Author Topic: Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing  (Read 1733 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline erwinrafael

  • Posts: 3436
  • Gender: Male
Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing
« on: December 07, 2020, 06:01:52 PM »
Mike Mangini has an enlightening article on his realization of his adrenaline problem playing on stage:

https://www.drumeo.com/beat/mike-mangini-slicing-up-time/?fbclid=IwAR1SVDk-ZWKoGhXQKfjjA2Qyxd3GpZAnaozgoGeBZnJ3Q42O4uL9GBa41kA

I admire Mike's humility to recognize his problem, which allowed him to manage it and turn this physiological problem into a blessing.

I have been playing in a gong and percussion group since 1996 and we have a band leader who we suspect has an adrenaline problem. He never acknowledged it, was always stubborn about it, which compromised the music we practiced for hours. It was especially hard for the dancers, whose grace was sometimes not showcased because we played so much faster than what we did at practice, with our band leader always using the excuse of feeding off the audience's energy.

Mike's story can actually make for a good TV movie about a man perceiving his world as very slow.

"I realized that my perception of reality wasn’t reality. And that’s freaky!

I was dejected. But I discovered that while this was a curse, it was also a gift. I was playing impossible speeds, gig after gig, and my feet were doing things they absolutely had no right to do. It was weird that they could go up to ‘extreme’ speeds on stage, but not off stage. That’s where the gift was. I just had to learn how to understand it so I could harness it.

It’s like time slows down for me. People and time are in a kind of slow motion around me. I can take one second and stretch it out, which gives me more control of where my hits are. I can carve a space up into more slices. I used this adrenaline to increase my ability to play on the grid by expanding it, and these days that’s required in a lot of environments."

And I like this bit on Dream Theater.

"When I’m playing live Dream Theater shows, I’ve got to play three hours knowing that they write their parts at the top of their game in the studio. If I pump up the tempo too much, the parts would be ridiculously difficult or impossible to play, so my tempo has to be right.

I believe that [John] Petrucci often pushes himself to his maximum chops on every new record knowing that he can trust me to not play a song or part too fast for him to pull off his incredible moves night after night. All the guys push, but I’m singling him out due to the nature of his being the soloist he is. He has a billion cell phones practically shoved up his nostrils at close proximity on a nightly basis. With the tempos nailed and consistent, he can count on me. Literally.

They all can. I feel the confidence in them when we play. It’s really cool. It’s like an unspoken language with serious trust."

Offline Lupton

  • Posts: 442
  • Gender: Male
Re: Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing
« Reply #1 on: December 07, 2020, 08:41:27 PM »
Thanks for posting. That was probably one of the most interesting things I've read in a long time. Just when you think you've heard it all....

Offline devieira73

  • Posts: 2834
  • Gender: Male
  • Boldly go where no brazilian has gone before...
Re: Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing
« Reply #2 on: December 07, 2020, 08:56:30 PM »
Indeed an interesting article, but I didn't get that DT part... since he plays to a click track , his tempo is always right, right?
"one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind." (RIP Neil Armstrong)

Online Ben_Jamin

  • Posts: 15690
  • Gender: Male
  • I'm just a man, thrown into existence by the gods
Re: Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing
« Reply #3 on: December 07, 2020, 10:56:14 PM »
Indeed an interesting article, but I didn't get that DT part... since he plays to a click track , his tempo is always right, right?

Yup. He doesn't want to accidentally go to fast that the other guys can't keep up with their parts being difficult as it is, to play in studio tempo.
I don't know how they can be so proud of winning with them odds. - Little Big Man
Follow my Spotify:BjamminD

Offline RoeDent

  • 2006 Time Magazine Person of the Year
  • Posts: 6029
  • Gender: Male
Re: Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing
« Reply #4 on: December 08, 2020, 02:04:22 AM »
Maybe he sets the click track tempo, and even then he's still got to physically keep his own playing in time with said click track.

Offline Evai

  • Posts: 497
Re: Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing
« Reply #5 on: December 08, 2020, 11:09:16 AM »
Only one way to find out: Line up every performance of Pull Me Under for the last 10 years, and see if they all match up exactly  :lol
Jordan took Moore's boring, pedestrian parts and elevated them considerably to take them from barely palatable to stellar.

Offline kirksnosehair

  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 8521
  • Gender: Male
  • Bryce & Kylie's Grandpa
Re: Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing
« Reply #6 on: December 08, 2020, 01:13:59 PM »
I think this is a pretty common problem, actually.  Almost every drummer I've ever worked with had a problem controlling their tempo in a live setting.  Some were worse than others.  Awareness and acknowledgement come with experience.  Once you realize you're doing it, you can work on getting better.   

Offline erwinrafael

  • Posts: 3436
  • Gender: Male
Re: Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing
« Reply #7 on: December 08, 2020, 06:35:09 PM »
It is common to have an adrenaline rush. It is less common to have an adrenaline problem. Those with adrenaline problems start playing as if it's normal at elevated speeds, with fills and grooves that they can pull off at that state but not in normal settings. It can sometimes be fun to watch, but if you are playing with such a type of player, it's hell especially if you are doing complicated parts.

Offline fischermasamune

  • Posts: 410
Re: Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing
« Reply #8 on: December 10, 2020, 07:02:09 AM »
So this is how he discovered he had superpowers, huh?

Offline DT1138

  • Posts: 102
Re: Mike Mangini and his adrenaline problem / blessing
« Reply #9 on: December 19, 2020, 09:31:41 AM »
I thought this was really interesting, and speaks volumes as to what a cool guy Mike is for sharing this.  Extra kudos for him working to maintain the correct speed when playing live also.  It's so disappointing when a band plays a tune with an awesome groove too fast.

I wonder if his situation is tied to an anxiety issue?  Panic attacks are basically a severely-heightened fear response to something combined with a super-duper level of adrenaline.  He's basically getting the adrenaline portion of the attack without the fear aspect (thankfully), and that can completely screw up one's sense of time and perception of reality.

I know this because I struggled with them years ago and it took me a long time to get over them.  And, no surprise here, it's why DT's "Panic Attack" song is one of my favorites - the lyrics are completely accurate.   :D