I like that, a few years ago - might've been at DT.net, even - there was a massive thread on here going on about a comment in the WDADRU commentary, where John Myung was saying that he really missed the old style of writing, and Mike just went "yeah, that's not really feasible any more."
It feels like that comment - which we all overanalysed and studied the hell out of - has received some closure.
Something happened between MP and JM. I don't know what it is and I'm not saying it was some huge moment, but it was something. MP singled him out in his Classic Rock interview as an example of what was wrong with the band. I can't be the only one who remembers the WDADRU commentary when MP quickly shut him down. It was actually kinda awkward. I can't help but think they didn't do a band commentary track after that specifically because of that moment. And of course there's the lyric rule. You can say "well, it's just a new rule that's in there, and it's just a rule." But who else was it meant to possibly address considering that everyone else wrote their own lyrics and vocal melodies?
MP didn't feel JM needed to contribute, and apparently neither did JM. Listen to the bass stems from BCSL. They sound like they were recorded in one take by someone who didn't give a crap. Considering that every other JM bass track I've heard from Rock Band is almost perfectly played, again, something happened.
And now, all the sudden, JM has changed his role in the band from being almost completely quiet to actually being assertive at times and even making a point of doing so in the documentary.
Look, aren't there people in your life you basically just shut down around? You don't want to tell jokes around them because they make fun of you or don't laugh. You don't want to go anywhere with them because they dominate conversations in the car in a weird way. You don't want to play video games with them because they constantly tell you you suck. How do we know MP wasn't this person to JM? Their actions certainly indicate it.
I don't even really understand what the counter-argument is. Everyone else's role in the band has changed a bit, certainly. JR is a much bigger personality, JP's the number 1 guy, and JLB's role in everything has grown a bit. But these are all extensions of who they were before. But, if you say everything else I just wrote isn't true, what's the reason JM changed so drastically? Magic? It's not like he's just stepping into the void like everyone else. Otherwise he'd just do a bigger version of his past role, which is to do an interview here and there.
Look at the videos of the writing process for this album vs. the last few. Without MP, the energy seems more calm, serious, and contemplative, things that seem to be huge parts of JM's personality. The environment makes far more sense to him. But even before that JLB said JM was speaking his mind way more than before.
Even if the basslines have a bigger role in the music, I'll be happy. I'd be really excited if he started writing riffs again though. The first riff of The Glass Prison (after the melodic intro) is one of my favorite DT riffs ever.* And if he did something like he did with Trial of Tears, where he brought in a demo? Oh my god. I'd freak out.
And god forbid he writes lyrics. My life would be complete.
Also, that makes it sound like JM's possibly second in command, writing-wise? It's possibly just because we heard the least from him on interviews in the past, so we're just now seeing that he's getting to lock in, but it feels like he's gone up a peg in the chain of writing, which is brilliant. I love JM.
Far be it for me of all people to say this, but I'm not sure we can presume that. Jordan's been the number two music guy for a while and his mojo's actually increased since MP left. But I do think (a) the writing process is a little less stratified in terms of pure numerical ranking and (b) even if he's the number three guy, that's more than almost nothing.
*In the Ten Degrees of Turbulent Drumming category, Mike says that riff started out with him and Myung jamming on it.
The thing about "the rule" is, I'm not sure the idea that Myung was being victimised by it holds any water whatsoever. I don't buy it.
It's always spun as "Portnoy oppresses Myung," but if you look at it the other way around, Myung absolutely has the option to write vocal melodies whenever he likes. The other guys all do it, but he doesn't. The way it went was that he'd write a poem, essentially - "freeform" - and it was then up to the other guys to match it to the music. Which is one hell of a headache. Have you ever tried editing? Hard enough editing your own stuff, let alone someone else's. And there's more than just a word count to think about. You've got to change words to fit new rhythms, slice out bits that you wish you could keep, all the while remaining faithful to the original. That's an odyssey. It's chopping up someone else's painting, disrespecting their original vision, and if it's not your own work it can be very uncomfortable. I totally
get why the guys would want to go "look - please, edit your own stuff."
So, while "Supercilious Portnoy oppresses quiet Myung" is a very easy narrative, I think it's perhaps a little lopsided. (Not that I particularly support any rule that makes Myung-lyrics scarce, but equally, he could've always just written a vocal melody.)
Also, I get the feeling that the amount of Myung contribution to the documentary stems more from the editing decisions than any increased openness.* They'll have interviewed them all specifically, and some editor probably went "oh, we've not had much Myung, put some clips of him in." Myung's always been a quiet bloke, and he probably always will be. I think he's camera-shy, to tell the truth. But when JM speaks, we listen, and it fills me with optimism. I hope I'm wrong inasmuch as it's just the editing, though - I'd love to see a slightly more vocal Myung.
They're both nitpicks, though. I agree with absolutely everything else, and think you've put it superbly. I'm typing like a fucking dunce today, so pardon my complete lack of eloquence - I'm essentially just going to parrot everything you've just said, only with worse phrasing - but Myung looks like he feels at home. He's in the environment he's clearly wanted to go back to for a while now - and, I think, not having Portnoy's loud, exuberant personality around is probably good for Myung. They're clearly opposite ends of a spectrum. The rest of the guys have always been more balanced, but with Portnoy being omnipresent and a lot more vocal they'll have spent more time reflecting Portnoy's personality than Myung's.
I think Myung's finally got room to breathe. The entire band seem to be in such a healthy mindset. The healthiest they've been in a while. They've got the right drummer, the right environment, a brand new atmosphere with cleaner air, and - for the first time in a fair few years - something to prove.
I've always insisted that rumours of DT's demise have always been
greatly exaggerated, and I stick by that. DT don't
need a new golden age. But the change is so thrilling and reinvigorating that this could easily be the start of one.
*In another way, though, this absolutely reinforces the rift you're suggesting, because when Portnoy directed, Myung was nowhere to be seen. But I'm just getting the disagreements out of the way before I move onto the wall of "hear, hear!"
Topic: Myung Speaks on the writing process (Read 20748 times)
