Mike Portnoy has left Dream Theater

Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy posted on his facebook page today that he has officially parted ways with the band, which he started 25 years ago and has led ever since. 

The world-renowned drummer wrote that after playing with "Hail, Transatlantic and Avenged Sevenfold this past year, I have sadly come to the conclusion that I have recently had more fun and better personal relations with these other projects than I have for a while now in Dream Theater..."

The statement is leading me to believe that Portnoy may become Avenged Sevenfold's full-time replacement for Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan, a decision that makes me both happy and, as a guy who has a deep appreciation for the music of Dream Theater, sad at the same time.  Until today, Dream Theater contained two of the musicians I look up to the most - Portnoy and John Petrucci.  These guys are true masters of their craft, and to hear that they won't be composing and playing music together anymore is pretty hard to believe.

Portnoy's letter continued: "Sadly, in discussing this with the guys, they determined they do not share my feelings and have decided to continue without me rather than take a breather...I even offered to do some occasional work throughout 2011 against my initial wishes, but it was not to be...

While it truly hurts for me to even think of a Dream Theater without Mike Portnoy (hell, my father named the band!!), I do not want to stand in their way...so I have decided to sacrifice myself and simply leave the band so as to not hold them back against their wishes....

Strangely enough, I just read an interview that I recently did that asked me about the future of DT and I talked about "always following your heart and being true to yourself"...sadly I must say that at this particular moment, my heart is not with Dream Theater...and I would simply be "going through the motions", and would honestly NOT be true to myself if I stayed for the sake of obligation without taking the break I felt I needed. 

I wish the guys the best and hope the music and legacy we created together is enjoyed by fans for decades to come...I am proud of every album we made, every song we wrote and every show we played...."

I suppose in the end, if you're not happy doing what you're doing, you shouldn't be doing it.  Portnoy is moving on to projects that make him happy, and I can't say I blame him for it. 

Go kick some ass with Avenged, Mike, and we'll see you in Madison October 4th. 



The full text's of Mike's open letter can be found at his facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/mikeportnoyofficial?v=wall#!/notes/mike-portnoy/mike-portnoy-leaves-dream-theater/137362372974878

Review: The Sword's new album "Warp Riders" is fantastic

Listening to "Warp Riders" was my first experience with The Sword's music since playing "Freya" on Guitar Hero, and I must say that they've made a fan out of me with this album.  Hailing from Austin, Texas, The Sword is considered by many to be a rising force in the world of metal, and with good reason.  "Warp Riders" is, honestly, one of the best albums I've heard all year.

The album opens with the instrumental "Acheron/ Unleashing the Orb," a superbly mixed piece with catchy and heavy riffs that reminds me more than a little of Mastodon and Baroness.  I say "superbly mixed" because, when listened to in stereo, (I suggest headphones for best results) you really feel as if the band is playing in the room with you - the lead guitar is clearly on the right, rhythm predominantly on the left, with drums, bass, and vocals distributed fairly evenly on both sides.

The first single from the album, "Tres Brujas" kicks in next with a killer classic heavy metal riff reminiscent of a more creative AC/DC or faster Black Sabbath.  The song begins to tell the story that the rest of the concept album fleshes out, a wispy, barely-there narrative about an individual's cosmic journey.  (Mastodon's "Crack the Skye," anyone?)  When the vocals kicked in, I was pleasantly surprised to hear that singer J.D. Cronise had improved over the band's earlier work, but I wasn't really impressed either.  I get the impression that Cronise's range is rather limited, resulting in a somewhat predictable vocal structure on each song.

Standout tunes include the groovy, midtempo "Lawless Lands," hard-hitting title track "The Warp Riders," and the furiously catchy "Night City."  "Lands" hits you with a thumping bass beat and military-march snare before throwing in a galloping, funky verse section.  The chorus is huge on this track, throwing in an organ part to the background to add even more of a classic rock feel.  "Warp Riders" has an extremely cymbal-heavy drum part, and feature's the best, most varied vocals on the album.  Over sludgy riffing, Cronise sings a description of the space-travelling Warp Riders and their encounters with various space-nemeses, such as The Negatrix of the Starseas.  Whatever these guys are on, I want some.  "Night City" sounds like a KISS track during the chorus section, and a Sabbath song during the verses.  Great stuff:



I failed to find a single bad song on the album, nor anything that I could deem filler material.  If you're a fan of modern metal, old-school classic rock, or anything in between, you really owe it to yourself to give "Warp Riders" a listen.  The Sword is going places, and this album is going to take them there.

Rating: 9.2/10

So I went to a Nonpoint show...

Yesterday evening I had the chance to go to a Nonpoint show at the Taste of Madison festival.  Admission was free, so I figured I'd go and give them a listen.

Nonpoint's sound can be safely lumped in with that of bands like Drowning Pool, Mudvayne, Sevendust, Taproot, Papa Roach and so on, you get the idea.  My tastes have changed a bit since I was into this sound, but it's still pretty metal, and that's ok with me. 


The first thing I noticed upon hearing the first few notes was the intensity of the crowd.  Nonpoint apparently has some real die-hard fans in Madison.  I'm not a big follower, and I've only really listened to their material that makes it on the radio, but I was impressed with the energy from the crowd and the band.

The singer, Elias Soriano, dominated the stage, flinging his dreadlocks around and rapid-firing lyrics while simultaneously trying to work the crowd into a frenzy.  I say "trying" here, because the crowd was one of the most unique I've seen at a rock show: senior citizens, small children, chicks, dudes, and everything in between (read into that what you will) were in attendance, forcing the band and the promoters to institute a strict "no moshing" policy.  Soriano challenged the audience to jump up and down during a song "WITHOUT A SINGLE. PIT. FORMING."  That kind of sucked the life out of the show, but the kids up front were good about it, and did their jumping and whatnot without any pits to speak of.

The band took frequent breaks between songs so that Soriano could tell us about the meaning of the last song or just fling bullshit at us about how Madison, Wisconsin is like "a second home" to Nonpoint and how there was no place in the world they'd rather be playing at that moment.  Ha. Hahahaha.  I'm not huge on bands that spend a lot of time talking to the audience without really saying anything, and this really was a drag on the show for me.

They ended with their kinda-ok Phil Collins cover (In the Air Tonight) followed by current radio hit "Mircacle" and "Bullet With a Name," probably their most recognizable tune.

It was a far cry from the Iron Maiden and Rush shows I saw earlier this summer, but hey, it was free, outdoors, and the music was loud and heavy.  It's hard to go wrong with that.  Plus, I got to see this badass homemade wagon some guy had made for his kids to stand in: 

I'm starting a show called "Pimp My Wagon" and it will kick Exzibit's ass.

Look for my review of The Sword's new album "Warp Riders" in the coming days.

Scott Weiland is making a Christmas album

So this is what rock bottom looks like.  Scott Weiland, the Stone Temple Pilots singer that has recently been accused of lip-syncing during live shows, has confirmed that he is in the process of recording a Christmas album.  Oh, goody.

Ultimate-guitar.com reports that Weiland, speaking to ExploreMusic host Alan Cross in Toronto, said the disc will feature "traditional jazz style" music, with strings, upright bass, horns, and piano. 


Supposedly Weiland is still working on picking out songs to cover, and is planning on doing more solo work in the future.  My vote goes to "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer."  

Christmas albums inevitably suck, with the exception of last year's "A Halford Christmas," an album of metal-ized Christmas tunes put out by Judas Priest's Rob Halford, which was hilariously strange, and completely awesome.  I expect this album to suck more than most Christmas collections, and I hope its failure will prevent Scott from doing more solo work.  I think his talents work best in a group setting - that is to say, the Pilots can at least back him up when he screws up, or sucks at singing, or falls off the stage in a drunken mess.  He has a good voice for rock, but I really think he's out of his element here.

"Deadly Sinners" is today's Song of the Day, or night, I suppose.

I discovered 3 Inches of Blood in July, and I couldn't be more pleased with them.  They're like the evolutionary form of Judas Priest.  Tonight, I bring you "Deadly Sinners," a seriously killer tune with equal parts old-school metal and modern heaviness and intensity.  
 



The vocalist is amazing; he single-handedly gives 3 Inches of Blood a fresh and unique sound in a genre surrounded by clone-bands that strive to sound exactly the same as one another.  If you're wondering why the band may sound a little different on their most recent album, it's because they recently had to part ways with the backup vocalist (screamer guy) because he was apparently destroying his vocal cords.  Who would have guessed?

Keep it metal, everyone.

"70,000 Tons of Metal" festival sounds like the best vacation of all time

I recently found out about the "70,000 Tons of Metal" music festival.  It's called that because it is going to feature 40 awesome metal bands and takes place on a massive cruise liner in the Caribbean.

This cruise liner.

The ship has a casino, indoor concert hall, various pools and hot tubs, a day spa, rock climbing wall, fitness center, and of course there are several bars and lounges.   Tickets are fairly expensive, as you might guess.  Maybe if I got a cabin in steerage...

Hey, it worked for them.  Kinda.

The lineup of bands (so far) is actually fairly impressive: Ensiferum, Exodus, Fear Factory, Finntroll, Iced Earth, Korpiklaani, Testament, and more have all signed on to perform on the high seas.  Though I've never heard of them, I have a feeling the Swashbuckle performance is going to be especially awesome.  There's still 16 slots for bands, and if the quality remains as high as the 24 on the bill, this is going to be one seriously sick lineup.  Here's hoping they're able to sign Alestorm for this thing.

Yeah, they'll fit right in.

The festival's website looks like something from 1999, but this concept is quite original and new.  If I had the kind of money and free time that it takes to do something like this, it would be hard to keep me from going.  I can only imagine what it would be like to watch Amon Amarth (yeah, they'll be there) play a show on the deck stage one night (yes, there's a massive stage on the deck) and then see Johan Hegg chowing down at the ship's gourmet buffet the next morning.  Maybe you'd catch Korpiklaani throwing down some beers in the lounge, or see Testament hitting the elliptical machines. 

Either way, 70,000 Tons of Metal sounds like a metalhead's dream vacation, and if it turns into an annual thing, I might have to go some day.

Reverend claims Church can learn valuable lessons from metal

I came across an article on this today, and I found it very thought-provoking and true to my experience as a metal fan thus far.  Thought I'd share the story and my opinion on it with you.
 
Reverend Rachel Mann, an Anglican priest, has recently said that metal fans are more reasoned and well-rounded individuals than those that condemn heavy metal as Satanic, due to their exposure to dark and heavy themes and their ability to accept the more negative aspects of life. 

"Since Black Sabbath created it in 1969 by using the dissonant sound of the medieval ‘Devil’s Chord,’ heavy metal has been cast as dumb, crass, and on occasion Satanic – music hardly fit for intelligent debate or theological reflection," she says.


"But as a priest, metal musician and fan, it strikes me that the Church has a serious gospel lesson to learn from the darkest and heaviest music.
 
"The willingness to deal with extremely unpleasant subjects seems to offer its fans a space to accept others in a way that shames many Christians. Metal’s refusal to repress the bleak and violent truths of human nature liberates its fans to be more relaxed and fun people.
 
"Metal invites Christianity to be less afraid of wildness and the ridiculous."

This really resonates with me, as a Christian and a metal fan.  My parents have been quoted as saying "How did we end up raising two metalheads (my brother and I)?  Where did we go wrong?"  Though they were surely joking around, the fact that listening to metal implies some kind of abnormality or a failure to keep us on the right path is absurd.  Metal is music that takes intelligence and a balanced personality to appreciate and explore.  The themes and ideas explored in the music have made me more accepting of others' beliefs, or lack thereof. Metal has taught me that atheism is not something to be condemned or feared, but simply accepted as a different system of values, equally as valid as those espoused by Christians.

In closing, Rev Mann said: "I’m not suggesting that as Christians we have all had a humor bypass, but we are inclined to take ourselves too seriously even when we are having fun.
 
"Metal has no fear of human darkness. While that is true of many Christians, many are yet to discover metal’s potential as a place of integration."

So, parents, if you find you've raised a metalhead, don't ask where you went wrong.  Pat yourself on the back for a job well done.


Thanks to Ultimate-guitar.com and Rockradio for the story.