The Official Fates Warning thread v. Elsydeon hasn’t been around

[MoraWintersoul]

I have not heard one person say "he nailed it".

Ugh, here's me, a big Zonder and FW fan and not afraid to criticize MP, saying I loved MP with FW. There, one person.

[Madman Shepherd]

Anytime somebody uses the phrase "big boy pants" they automatically lose the argument.

Portnoy's response was dumb and no matter how many times he says otherwise, he looooooooooves Blabbermouth and loves to play the victim, but Zonder seems like a dick.

[bl5150]

Portnoy's response was dumb and no matter how many times he says otherwise, he looooooooooves Blabbermouth and loves to play the victim, but Zonder seems like a dick.

yep

[wolfking]

If Portnoy didn't reply, we wouldn't be talking about it.  Not many would really read so much into Zonders comments or give a shit what he says really.  Most would know Portnoy was a fill and take it with a grain of salt.

[Ben_Jamin]

If Portnoy didn't reply, we wouldn't be talking about it.  Not many would really read so much into Zonders comments or give a shit what he says really.  Most would know Portnoy was a fill and take it with a grain of salt.

Although that is a great interview though and his MP comment happens more early in the convo.

I really liked his Sequence and Those type of aspects he does in Fates Warning. I'm wondering if it's the stuff that is in Pieces of Me, that the interview says sounds "Disconnected".

[RodrigoAltaf]

I was at the show in São Paulo when MP played with Fates Warning. Was his drumming perfect? No. Was it worth watching? Absolutely!!!! The energy of that show was off the charts, and the crowd went nuts! I could be wrong, but I think that was FW's first ever show in Brazil. The crowd sang every word, and I finished their set completely soaked in sweat, just from the energy of their set. And they were only the opening act! So I really have no complaints at all about MP playing with them.

[Ben_Jamin]

I was at the show in São Paulo when MP played with Fates Warning. Was his drumming perfect? No. Was it worth watching? Absolutely!!!! The energy of that show was off the charts, and the crowd went nuts! I could be wrong, but I think that was FW's first ever show in Brazil. The crowd sang every word, and I finished their set completely soaked in sweat, just from the energy of their set. And they were only the opening act! So I really have no complaints at all about MP playing with them.

I would've went and enjoyed it, not because it's MP playing, but because it's a one time thing that will only happen at that show date. Also, if it was Fates Warnings first time ever there, just being there and hearing the songs being played live by the band, would be enough for me to go crazy with energy. Just as I did at my show when they opened for Queensryche. I was too young when they first came to my local venue.

I have forgone member replacements as for some odd reason, one member would be different when I'd see them live and I didn't look up the band enough to know, but I still enjoyed the show. If I do know the band, and the member changes, I still set aside that it's a different person playing the song than on the record, and enjoy the show, there are moments where I wish they did what was on the album, but I don't mind if it is or isn't how it's played on the album, I am just happy to be hearing the song being played live by the band. A reason for this is because a lot of bands I enjoy and would want to see live, would never come here as the market for it isn't enough to justify playing here (a part of that is due to us not having a venue that is mid-tier, our venues are either too big or too small). It's why I saw Geoff Tate (for the voice) and Queensryche (for the sound and tone and closest to/has the most original/classic members of the band), same with Great White.

But apparently, we now know, it gets to Zonder when his drumming style gets called "robotic" if he took offense and said what he did about MP calling it exactly that. That's just Zonder, and I am not going to fault a guy for being whom his personality is, even if it tends to come off dickish and even a bit mean. It's how some people are.

[Mister Gold]

Crazy to think this one particular concert in San Paulo from 2012 has been the source of multiple examples of drama over the years. If memory serves me right, this was also the same show where the members of Queensryche had a tense meeting with Geoff Tate about the future of the band that ultimately led to him being fired a few months later and Tate was caught on camera spitting at Scott Rockenfield and Michael Wilton throughout the show.

As for the whole Portnoy vs Zonder debacle, I kinda get both sides here. On the one hand, Portnoy stepped in to help for this one show and obviously didn't have much time to properly learn all the songs. That's a thankless task for anyone, especially considering how crazy Mark Zonder's drumming is on those Fates albums. Simply put, it's not really fair for Zonder to compare how Bobby's handled the job as the band's full-time drummer vs the other guys who've stepped in here and there for a show or two. On the other hand, it sounds like Portnoy's poked fun at and criticized Zonder's playing style in the past and we all know that he seems to thrive a bit on drama.

[devieira73]

I get the both sides on this story. If MP was very sincere to call Mark's drumming robotic, I think it was fair Mark opinating also quite frankly about MP performance. Ok, some finesse would be fine.
Also, despite that, I think there's really different approachs of them about what to do with the original drum parts of the songs. What a new drummer should do? Play exactly what was recorded or take the liberty to make his own arrengement? I don't think there's a right answer to that. I think, as professionals, they should just ask to the rest of the band before play live what to do and then do it accordingly.
In Fates's case, it seems that Jim it's ok with the drummers taking some liberties. In the live DVD with Nick, he prepared previously for a full tour and played the songs a bit his way.

[pg1067]

I came across these photos the other day from the Hollywood show with the Parallels line up.  Terribly blurry (I think I took them on a Blackberry).  Hard to believe this was nearly 11 years ago!

[Qrusher14242]

@pg1067

That was an amazing show! I think i must of been to the left of you, i was in front of Ray for this show. The sound at this show was just amazing. Getting to hear this band live was sure a treat.
I wore a black Redemption shirt and i remember Ray pointing to it during a song. 

It doesn't seem like that long ago!  What i wouldn't give to see that lineup live again...

[goo-goo]

Wish the band could have released one of the Parallels anniversary shows.

[pg1067]

@pg1067

That was an amazing show! I think i must of been to the left of you, i was in front of Ray for this show. The sound at this show was just amazing. Getting to hear this band live was sure a treat.
I wore a black Redemption shirt and i remember Ray pointing to it during a song. 

It doesn't seem like that long ago!  What i wouldn't give to see that lineup live again...

Definitely.  At one point, I yelled, "yeah Joe!" (probably after they finished Monument), and he kinda did a "thank you" gesture.  The band that opened - Final Gravity - is releasing a new album later this month.

[wolfking]

I finally got around to spinning my copy of the new album.  I really like this.  It has the riffs and heaviness of TOF but the diversity of old FW.  There's a lot of moments on here that bring Disconnected to mind for me.

I have no issue with the length and can find something to like in each song.  Love the production too.  Sounds very beefy.  Early faves are the opener, Alone we Walk and Longest Shadow but only had 2 proper listens. 

I hope the band do opt to continue making albums.  Jim is being creative as ever and is on a roll.  Some of his guitar work on this is some of his best ever too.

[goo-goo]

I finally got around to spinning my copy of the new album.  I really like this.  It has the riffs and heaviness of TOF but the diversity of old FW.  There's a lot of moments on here that bring Disconnected to mind for me.

I have no issue with the length and can find something to like in each song.  Love the production too.  Sounds very beefy.  Early faves are the opener, Alone we Walk and Longest Shadow but only had 2 proper listens. 

I hope the band do opt to continue making albums.  Jim is being creative as ever and is on a roll.  Some of his guitar work on this is some of his best ever too.

I'm loving this album more on more. I honestly think this album has nods to all of the previous FW albums. I hear Disconnected, APSOG, Parallels/IO era;No Exit/PS...some of the riffing is reminiscent of early Fates with John Arch (Awaken the Guardian) as well. And I say this just on the music side and not counting the lyrics.

[wolfking]

I finally got around to spinning my copy of the new album.  I really like this.  It has the riffs and heaviness of TOF but the diversity of old FW.  There's a lot of moments on here that bring Disconnected to mind for me.

I have no issue with the length and can find something to like in each song.  Love the production too.  Sounds very beefy.  Early faves are the opener, Alone we Walk and Longest Shadow but only had 2 proper listens. 

I hope the band do opt to continue making albums.  Jim is being creative as ever and is on a roll.  Some of his guitar work on this is some of his best ever too.

I'm loving this album more on more. I honestly think this album has nods to all of the previous FW albums. I hear Disconnected, APSOG, Parallels/IO era;No Exit/PS...some of the riffing is reminiscent of early Fates with John Arch (Awaken the Guardian) as well. And I say this just on the music side and not counting the lyrics.

Yeah, I can hear all that too actually.  Speaking of lyrics, I'm not much of a lyric guy but some of these are amazing.  That intro to Alone We Walk is brilliant.

[Samsara]

re: Zonder/Portnoy

Zonder's not wrong that Portnoy didn't quite capture the essence of Fates Warning's drum parts. That said, Zonder's comparison of Portnoy's work to Bobby's is wrong. MP came in, learned the song, played them with his own style, doing his friends a solid by filling in. I think the situation would have been totally different if MP joined the band full time. Then I could see MP learning everything note for note, as Bobby did. Again, Bobby is FW's drummer -- the expectation is and should be that he'd learn everything note for note. But when MP filled in, I never expected that, nor do I think anyone should have. I think it was a cool thing hearing MP do the drums. Just as it was cool to see Nick fill in.

MP and MZ bickering on social media and taking shots at one another is stupid though. Pick up the damn phone.

re: Long Day Goodnight

As big a FW fan as I am, I haven't revisited LDG as frequently as I did Theories of Flight. I like it, and I like it better overall than DIADL, but if I am just going by feel, I think Theories is a better record all the way around. But LDG has some stellar stuff. I just need to go back to it more. But the fact I am not compelled to as much, to me is a tell tale sign as to what my preference is.

edit - I just put it on. 

re: Parallels reunion shows

>>>>I was supposed to head down there, the Mrs. encouraged me to, but it would have been a whirlwind, and I likely would have ended up sleeping in the airport. LOL. Busy time for me back then. Always wished I would have done it anyway.

re: FW future

>>>>Who knows what they will do? If FW calls it quits on making new music, then why go out on the road and be a nostalgia act? I mean, I get going out in 2021-2022 to do shows supporting LDG. I could also appreciate a 30th anniversary tour of Parallels, given it was their most commercially popular record. But after that? I mean, I could see them doing festivals in Europe, but I wouldn't see them touring the states at all. It sort of runs counter to what FW always sorta did -- supporting its newest music and looking ahead.

I hope I get to see them live a few more times (I think I've seen em 8 times), but once they tour LDG, and maybe do one last Parallels cycle, if they aren't going to make new music, I hope they just shut it down entirely.

[EPICVIEW]

Im w MP on this one...  and Im not a fan of FW at all , IMO very overrated band  IMO MP is far bigger star than anyone in FW

[kirksnosehair]

As big a FW fan as I am, I haven't revisited LDG as frequently as I did Theories of Flight. I like it, and I like it better overall than DIADL, but if I am just going by feel, I think Theories is a better record all the way around. But LDG has some stellar stuff. I just need to go back to it more. But the fact I am not compelled to as much, to me is a tell tale sign as to what my preference is.

Pretty much where I'm at with it.  I like it.  There are some really great moments on it, but I just don't think it rises to the same level as Theories of Flight, which, to me, is one of the best albums Fates Warning has ever recorded.  That said, I'm still enjoying listening to the new one.   

[Samsara]

As big a FW fan as I am, I haven't revisited LDG as frequently as I did Theories of Flight. I like it, and I like it better overall than DIADL, but if I am just going by feel, I think Theories is a better record all the way around. But LDG has some stellar stuff. I just need to go back to it more. But the fact I am not compelled to as much, to me is a tell tale sign as to what my preference is.

Pretty much where I'm at with it.  I like it.  There are some really great moments on it, but I just don't think it rises to the same level as Theories of Flight, which, to me, is one of the best albums Fates Warning has ever recorded.  That said, I'm still enjoying listening to the new one.

Same. Theories is top-three or four for me in FW's catalog. I knew it would be difficult for them to top it. But that doesn't mean I don't really like Long Day Goodnight, because I do. 

[wolfking]

I don't think anyone should have expected this to match or be better than TOF.  That's a one of a kind album.  That thinking made meet approach this new one with no pre conceived judgement.  If you're expecting something better than TOF, it's going to be hard not to be disappointed.

[kirksnosehair]

I don't think anyone should have expected this to match or be better than TOF.  That's a one of a kind album.  That thinking made meet approach this new one with no pre conceived judgement.  If you're expecting something better than TOF, it's going to be hard not to be disappointed.

Yeah, I agree with this wholeheartedly. 


This thread has reminded me that I should spend a little more time with Darkness In a Different Light

[pg1067]

re: Parallels reunion shows

>>>>I was supposed to head down there, the Mrs. encouraged me to, but it would have been a whirlwind, and I likely would have ended up sleeping in the airport. LOL. Busy time for me back then. Always wished I would have done it anyway.
 it down entirely.

I always find it fascinating that the guy you're interacting with on social media might have been standing next to you at a show 10 or 30 years ago.

Maybe this belongs in the mundane stories thread, but I'll put it here.  The guy who played guitar in most of the bands I was in back in the day was a good friend of mine even after there was no more band.  One day in the late 90s I got a call from his wife, completely out of the blue, telling me that he had told her he was leaving her and their two kids because he had been cheating for a while and never really loved her (they had been together more than 10 years at that point).  He even told her that I and another guy from the band knew about the cheating, so she was initially pissed at me.  A few days or a week later, our receptionist buzzes me and tells me that "Frank Aresti" is on the phone for me.  I knew it was the guitar player, and I was pissed, so I didn't take the call.  Never heard from him again.  Fast forward to the Parallels reunion show, and I'm standing near the front of the stage when, low and behold, who walks up next to me?  I pretended for a moment that I didn't recognize him in the hopes he'd think maybe it wasn't me, but no such luck.  Super awkward.  I guess it's not too surprising that he was also at a small club show for a not super popular band, but still.  Fortunately, we only engaged in some small talk, and he didn't seem all that interested in continuing the conversation after the show.  Haven't heard from him since then.

[TAC]

So wait...you were in a band and friends with Frank Aresti, and you knew about his cheating?

[pg1067]

So wait...you were in a band and friends with Frank Aresti, and you knew about his cheating?

No...the guitar player from my band (NOT Frank Aresti) called and told the receptionist he was Frank Aresti.  I assume he was just goofing around by giving a fake name.

[TAC]

Oh, gotcha!

Were you aware of the cheating?

[pg1067]

Oh, gotcha!

Were you aware of the cheating?

You had me a little horrified for a second that I had defamed Frank!   

The short answer is that I was not aware of the cheating.  However, I did recall one day, about five years earlier, when the guitar player ("GP") and drummer showed up for practice after work.  GP told me that some girl showed up at their work (GP and the drummer worked at the same place) and tried to get something going.  He told me that he had something going with this girl before I had met him and his wife (then girlfriend).  He said she was super hot but was on the wrong side of the Vicki Mendoza Diagonal ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eo0F6mX9JIw ).  Apparently, GP had kept things going long after he led me to believe.

[TAC]

Oh, gotcha!

Were you aware of the cheating?

You had me a little horrified for a second that I had defamed Frank!   

 

I did think that was a bit bold of you to post that in the thread. I missed the nuance..

[wolfking]

  Frank seems like a clean cut kind of guy too, would have been a surprise.

On Frank, I was initially disappointed with Frank not being involved with the album but it's a non issue really when listening to the album.  Mike adds a nice touch but I can see why Frank wouldn't be involved.  He's been out of the band for a while now so it makes sense.

[v_clortho]

Oh, gotcha!

Were you aware of the cheating?

You had me a little horrified for a second that I had defamed Frank!   

 

I did think that was a bit bold of you to post that in the thread. I missed the nuance..

I was thinking the same thing as TAC.

[jjrock88]

Same thing, I was quite surprised lol

[wolfking]

yeah, and then I thought Frank came up to you at his own show and you were super cold to him.  I thought Frank would have been thinking, "Why is this guy giving me the cold shoulder, wtf have I done?" 

[TAC]

 

I ain't so dumb, am I?

[Mister Gold]

As big a FW fan as I am, I haven't revisited LDG as frequently as I did Theories of Flight. I like it, and I like it better overall than DIADL, but if I am just going by feel, I think Theories is a better record all the way around. But LDG has some stellar stuff. I just need to go back to it more. But the fact I am not compelled to as much, to me is a tell tale sign as to what my preference is.

Pretty much where I'm at with it.  I like it.  There are some really great moments on it, but I just don't think it rises to the same level as Theories of Flight, which, to me, is one of the best albums Fates Warning has ever recorded.  That said, I'm still enjoying listening to the new one.

Yeah, likewise. LDGN is still a great album and I'd argue a stronger entry than DIADL, but Theories is just one of those brilliant 'lightning in a bottle' albums IMO. Probably my favorite ever from the band.

[kirksnosehair]

A lot of those "tell it like it is" guys are just plain insulting. That's not honest, that's just them being a dick.

Not saying that this applies here, but Zonder could have worded it better and his response/excuse is just lame.

No, that's exactly what happened here, Zonder comes off as a gigantic fucking asshole here.  Full stop