Album is really solid, not as good as Black Clouds for me atm.

a link to this review mysteriously popped up on my facebook wall [says it was posted by ME] with the caption "interesting comments on Mike Mangin" im FREAKING OUT

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

You got hacked by Mike Portnoy.

i really did!

Album Rating: 4.0

I personally love this album already. Good review, but I think that the ballads are actually entertaining and keep the album from getting stale. MM drumming is decent, not quite up to par with MP :/



4.5/5

Album Rating: 3.0 | Sound Off

This album is better than Systematic Chaos and BC&SL.

Album Rating: 3.0 | Sound Off

Wasn't particuarly impressed with this album either. Oh well...

"Would love to see you try and pos or neg this."

I forgot that the staff are infallible. My humblest apologies.

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

Nah, BC&SL is better than this album.

MANGINA

Album Rating: 3.2

I find it laughable that someone reviewing an album fails to conduct even the most basic of research on the production of it prior to completing the review.



The reviewer claims that Mike Mangini is "bland" and does nothing exciting -- but fails to mention that all of the drums were written by John Petrucci on a drum machine prior to Mike Mangini even joining the band.



Pathetic.

Mangini didn't write the drum parts, or any of the music, for that matter. Despite how well written it

is, a huge segment of the review is invalidated because of this (the criticisms of Mangini's

drumming). Sorry, but I can't pos it.

Well even if he didn't write the drum parts, it doesn't change the fact that they are bland and too quiet in the mix

Album Rating: 2.5 | Sound Off



I know who wrote the original drum parts for the album, but it doesn't matter. The drum parts are bland and unexciting, reagardless. I don't give a fuck who wrote them, he played them and they're weak. If he had a problem with them, then he should have spoke up, but he didn't and now he takes the blame. Plain and fucking simple. This isn't Sesame Street, I'm not here to make excuses for the band or spare someone's feelings -- I'm here to talk about the album.



Awesome words, my friend. Well done review as well. MINDPOS'D

I hate that cover art

Album Rating: 2.5 | Sound Off

yeah it sucks, that dude makes me think of the FII cover

Album Rating: 4.0

album is good. like it more than their last two albums

I don't get how it doesn't matter that he didn't write the drum parts. That seems pretty important.

Album Rating: 3.2

It doesn't matter because he still played them and they were bland (also the lack of power is at least 75% his fault. The rest

could be blamed on production). Also, I just re-read that section (which is half of a single paragraph, not the monstrous

majority that some are making it out to be), and I never said he wrote the material that he played only that it was boring and

that Portnoy would have done better.

My apologies, I misread your post. I thought that your first reply was towards me. But, anyway, how
is the fact that he did not write the drum parts irrelevant to his performance on the album?

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

"I don't get how it doesn't matter that he didn't write the drum parts. That seems pretty important."



Just because you don't write the drum parts doesn't mean you have to play them so blandly. Take Thomas

Haake of Meshuggah for example, he's not a primary songwriter so when it comes time to record the

drums he plays what the guys have lined up but he makes it sound damn good.



EDIT: and what Jom said, very well put.

I will agree that to an extent, and only to an extent, that the drummer himself is responsible for his
performance in this case. A good drummer can add a degree of style and flair to pre-written parts. But
there's only so much you can do with parts that were written for you. Mangini being a new member, and
with much of the album already written, it wouldn't have made sense for him to suggest radical
changes. He wasn't in a position to do that considering that a. he's a newcomer and b. the writing
processes had already been well-underway.