Mike Portnoy leaves Dream Theater

[skydivingninja]

I think MP is overreacting (*shocked face*).  The posting he is overreacting is one answer that was transcribed from a much longer interview.  He of all people should know the problem with taking things out of context.

Not to mention that the MP stuff is still on DT.net, contrary to what MP said in his post.

Yeah...its really sad that MP is acting like this.  I kinda want to head over to MP.com and tell everyone "It's okay, come here and discuss with us on DTF!  Your JLB threads won't be deleted, don't worry!" 

This is kinda hypocritical of him, too.  "I want to come on this show and make sure my words aren't taken out of context and over analyzed, Eddie."
*reads Blabbermouth excerpt and over analyzes out of context quotes*
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH I'M GOING TO DELETE JLB TOUR DATES THAT SOMEONE ELSE POSTED BECAUSE *I* DON'T WANT TO PROMOTE HIM EVEN THOUGH I COULD HAVE KEPT MY MOUTH SHUT AND NO ONE WOULD HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT IT ONE WAY OR THE OTHER."

[FlashCE]

Mike Portnoy being Mike Portnoy.

Fans are surprised.

[Bertielee]

Don't want to be banned but, to me, MP is just an attention w....! I needed to say it. Aaahhh! I feel better now...

B.Lee

[Tick]

Don't want to be banned but, to me, MP is just an attention w....! I needed to say it. Aaahhh! I feel better now...

B.Lee

"Don't want to be banned but"

I kind of think you do?

[Bertielee]

Don't want to be banned but, to me, MP is just an attention w....! I needed to say it. Aaahhh! I feel better now...

B.Lee

"Don't want to be banned but"

I kind of think you do?

C'mon, Tick! I don't want to be banned because what will i do with my free time? Spend hours with my wife, go see my son play tennis, help my daughter with her homework, play the guitar...? Oh, wait. i have many things to do...
No, in all seriousness, I love this forum as much as i used to love MP's, which is a lot. Note that i didn't say the word...

B.Lee

[DreamerTV]

Mike Portnoy being Mike Portnoy.

Fans are surprised.

This, at all.

[Tick]

Don't want to be banned but, to me, MP is just an attention w....! I needed to say it. Aaahhh! I feel better now...

B.Lee

"Don't want to be banned but"

I kind of think you do?

C'mon, Tick! I don't want to be banned because what will i do with my free time? Spend hours with my wife, go see my son play tennis, help my daughter with my homework, play the guitar...? Oh, wait. i have many things to do...
No, in all seriousness, I love this forum as much as i used to love MP's, which is a lot. Note that i didn't say the word...

B.Lee

I don't want you banned!
Although there is much merit to the things you could do if you were. It kind of struck a chord with me, because I'm a board w....!

[Super Dude]

Mike Portnoy being Mike Portnoy.

Fans are surprised.

[Bertielee]

Don't want to be banned but, to me, MP is just an attention w....! I needed to say it. Aaahhh! I feel better now...

B.Lee

"Don't want to be banned but"

I kind of think you do?

C'mon, Tick! I don't want to be banned because what will i do with my free time? Spend hours with my wife, go see my son play tennis, help my daughter with my homework, play the guitar...? Oh, wait. i have many things to do...
No, in all seriousness, I love this forum as much as i used to love MP's, which is a lot. Note that i didn't say the word...

B.Lee

I don't want you banned!
Although there is much merit to the things you could do if you were. It kind of struck a chord with me, because I'm a board w....!

No, no, don't worry, I didn't believe for a second you wanted me banned. It all struck me that what MP wanted was only attention, hence my remark.
BTW, I don't criticize anybody for spending a lot of time on the forum. It's their right and yours for that matter. Its' MP who's getting on my nerves now, nobody else.

B.Lee

[Perpetual Change]

So refreshing to see the MP.com users actually be honest with him for once.

Mike Portnoy being Mike Portnoy.

Fans are surprised.

Hehe. Sad, but true I suppose.

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

The whole situation sucks. I, for once, no longer want MP back in the band.

Edit: Isn't it ironic MP is taking so seriously something posted at Blabbermouth? The same Blabbermouth he has come to criticize? Now it seems he just needs silly excuses to bitch.
Also, big move at deleting the JLB tour dates thread. It's not like MP forum members need to do extensive searching to find them on the internet.

[Tick]

Can someone enlighten me as to when Dream Theater considered replacing James and what was said publicly at that time? I would love to know.

[TheOutlawXanadu]

If I am not mistaken, after the SDOIT tour they sat him down and told him to straighten his vocals out, get in shape, change his stage presence, etc.

Nothing was said publicly at the time. We only found out through Lifting Shadows.

[Bertielee]

The whole situation sucks. I, for once, no longer want MP back in the band.

Edit: Isn't it ironic MP is taking so seriously something posted at Blabbermouth? The same Blabbermouth he has come to criticize? Now it seems he just needs silly excuses to bitch.
Also, big move at deleting the JLB tour dates thread. It's not like MP forum members need to do extensive searching to find them on the internet.

Yes, and fanboy Duke on MP forums even wrote, I quote : "JLB lost alot of exposure for his tour as a result." I mean, come on! So, everybody only waits for MP to say something on his site to do it or not? It's laughable!

B.Lee

BTW, I love it how MP drops a bomb and lets fan do the writing without making any further comment. Geez!

[?]

Looks like all the possibilities of MP rejoining DT at some point in the future are gone. Quite ironic indeed that MP is taking JLB's words as an insult, considering what he has said about JLB himself.

[Dublagent66]

The whole situation sucks. I, for once, no longer want MP back in the band.

Edit: Isn't it ironic MP is taking so seriously something posted at Blabbermouth? The same Blabbermouth he has come to criticize? Now it seems he just needs silly excuses to bitch.
Also, big move at deleting the JLB tour dates thread. It's not like MP forum members need to do extensive searching to find them on the internet.

Yeah, it is ridiculous.  Like I said before, if certain people can't handle criticism, they should limit their exposure to it.

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

Looks like all the possibilities of MP rejoining DT at some point in the future are gone. Quite ironic indeed that MP is taking JLB's words as an insult, considering what he has said about JLB himself.

MP's attitude doesn't fit Dream Theater's attitude at all. The other 4 guys are as classy and reasonable as it gets, and MP is a kid.

[Perpetual Change]

This is kinda hypocritical of him, too.  "I want to come on this show and make sure my words aren't taken out of context and over analyzed, Eddie."
*reads Blabbermouth excerpt and over analyzes out of context quotes*
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH I'M GOING TO DELETE JLB TOUR DATES THAT SOMEONE ELSE POSTED BECAUSE *I* DON'T WANT TO PROMOTE HIM EVEN THOUGH I COULD HAVE KEPT MY MOUTH SHUT AND NO ONE WOULD HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT IT ONE WAY OR THE OTHER."

LOL

My theory is this is Mike's game. As Kev said awhile ago, Mike's no idiot. You don't survive in the music biz and win the kinds of battles Mike's won over the record companies by being an idiot, either.

Really, Mike's playing a game here. He wanted to leave DT, so he did but he wanted to do it in a way that would make him look good-- like it wasn't his idea. His first big mistake was thinking that DT fans would support him over the other guys. When he realized he was wrong about that, he pretty much shut down all discussion of it and told the fans that it was "NEVER HIS IDEA" and that he "NEVER WANTED TO LEAVE" to save face... essentially putting all the blame for his own choices on the other guys.

Now, frustrated since he can't stomach the fact that DT fans are going to be, well, just as negative as fans of any other metal band (you wanted DT to have balls, right MP ), he's trying to save face YET AGAIN by fabricating a conflict in which he looks like the good guy. "The guys fired me and now they're saying they're happy about it!   " He's drawing lines in the sand.

Mike, being the bully that he is, chooses the only member who is perhaps criticized almost as often as him: James LaBrie. Sure, John and Jordan and Myung have ALL said they're excited about Mike being gone. But fans have beat up on James in the past, maybe they'll beat up on him again. Meanwhile, Myung's too quiet and popular to be angry at, John's reputation with fans is pretty much impenetrable, and while Jordan has received a ton of criticism no-one with an ounce of sanity would ever believe that he's an asshole. So beat up James! Next to you, he's the weakest in the eyes of the fans! Right MP??? Big, tough-guy Captain James LaBrie going after Mike, who's sad and just wants to move on with his life.

WRONG.

The truth is fans LIKE James LaBrie. Hell, we LOVE him. He's the voice of the band we all love. His new solo album is fantastic. He's got a great personality. His performances lately have been god-tier. Everyone wants him to contribute more, and write his own melodies again.  Anyone who's stuck with Dream Theater up to this point knows that James LaBrie is the least of the band's perceived 'problems.'

Mike's already learned the hard way that fans will choose the 4 guys in DT over him if he makes things ugly. Now he's going to learn that the fans will choose any member over him 1 on 1. Better not go down that road, Mike...

Honest--to see my place
Open--to other ways
Willingness--to understand

Justice--but do not judge
Courtesy--for others' flaws
Kindness--it's not that hard

Self-restraint--of toungue and pen
Inventory--my daily friend
Analysis--let down your guard

[robwebster]

"So I had the tour dates thread open in a tab and when I went to refresh it, it was gone?   Was it deleted for some reason?"

"I'm afraid your eyes are not playing tricks on you....

I was willing to ignore that the DT guys insisted all MP-related stuff be removed from DT.net....but then on Monday, reading the Blabbermouth headlines with James insensitively proclaiming they are "not sad at all" about my departure from DT, I cannot in happy standing "promote" his solo tour....

I am so sad it's come to this, but I am even more shocked and hurt by James' completely disrespectful quote...... 

MP"

https://www.mikeportnoy.com/forum/m2599140.aspx

 

...!

Fuck!

My mouth actually dropped open.

Up until this point, I wouldn't've called the way he's dealt with this childish, in any sense. He's a man in a tricky situation, and he's been making the best of a bad lot, which he wasn't satisfied with. Fair doos.

But calling James disrespectful for not being in floods of tears? For accepting that life moves on? For taking change in his stride and moving on in a healthy and optimistic manner?

To treat it like it was a loaded comment? A personal attack?

That's a bit indefensible.

I don't want to say moronic, as it'd be wrong. Everyone makes bad decisions, and I couldn't say for sure that I wouldn't overreact in a similar way. But that doesn't look good.



My sympathy's drying up pretty quickly. Which is a shame, 'cause Mike Portnoy's been my favourite drummer for quite a long time.

[TAC]

If I am not mistaken, after the SDOIT tour they sat him down and told him to straighten his vocals out, get in shape, change his stage presence, etc.

Nothing was said publicly at the time. We only found out through Lifting Shadows.

Actually, MP discusses it on his Live At Budokan commentary.

[TheOutlawXanadu]

When I was six or seven, I thought that once you became an adult, a switch flipped and you immediately became mature. I thought that, at some point in everyone's lives, they stopped being childish.

Then I moved to the suburbs in North Carolina and was introduced to a bunch of rich people who challenged that view. People who I only thought existed on TV that liked hanging out and country clubs and tennis courts and created more drama amongst each other than schoolgirls.

One incident I remember: My sister got into an argument at school with a friend over who should play goalie for the JV team. The friend's parent called my sister - not my parents, my sister - and yelled at her for 10 minutes. My sister was 12. The parent was 45.

What is the parallel I am trying to draw here, you ask?

Portnoy is acting like a child. He is acting in a way that defies logic or reason.

As PC insightfully pointed out: This is a guy who has repeatedly had to defend himself from quotes being taken out of context. I have no evidence, but I remember him doing an interview circa-2005 where he said everything written on Blabbermouth must be taken with a grain of salt.

And now here he is, 1) Taking quotes out of context and 2) Not taking everything written on Blabbermouth with a grain of salt.

At the start of this fiasco, I defended MP. If what happened to him happened to me, I would act the same way, I said. But now he is just acting stupid.

His anger over not being, and feeling, needed in his own band has pushed him over the edge. Always a bit of a hot head and way too quick off the cuff, he is now being downright unreasonable and taking the same actions against others (specifically JLB) he once dismissed as wrong.

The only defensible explanation is that this is Mike's "game", which is only defensible based upon the fact it means he is not illogical or stupid. But then that means he's a prick.

And, honestly, we might be giving him too much credit. The guy might just be an idiot.

[pogoowner]

MP clearly didn't listen to the whole interview.

[PlaysLikeMyung]

This is kinda hypocritical of him, too.  "I want to come on this show and make sure my words aren't taken out of context and over analyzed, Eddie."
*reads Blabbermouth excerpt and over analyzes out of context quotes*
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH I'M GOING TO DELETE JLB TOUR DATES THAT SOMEONE ELSE POSTED BECAUSE *I* DON'T WANT TO PROMOTE HIM EVEN THOUGH I COULD HAVE KEPT MY MOUTH SHUT AND NO ONE WOULD HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT IT ONE WAY OR THE OTHER."

LOL

My theory is this is Mike's game. As Kev said awhile ago, Mike's no idiot. You don't survive in the music biz and win the kinds of battles Mike's won over the record companies by being an idiot, either.

Really, Mike's playing a game here. He wanted to leave DT, so he did but he wanted to do it in a way that would make him look good-- like it wasn't his idea. His first big mistake was thinking that DT fans would support him over the other guys. When he realized he was wrong about that, he pretty much shut down all discussion of it and told the fans that it was "NEVER HIS IDEA" and that he "NEVER WANTED TO LEAVE" to save face... essentially putting all the blame for his own choices on the other guys.

Now, frustrated since he can't stomach the fact that DT fans are going to be, well, just as negative as fans of any other metal band (you wanted DT to have balls, right MP ), he's trying to save face YET AGAIN by fabricating a conflict in which he looks like the good guy. "The guys fired me and now they're saying they're happy about it!   " He's drawing lines in the sand.

Mike, being the bully that he is, chooses the only member who is perhaps criticized almost as often as him: James LaBrie. Sure, John and Jordan and Myung have ALL said they're excited about Mike being gone. But fans have beat up on James in the past, maybe they'll beat up on him again. Meanwhile, Myung's too quiet and popular to be angry at, John's reputation with fans is pretty much impenetrable, and while Jordan has received a ton of criticism no-one with an ounce of sanity would ever believe that he's an asshole. So beat up James! Next to you, he's the weakest in the eyes of the fans! Right MP??? Big, tough-guy Captain James LaBrie going after Mike, who's sad and just wants to move on with his life.

WRONG.

The truth is fans LIKE James LaBrie. Hell, we LOVE him. He's the voice of the band we all love. His new solo album is fantastic. He's got a great personality. His performances lately have been god-tier. Everyone wants him to contribute more, and write his own melodies again.  Anyone who's stuck with Dream Theater up to this point knows that James LaBrie is the least of the band's perceived 'problems.'

Mike's already learned the hard way that fans will choose the 4 guys in DT over him if he makes things ugly. Now he's going to learn that the fans will choose any member over him 1 on 1. Better not go down that road, Mike...

Honest--to see my place
Open--to other ways
Willingness--to understand

Justice--but do not judge
Courtesy--for others' flaws
Kindness--it's not that hard

Self-restraint--of toungue and pen
Inventory--my daily friend
Analysis--let down your guard

I like this post

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

When I was six or seven, I thought that once you became an adult, a switch flipped and you immediately became mature. I thought that, at some point in everyone's lives, they stopped being childish.

Then I moved to the suburbs in North Carolina and was introduced to a bunch of rich people who challenged that view. People who I only thought existed on TV that liked hanging out and country clubs and tennis courts and created more drama amongst each other than schoolgirls.

One incident I remember: My sister got into an argument at school with a friend over who should play goalie for the JV team. The friend's parent called my sister - not my parents, my sister - and yelled at her for 10 minutes. My sister was 12. The parent was 45.

What is the parallel I am trying to draw here, you ask?

Portnoy is acting like a child. He is acting in a way that defies logic or reason.

As PC insightfully pointed out: This is a guy who has repeatedly had to defend himself from quotes being taken out of context. I have no evidence, but I remember him doing an interview circa-2005 where he said everything written on Blabbermouth must be taken with a grain of salt.

And now here he is, 1) Taking quotes out of context and 2) Not taking everything written on Blabbermouth with a grain of salt.

At the start of this fiasco, I defended MP. If what happened to him happened to me, I would act the same way, I said. But now he is just acting stupid.

His anger over not being, and feeling, needed in his own band has pushed him over the edge. Always a bit of a hot head and way too quick off the cuff, he is now being downright unreasonable and taking the same actions against others (specifically JLB) he once dismissed as wrong.

The only defensible explanation is that this is Mike's "game", which is only defensible based upon the fact it means he is not illogical or stupid. But then that means he's a prick.

And, honestly, we might be giving him too much credit. The guy might just be an idiot.

[Chino]

Dream Theater makes it sound like he left the band. Mike makes it sound like the band kicked him out. I don't think anyone is actually 100% sure on what really went down in the final days. Regardless, everyone else seems to have moved on and are trying to be as optimistic as possible. I mean, is Mike trying to burn his bridges? Until this point the majority of the fans have been trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, despite all his whining and looking for people to feel sorry for him. I don't get why he's acting like this.

[robwebster]

Dream Theater makes it sound like he left the band. Mike makes it sound like the band kicked him out. I don't think anyone is actually 100% sure on what really went down in the final days. Regardless, everyone else seems to have moved on and are trying to be as optimistic as possible. I mean, is Mike trying to burn his bridges? Until this point the majority of the fans have been trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, despite all his whining and looking for people to feel sorry for him. I don't get why he's acting like this.

Short answer? 'Cause he's human. I think it's easy to forget that. I know I do, all the time. Mike Portnoy's this sort of oracle of musicianship with a fantasy job and a dizzying reputation, to me. Sometimes, at night, I wake up needing a piss. Or sometimes I'll draw a face onto my hand, just for fun. That's 'cause I'm a human. My image of Mike Portnoy doesn't do that. He sits around behind a drumkit or a computer or a tourbus and is constantly and unequivocally spectacular.

And then I'm left slackjawed when he treats a messy breakup like a messy breakup. He's just as human as George from down the road, who decided to spread nasty lies about his ex-wife when he wasn't busy weeping into his pillow and missing the kids.

[Perpetual Change]

Oh he's burning bridges alright. Mike's the kinda guy who, unfortunately, has the type of obsessive personality where he gets in really bad "funks" and convinces himself that he needs to make a huge change in his life to be happy again, I think. Better he decide to burn bridges with Dream Theater, or else it'd be his wife and family or something.

Can't wait to see how Mike responds to all his fans pointing out how wrong he is, anyway.

[Super Dude]

Human he may be, but surely there's a point where even flawed humans face facts and move on with their lives.  They acknowledge that they're fighting an uphill battle and stop fighting it.

[j]

Jesus, Mike. All this classlessness, hypocrisy, and immaturity makes it difficult for me to be sympathetic.

Most of what I'd say has already been said better in this thread; PC and skydivingninja covered most of it I think.  The way this is playing out is very disappointing and sad.  It's headed down a bad road, and it's most likely one-way only.

-J

[Plasmastrike]

Mike Portnoy being Mike Portnoy.

Fans are surprised.

Pretty much this.

In all seriousness, though. There have been some really great posts by several people in this thread. Won't bother naming.

Here's to the future.

[robwebster]

Human he may be, but surely there's a point where even flawed humans face facts and move on with their lives.  They acknowledge that they're fighting an uphill battle and stop fighting it.

Have you met any humans? We're kinda shit. Irrational, ridiculous, constantly lost in our own silly worlds. Dependent, erratic, depressive, occasionally elated. I stopped going to school once 'cause I broke up with a girl I wasn't even properly going out with. Felt quite sick for a week or two. Now I just feel stupid. Every one of us is our own silly little mess.

Mike's way off rock bottom. Compared to many, he's a model of sanity. Yeah, there's a point where even the most flawed of us are forced to move on. That's miles away for Mike, though. Not to say that he can't just move on. But he won't have to. Look at Dave Mustaine! This is a storm in a teacup compared to any of his outbursts.

[Chino]

From what I have gathered, it is already over. Mike went left, the guys went right.

[Dublagent66]

I have first hand experience in dealing with this kind of behavior.  Both my younger brothers have had life changing experiences.  One is a recovered alcoholic and the other a cancer survivor.  On one hand, it gives them a huge sense of accomplishment and that's a good thing.  The flipside of that is an attitude of "the world revolves around me" so to speak.  Not so good.  This whole thing started when he wanted to take a break and expected the other members to go along with it.  Did I mention arrogance and selfishness?  When you commit yourself to a band for 25 years, you can't just all of a sudden decide to take a break and expect others to do the same.  Now he's all upset about something he caused.  Talk about embarrassingly ridiculous.  I have no tolerance for that whatsoever.

[Chino]

I have first hand experience in dealing with this kind of behavior.  Both my younger brothers have had life changing experiences.  One is a recovered alcoholic and the other a cancer survivor.  On one hand, it gives them a huge sense of accomplishment and that's a good thing.  The flipside of that is an attitude of "the world revolves around me" so to speak.  No so good.  This whole thing started when he wanted to take a break and expected the other members to go along with it.  Did I mention arrogance and selfishness?  When you commit yourself to a band for 25 years, you can't just all of a sudden decide to take a break and expect others to do the same.  Now he's all upset about something he caused.  Talk about embarrassingly ridiculous.  I have no tolerance for that whatsoever.

I am beginning to think the whole "I need a break" thing is bullshit. MP has said in interview prior to the break up that he intended on finishing the A7X tour which goes through January. I think it was more of DT not wanting to wait any longer to get back in the studio.

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

lol as someone over MP.com acknowledged, I do think there's quite more than meets the eye to this.