Dream Theater

[Morgenthaler]

Well, by now it should be clear that neither Virgil, Roddy or Minnemann got it. To me it also seem clear that Priester and Wildoer won't make it.

I think all did quite good jobs so far. Perhaps Roddy was a little mis-type-casted, as I fear Wildoer is, but the way he (Roddy) was presented in the video was the worst
of them all by far. On Pearl's site there is a link to the auditions, and in the text there are 11 obelisks as in *********** ... as in **** *******
as in Mike Mangini. Topped with his latests purchases of kits + his departure from Berklee it sends one clear message.


(Bigger version here: http://www.23hq.com/morgenthaler/photo/6687487)
I think he is their new drummer.

What I find fascinating is the many reasons the fans have to justify choosing one guy over the other.
More often than not, garnished with a host of typos and/or getting one or more drummer's names wrong.

Statements like
"Lang didn't play it like Mike (Portnoy) did"
"Marco was fooling around too much"
"I don't like that traditional grip (Virgil)" (one of my favorites)
"Derek is too much of a blast beat drummer"

Pretty much statements you could have had many people sign before they saw these auditions.

If DT wanted/wants a drummer playing exactly like Portnoy, I think Priester is the perfect fit, but he doesn't
speak English well enough, I think. Personally I find his style (a Portnoy clone) utterly boring and probably my
least favorite of them all, even before watching his audition. + gloves...

What I like a bout Virgil is what I always loved about him. His kill instinct is as potent as ever. He has original chops
and a signature feel that I happen to love + he is a monster musician from a reading/understanding music point of view.
It seemed clear that the guys treated him with a lot of respect.

Marco has tons of fun and seemed to really ease the guys up. What a great guy to watch + chops to spare.

I never really "got" Lang, but it seemed to make so much sense that he wanted to find a home as a musician,
and he delivered the essence of himself in there. Has he switched permanently to matched?

Mangini can do it all (in that realm), and having seen him more than a few times live, I think he will fit both personality
wise and with regards to playing some parts exactly like Portnoy did, if DT wants him to.
His showmanship, though a bit too theatrical/making faces for me at times, is something I suspect the fans will love.
He seemed to understand what DT where looking for and giving it too them convincingly.

I think I would hate having to play with Myung. His presence is about as exciting as a kitchen sink, and
he did very little to connect with either of the drummers.

It was funny to watch a kind of reality show where the contenders actually were talented...

[DSOP]

Well, by now it should be clear that neither Virgil, Roddy or Minnemann got it. To me it also seem clear that Priester and Wildoer won't make it.

They list Mangini (or is it Mangina?) on their website too: http://www.dreamtheater.com/

[Morgenthaler]

Well, by now it should be clear that neither Virgil, Roddy or Minnemann got it. To me it also seem clear that Priester and Wildoer won't make it.

They list Mangini (or is it Mangina?) on their website too: http://www.dreamtheater.com/

That's a fan site - not their official

[DSOP]

That's a fan site - not their official

Ooops!

[Morgenthaler]

That's a fan site - not their official

Ooops!

Don't worry, I thought it was too. It seems way better organized (and built!)
than their official which is a nightmare for someone like myself (studying Digital Design and Communication) http://www.dreamtheater.net/

[JeremyNZ]

I loved the snippets of the jams they did, sounded like "old" DT.
Gonna flick between the wedding and Youtube tonight.(friday night here in NZ) Could take a while to see episode 3, reckon both the DT site and Roadrunners channel will break at exactly 11am EST!

[Pocketplayer]

"Thomas Lang is way too precise and surgical, but I was really surprised that he had
trouble learning the riff parts, I thought he could nail things like that more easily.
His "musical home" is clinic touring the rest of his life IMO."

I asked myself, if these are the best cats around, why are they all so available?
Why hasn't Lang ever got a steady gig? With his talent, one might think he would
have his choice of progressive bands needing one with chops to handle any type
of complex rhythm. Yet, no band...he ain't getting any younger.

[percusski]

Yes this is interesting, and I think it alludes back to that Vinnie interview where he was questioning the type of player who performs these 'complex' and 'well rehearsed' parts in clinics but are not able to effectively use these ides or themes in the moment.
These players who learn these paradiddles against another paradiddle patterns, or cross rhythms i.e. 3 in one hand 5 in another and so on (we all know that type of player) maybe spend too much time on this sort of thing than improvising in real time.
I think Virgil is the exception out of this group in that he obviously is very fluent in all meters, however his choices of fill etc sometimes still seems to me to say look at what I can do rather than what can I play to add to the music, but this is of course subjective and I could be wrong.
I read somewhere months ago when Portnoy first left that this Aquilles was going to be the replacement...we'll see.
I wonder why Dicenso wasn't given a shot as he played on a LaBrie solo album I believe...
After watching this I was left feeling that this experience must have been incredibly intimidating for all auditionees and I don't think I would have enjoyed it that much. We have all listened to Dream Theatre and I'm sure we all think we could do the job, play the parts etc, but it just puts in into a different perspective when you see guys like Mangini and Donati (and the much lorded Lang) sweating it out and having to 'play the game' to get a gig.

[someskunkfunk]

I wonder why Dicenso wasn't given a shot

Do we know this? I wouldn't even assume he'd be intrested. As if this would be a dream gig for anyone capable of that type of drumming...?

[deseipel]

"Thomas Lang is way too precise and surgical, but I was really surprised that he had
trouble learning the riff parts, I thought he could nail things like that more easily.
His "musical home" is clinic touring the rest of his life IMO."

I asked myself, if these are the best cats around, why are they all so available?
Why hasn't Lang ever got a steady gig? With his talent, one might think he would
have his choice of progressive bands needing one with chops to handle any type
of complex rhythm. Yet, no band...he ain't getting any younger.

Lang is on tour with Stork currently btw.

Choice of prog bands? Maybe he's matured beyond prog and doesn't really have his heart in it anymore.

OT: Why is prog still defined as 'complex rhythms'? the mindset that complexity makes it progressive is dumb. Diesel engines are extremely complex, but I wouldn't call them progressive. Most of it sounds like bad 80s Metal in a compositional context. Prog needs to grow up. Someone enlighten me.