legends
for me...right alongside Bonham and Peart.

[Bertielee]

I don't care who is 'better' or 'more technical' I only care about whos music I like better and while on stage who
provides me with the best experience. In both departments Portnoy wins by a mile. On top of that he has a huge
back catalog that is extremely varied and he has probably influenced more drummers and sold more kits than
Buddy Rich.

They seem happy with Mangini and so do most fans and that's great but Portnoy is up there with the legends
for me...right alongside Bonham and Peart.

Bonham, not difficult. Peart? Way to go, man! IMHO anyways!

B.Lee

[bosk1]

1. let's be clear about the fact that mike mangini is FAR more technically skilled than mike portnoy. he's not just a little bit more technical, he's a LOT more technical. every one of the guys they brought into the auditions is FAR more technical than portnoy. im not saying theyre better drummers (the complete package), im just saying theyre more technical. His footwork is much more advanced. you can hear this on the new record. his hand work is FAR FAR FAR more advanced than portnoys. his single stroke is actually pretty insane. so the bottom line is that technically, mangini is way beyond portnoy. it'd be rather like comparing petrucci to slash. once again, not saying who is a better musician, but who is better technically. that needs to be cleared up.

2. mangini has a better feel than portnoy. mangini has an underrated feel because hes primarily a rock and metal drummer but he actually does have a very good feel. you'll recall jordan saying mm plays slightly behind the beat and has a great feel. its also pretty evident on the new record. for guys with a GREAT feel see marco minnemann (especially) and thomas lang.

3. portnoy is a very musical drummer. i love his work on images, and on various other tracks. that is his primary strength, he plays parts that complement the music extremely well. there are numerous numerous examples and it would take too long to list them all.

it's a matter of taste really. do some guys like slash more than petrucci? sure. what it comes down to is the music they play and if you like it. but one thing that needs to be established for sure, that is factual, is that mm is far more technically advanced than mp in terms of drumming.

I completely agree with this post.

I agree with it in principle, but I hate the Slash comparison and think it's way off.  I know what he was trying to say, but any gap in technical ability between Mangini and Portnoy is not nearly as big as the gap between Petrucci and Slash. 

[emtee]

^Well he influenced me more than Peart did. And I guess if we were to look at awards as a way to compare
I believe MP has won more fan based / musician based awards than Peart. But IMO it's a personal decision
based on individual taste. Many would put Peart above Portnoy, and some would put them equal...like me.

[bosk1]

Slash influenced you as a drummer more than Peart did?  Wow. No offense, dude, but your drumming must suck. 

[Bertielee]

Slash influenced you as a drummer more than Peart did?  Wow. No offense, dude, but your drumming must suck. 

You should ban yourself for being disrespectful to a member of the forum! Get out of here!

B.Lee

[Knguro]

Slash influenced you as a drummer more than Peart did?  Wow. No offense, dude, but your drumming must suck. 

       

[moof]

From a purely technical standpoint, I put Mangini in the top 2 or 3 in the world. 

[Tis BOOLsheet]

From a purely technical standpoint, I put Mangini in the top 2 or 3 in the world.

in terms of speed in certain areas probably. in terms of technique as a whole, probably not. some of the guys they brought in are probably more advanced technically all around, but not as fast in doing certain things with their hands.

[Dream Team]

I agree with it in principle, but I hate the Slash comparison and think it's way off.  I know what he was trying to say, but any gap in technical ability between Mangini and Portnoy is not nearly as big as the gap between Petrucci and Slash.

Right. Maybe Petrucci-Mustaine would be pretty accurate.

[Tis BOOLsheet]

not really. the gap is pretty big between mp and mm (or ANY of the other drummers they brought in for the auditions for that matter)

[JimmyJava]

not really. the gap is pretty big between mp and mm (or ANY of the other drummers they brought in for the auditions for that matter)

I would say that Minneman, Donati and Lang are just as technical as MM, if not even more technical in some aspects.

[PS Head]

MP has played in many prog acts and i think,when he's not trying to beat the shit out of the drums to the heavier stuff,has a better feel to playing the proggier side DT perfom than MM.MM is more of a rock/metal drummer and feel you need to be able to play all styles to compliment all the DT material.Dont get me wrong....MM did an amazing job on ADTOE and im sure we will see more of his capabillities on DT's next album.....but i do love MP's playing and im not ashamed to admit it.

[Iarwain]

Mangini. I find his drumming style much more interesting and creative than Portnoy's.

[Tis BOOLsheet]

not really. the gap is pretty big between mp and mm (or ANY of the other drummers they brought in for the auditions for that matter)

I would say that Minneman, Donati and Lang are just as technical as MM, if not even more technical in some aspects.

correct. mangini can do some stuff faster than those guys, but in terms of overall technique (everything put together), those 3 guys are probably more technical. i still love mangini, and i dig his playing a lot more than most of the other guys.

[Kotowboy]

When I listen to ADTOE, I actually don't focus on the drums as much as i did on previous albums.

This just shows how understated Mangini plays and how much he plays for the song.

Portnoy did have a propensity to do big drum fills in the most random places.

[ddtonfire]

I still really think MP is one of the most "musical" drummers out there.

[Loser1]

I chose Portnoy. Mangini is a great and talented drummer. For now, I'd take Portnoy in a second.

[reneranucci]

I'm happy for Mangini because now, in the context of a band, he will be able to build a name as a creative and musical player, and not only being regarded as a very skilled drummer, which was the case before if I'm not wrong. Judging for the results in the poll and the comments here, he is on his way of doing that.

[TheGreatPretender]

Man... Every time I hear some Mangini stuff it's like, "Damn, Mangini's the best!" but then every time I hear some Portnoy stuff it's like, "Damn! Portnoy is the best!"
So I don't even know anymore. I'd say they're both equally as good, but for completely different reasons. In completely different ways.

[Tis BOOLsheet]

i will say this though, i think right now mangini is better for dream theater. mp is good for adrenaline mob.

[LTE3]

Mike Portnoy will always be the best drummer for Dream Theater.

I think you nailed it, I love MM but he will always be filling in until the real Mike comes back IMHO

[ResultsMayVary]

Mike Portnoy will always be the best drummer for Dream Theater.

I think you nailed it, I love MM but he will always be filling in until the real Mike comes back IMHO

MP isn't coming back. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.