Marco Minnemann discussing his DT audition (video)

[rumborak]

Regarding the passive-aggressive, I don't really see that. He was pissed after the audition, sure, but I think for good reason.

[johncal]

Just listening to the guy talk tells me he would not be the best fit for DT. Sure he's a tremendous talent but it takes more than that to be part of a TEAM. We saw that with the last DT drummer. I can't think of a better fit for DT than Mangini.

[Ħ]

If he made it clear he wouldn't join the band before the audition, it may be the case that he feels used for going in for a "make-believe" audition for the documentary.

[Rob801]

If he knew he wasn't going to join the band (by his choice) then why go in at all. I don't think I'd audition for a band I knew I didn't want to be a member of... unless maybe I was young and just trying to get experience in auditioning (can't see that being a problem for Marco  ).

If his auditioned was arranged purely to add some spice to the documentary or something and everyone knew it (Dt and MarcoM) then I can't see why he would feel used...

[?]

Even if Marco never had any actual interest in joining DT, he can't deny that being featured in the documentary made him more well-known, since a lot of people had never heard of him before that. I don't think DT/OTE presented him in a bad light, although it was misleading to make people believe he was close to getting the gig.

[MoraWintersoul]

Uh, I just think none of the parties was really on the same page with the other. I don't want to say DT have no hand in his dissatisfaction with how the whole thing turned out, they should have absolutely made it more clear that featuring him in the docu, under those conditions they had for him and everything, was what they wanted, but at the same time, he is the only drummer of the 7 they had any trouble communicating with, and only two of the drummers (Mangini and Wildoer) were really ready to commit to the gig, and I don't think any of them but DT cared a bit for that documentary, so that obviously puts a little guilt on MM2's side, because they would have had problems with the other guys who were only interested in the auditioning experience as well. But I don't hold that against any of them.

[reneranucci]

If he knew he wasn't going to join the band (by his choice) then why go in at all. I don't think I'd audition for a band I knew I didn't want to be a member of... unless maybe I was young and just trying to get experience in auditioning (can't see that being a problem for Marco  ).

If his auditioned was arranged purely to add some spice to the documentary or something and everyone knew it (Dt and MarcoM) then I can't see why he would feel used...

People go to job interviews even though they're not interested in working for that particular company. It's just good common sense, and you never know what's going to happen. Even if Marco wasn't thrilled about being in DT, or in any band (although in the doc he says it would be good to be part of a band that feels like "home"), he had nothing to lose and a lot to win: the audition and chemistry could have gone exceptionally well and changed his opinion about DT and his desire to join the band, they could have offered a really sweet deal that allured him, he would gain more public recognition (which he did), he was attracted by the promise of collaborating in projects with JR and JP (that's why he was disappointed afterwards), or he could just have a great time going to New York, meeting and playing with cool musicians and making some contacts while somebody else is paying for your expenses. Why not? Accepting the audition is the only sensible decision.

I actually don't know if there were any drummers that were contacted and rejected to go to the audition, that would have been very stupid.

[rumborak]

I'm assuming Marco was called by Jordan, saying "hey dude, we're looking for a new drummer because MP left. Why don't you just show up and jam with us. All expenses covered, and even if you don't become our drummer there might still be some later collaboration". I would think Marco will have pointed out to Jordan about his plans (i.e. not wanting to be locked down completely to one band). Then they met, jammed, talked, and parted amicably. And at a later time DT management decided to make the documentary, which however violated Marco's wish of not appearing in such a thing. Management will have weighed their option (PR gain vs potential law suit by Marco) but decided it was worth it. And that's probably where Marco's statement came in with "I was promised a collaboration". Maybe that collaboration was promised in compensation of having violated the terms of the agreement. But, now that he got neither, he probably has good reason to be miffed.

[Nekov]

I'm wondering, why is all this on Marco alone? Derek Roddy also said some not so nice things about that audition

Cheers man....yeah, I started wondering why they would have shown the 4 minutes of just hearing the riff.....and didn't show any of my actually playing that riff.....but, then I figured it out.
Any drummer that wasn't affiliated with RR records in some way....had a "flaw" presented with-in this doc.
They knew they wanted Mike before the Audition, Jordan and JP are doing a project with Marco and Peter plays with James.......so, that made a whole lot of sense to me actually.

I do know that a lot of what they wanted to put in of me playing (such as the songs and our jam) just sounded bad without the recorded audio....so, I understand not wanting to put much of that footage in there....from an editors point of view. (I do some video editing myself...so, I get it.)

Everyone of those drummers told me that the riff they showed them tripped them up for 5 minutes.....so why were Thomas, Virgil, Aquilles and I the only ones who were presented this way?

The DEE DUBS rule man....you'll love em.

D

https://www.drummerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?p=941495

It seems to me that the whole process wasn't handled very well by DT and DT's management so if Marco is upset and wants to be vocal about it then he should be able to do that without people questioning whether he is "passive-aggressive" or something of the sorts.

[goo-goo]

The collaboration between Marco, JR and JP is still open. JP called Marco to see if he was available for his solo album. Once the DT album is finished, both of their schedules will be possibly a bit more open (Marco still has the Aristocrat tour pending and the Satriani one as well). If it's not JP's solo album, it could also be the 2nd reincarnation of LTE.

[Sycsa]

I'm wondering, why is all this on Marco alone? Derek Roddy also said some not so nice things about that audition

Cheers man....yeah, I started wondering why they would have shown the 4 minutes of just hearing the riff.....and didn't show any of my actually playing that riff.....but, then I figured it out.
Any drummer that wasn't affiliated with RR records in some way....had a "flaw" presented with-in this doc.
They knew they wanted Mike before the Audition, Jordan and JP are doing a project with Marco and Peter plays with James.......so, that made a whole lot of sense to me actually.

I do know that a lot of what they wanted to put in of me playing (such as the songs and our jam) just sounded bad without the recorded audio....so, I understand not wanting to put much of that footage in there....from an editors point of view. (I do some video editing myself...so, I get it.)

Everyone of those drummers told me that the riff they showed them tripped them up for 5 minutes.....so why were Thomas, Virgil, Aquilles and I the only ones who were presented this way?

The DEE DUBS rule man....you'll love em.

D

https://www.drummerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?p=941495

It seems to me that the whole process wasn't handled very well by DT and DT's management so if Marco is upset and wants to be vocal about it then he should be able to do that without people questioning whether he is "passive-aggressive" or something of the sorts.

If Marco is upset, he's in his right to voice his opinion. However, putting smileys after saying "they lied" and "FU DT" does come off as butthurt and PA. If you publicly express your opinion on FB, you can expect feedback of all sorts. I personally was mildly annoyed seeing that comment considering all the fame and recognition he got from that documentary/reality show thingy. He should have played it more cool. I still like his music though and I'm glad I was exposed to his playing.

[rumborak]

Keep in mind that Marco was wrongfully accused of slipping the new drummer's name, and got all kinds of nasty flak from DT fans. I see nothing butthurt or passive-aggressive about his comments, only a guy who is pissed at having become a victim of DT management's calculated screw-over.

[bosk1]

Keep in mind that Marco was wrongfully accused of slipping the new drummer's name, and got all kinds of nasty flak from DT fans. I see nothing butthurt or passive-aggressive about his comments, only a guy who is pissed at having become a victim of DT management's calculated screw-over.

It's fine for you to discuss what you think happened and how Minneman might feel about it, but saying DT and/or their management intentionally engaged in wrongdoing is crossing the line, especially when stated as fact.  That needs to stop.

[Mebert78]

Just thinking more about the DVD... Why couldn't the producers have started the documentary by letting the DT guys openly admit that Mangini was the favorite and he was the one to beat in their eyes?  I think that would've been fine with me.  Most of us thought that anyway.  However, the DVD instead leads the viewer to believe that is was a tight competition, which wasn't really the case according to Minnemann.  He was never even a legit candidate.  The inaccurate portrayal makes the whole documentary feel manufactured to me, and I'm kinda sour on it now.  Again, it's not DT's fault.  The producers just chose to make the audition process seem more suspenseful and sexy than it really was.  Personally, I don't really like that.  Just tell it like it is, IMO.

[bosk1]

Well, to be fair, I'm not really sure the band actually didn't consider Minnemann to be a legit candidate.  The only thing we have to go on are a few short statements from Minnemann that do not really say specifically what was said or when they were said.  After the fact, it seems certain that there was at least some miscommunication.  But it's not clear that it was anything more than that. 

[ariich]

Keep in mind that Marco was wrongfully accused of slipping the new drummer's name, and got all kinds of nasty flak from DT fans. I see nothing butthurt or passive-aggressive about his comments, only a guy who is pissed at having become a victim of DT management's calculated screw-over.

It's fine for you to discuss what you think happened and how Minneman might feel about it, but saying DT and/or their management intentionally engaged in wrongdoing is crossing the line, especially when stated as fact.  That needs to stop.

I was about to say something similar. This is all very speculative, and in some cases quite a stretch. For example, I very much doubt they considered the documentary idea as an afterthough, as every audition was professionally filmed with multiple cameras, so I'm pretty sure there was always an intention to do something like that.

[Nekov]

If the intention was there then Rumbo has a point. If Marco stated that he didn't want any footage to be shown and was promised that but then he does get included then it is a calculated screw-over, maybe not by DT but sure by management or the editors.

[rumborak]

That's really all I'm saying. I don't see where the speculation would come in, outside of suggesting that Marco fabricated all of this.
Keep also in mind that he wasn't the only participant who had misgivings about the auditions.
I'm also not on sone crusade against Dream Theater. The music business is a tough business, and honestly, that disregarding of Marco's wishes is a minor wrinkle. All I'm saying is that he probably has a good right to be pissed off. In the end I even agree with DT's decision to include Marco in the documentary. It was a major boost to the docu to have him in there (without him there wouldn't really have been much competition in the audition), and Marco's desire to not have the footage used that was being taken was probably a little naive.

[ZirconBlue]

We're only hearing one side of the story, so people need to stop just taking everything Marco says at face value.  Clearly there was some misunderstanding, but we don't have enough information to just assume anyone was acting maliciously.

[DebraKadabra]

We're only hearing one side of the story, so people need to stop just taking everything Marco says at face value.  Clearly there was some misunderstanding, but we don't have enough information to just assume anyone was acting maliciously.

[bosk1]

We're only hearing one side of the story, so people need to stop just taking everything Marco says at face value.  Clearly there was some misunderstanding, but we don't have enough information to just assume anyone was acting maliciously.

Well, that's what *I* was trying to say in my post too, but I notice you didn't give me the clap.    Wait...

[Nick]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bw2X1oq_js

[DebraKadabra]

Well, that's what *I* was trying to say in my post too, but I notice you didn't give me the clap.    Wait...

Beggars can't be choosers, you know.

[SnakeEyes]

Sorry, I don't buy any of this at all.  DT does NOT seem like the type of band to go against someone's wishes.  JP would never, ever do that.  Neither would the other guys.  Seems like he auditioned, didn't get picked, now he's trying to save face.  "Oh, I never 'REALLY' wanted to be in the band, anyway."

Yeah, sure you didn't.  Okay. 

[Ħ]

Sorry, I don't buy any of this at all.  DT does NOT seem like the type of band to go against someone's wishes.  JP would never, ever do that.  Neither would the other guys.  Seems like he auditioned, didn't get picked, now he's trying to save face.  "Oh, I never 'REALLY' wanted to be in the band, anyway."

Yeah, sure you didn't.  Okay. 

Although this is all very speculative, I'm surprised you're the first one to bring this up. Here on DTF, we are all too happy to let DT be the bad guy. Why not Marco?

[SnakeEyes]

I just don't buy DT being the bad guy.  They've had two FIRED members join them on stage - Derek & Charlie Dominicci - and Derek always speaks very highly of them.  One time, about ten years ago, I was on AIM and Derek hangs out on there..... usually he never answers questions, but he was in a good mood, I guess.  I said something like, "Man, JP's solos are starting to suck" and he replied with, "why do you say that?" and proceeded to speak very positively about JP'S CURRENT (at the time) playing. 

I know that's a little off topic, but the point is.... even past members of DT say they're good, upstanding guys.  This is bullshit. 

[j]

I just don't buy DT being the bad guy.  They've had two FIRED members join them on stage - Derek & Charlie Dominicci - and Derek always speaks very highly of them.  One time, about ten years ago, I was on AIM and Derek hangs out on there..... usually he never answers questions, but he was in a good mood, I guess.  I said something like, "Man, JP's solos are starting to suck" and he replied with, "why do you say that?" and proceeded to speak very positively about JP'S CURRENT (at the time) playing. 

I know that's a little off topic, but the point is.... even past members of DT say they're good, upstanding guys.  This is bullshit.

Could have been a disconnect between the band and management too.  I mean Marco is still planning to work with the DT guys on other projects so obviously there's not too much bad blood between them directly.

-J

[rumborak]

There's being a good guy, and there's letting a prime opportunity for marketing slip by. The ATSCO documentary had everybody glued to their seats for a few weeks. Without Marco I think the dynamic of the audition would have been very different, with Mangini being the obvious guy to choose. I'm sure management will have had a leading hand in the push to disregard Marco's wishes, but the members of DT aren't idiots either. The music business isn't the type of business where you get far by trying to keep everyone in your path happy at all times. DT will know that. That's why I'm also saying I don't really blame DT for doing it, and also that Marco was somewhat naive to think something like that wouldn't happen.

[ariich]

And in fairness to Marco, he's obviously not holding a grudge against the band themselves, as he's still planning to do a project with JP and JR.