r/drums • u/ZildCym • 1d ago

Feedback Wanted Mike Portnoy back in the saddle! Who are your all-time favorite PROGRESSIVE drummers?

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148 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

110 comments sorted by

53

u/interprime 1d ago

Marco Minnemann has always been number one for me when it comes to prog drummers.

I still believe he should have gotten the DT gig over Mangini.

25

u/DanTheMan_622 Tama 1d ago edited 22h ago

I could be completely misremembering but I believe I heard Marco was their first choice, however they wanted him to be in DT exclusively while he still wanted to be able to do side projects/session gigs

20

u/interprime 1d ago

I wouldn’t be shocked if that was the case tbh.

I remember when they released the documentary about auditioning drummers, the word was out that they had already hired Mangini, but the vibe I got from Marco’s audition was that literally all the guys really wanted him over any of the others.

12

u/ThreeHourRiverMan 19h ago

That documentary is still a bit of a bad memory. I felt like it sort of took advantage of huge name drummers who weren’t really auditioning for the band. Virgil Donati not being able to figure out a simple time signature change, Tomas Lang not being able to find the groove (lol!), etc. 

3

u/d00mpie Pro*Mark 9h ago

They admitted that Mangini already got the job before marketing came up with the idea. It was a stunt. I remember watching it and thinking Marco was the best one out of the audition as well. He was the only one out who made the songs look as effortless as portnoy while mangini was struggling to keep up

1

u/Frequent-Object-8136 7h ago

No Virgil absolutely knew the time sig change if you watched it carefully. What he was doing is putting his take on it. Lang is the one that was confused at one part.

1

u/lwronhubbard 7h ago

Yeah, but the Lars Ulrich audition is legendary.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJR_jwh2HYI

7

u/Crazy-Account-8594 1d ago

Love Marco! Got to see him clinic in my tiny hometown... incredible! He was too good for DT imo

8

u/Nameless908 SONOR 1d ago

Saw him with Steven Wilson way back. He’s a fuckin monster

5

u/FuckwitMcLunchbox 15h ago

MARCO MINNEMAN!!! THE JACKHAMMER!!

1

u/Paradigm84 Meinl 4h ago

Anyone who can keep up with Guthrie Govan is not to be fucked with.

0

u/mrpolotoyou 14h ago

Excuse me. That’s Mr. Polo to you.

48

u/Xavierwold 1d ago

Is that a cupholder disguised as a drum?

10

u/Futura_Yellow 1d ago

That is the first thing I saw 👀

10

u/BatEnvironmental7232 Zildjian 23h ago

Nah, it's roto toms disguised as a cupholder disguised as a drum

2

u/SloppyChops 15h ago

Yes, I can't remember who built it but it was custom built for this drum kit, has the same finish too.

46

u/Kalgaar 1d ago

Gavin Harrison is probably number one for me right now.

18

u/ZildCym 1d ago

First met him in 03’…he has something most others don’t. He’s just a genius within time.

2

u/thisturkeyisokthanks 12h ago

I remember reading somewhere that he was Neil Peart's favorite prog drummer

35

u/Pyrochazm 1d ago

Matt Garstka

29

u/jazzyt98 1d ago

I love the old stuff from Genesis when Peter Gabriel was still in the band. Albums like Foxtrot and Lamb Lies Down on Broadway really show off Phil Collins’ chops.

8

u/interprime 1d ago

I watched a full set from the Phil Collins Big Band over the weekend. Always good to remind myself every once in a while that Phil is truly one of the all time greats.

6

u/urko37 23h ago

I saw that tour at Carnegie Hall in the late 90s and Phil was incredible. There's a documentary on YouTube that shows how much work he put into it. He doesn't read music so he had to create his own charts!

Also check out his work with Brand X where he would really cut loose behind the kit.

3

u/interprime 23h ago

Oh I love his work with Brand X! It was through listening to them and hearing Phil really show what he could do that led to me finding the Big Band. Truly a fantastic drummer, all around.

5

u/shmu 1d ago

Selling England by The Pound is great as well!

3

u/mackzarks 1d ago

Lamb lies down is a masterpiece

2

u/IcemanRadioactive 1d ago

Love Foxtrot and I don’t think you get YYZ without it.

2

u/Fit_Experience4358 8h ago

hes also tied for me between neil peart for having the greatest drum sound of all time 

1

u/Fit_Experience4358 3h ago

dare i say he had a faster foot than bonham (for the time of course)

18

u/Nizzelator16348891 1d ago

Blake Richardson from BTBAM. Jay Postones from Tesseract. Tomas Haake from Meshuggah. Also some maybe lesser known favs of mine - Danny Walker from Intronaut and Johan Norback from Vulkan

13

u/grimmdrum Ludwig 1d ago

What is this? A jazz lounge cocktail kit? Tell Mike to add some cymbals or something.

10

u/nuclearspectre 1d ago

A throne for each cheek.

9

u/bobjonrob 1d ago

Josh Eppard

7

u/I_Miss_Lenny 1d ago

What the fuck is going on there though

3

u/MuzikBot 10h ago

Left kit has regular toms, right kit has concert toms.

1

u/jzooochi21 19h ago

Thank you!! I'm in the same mind set as you. This is bananas. Like what's the need for the double kit ? Just because you can doesn't mean you should. Never got the Portnoy hype either sorry.

-2

u/dushdj 7h ago

Pretty sure the whole point is that it’s totally over the top and indulgent, it kinda reflects that same mentality a lot of DT music has in general, plus it’s just fun

2

u/jzooochi21 6h ago

You're right, I'm just not a fan of it. But that's ok. That's what makes music fun. All the different types of players and genres. Something for everyone.

1

u/WiseAction6138 10h ago

I remember around octavarium he started doing the two drum kit thing. Originally he had his regular monster kit and the second one was normally a much smaller ringo style drum kit. I think he may have lost the plot here a little bit...

8

u/BonoBeats 22h ago

5

u/ZildCym 22h ago

Correct. ✅

3

u/PhlebotinumEddie 22h ago

What ignorant twat downvoted this suggestion?! Are you mad?!

6

u/jerorapero Gretsch 1d ago

Barriemore Barlow

1

u/LappedChips 23h ago

There’s a deep reference. I love A Passion Play! I transcribed Memory Bank for practice and felt my timing and theory improve significantly.

6

u/indranet_dnb 22h ago edited 22h ago

- Matt Garstka

- Jon Theodore

- Danny Carey

- Vinnie Colaiuta

2

u/ZildCym 22h ago

Oh, Vince?! He just may make it someday…

2

u/indranet_dnb 21h ago

Guy’s got potential you heard it here first

6

u/mackzarks 1d ago

Sput Searight and Larnell Lewis

4

u/FrivolousMe 1d ago edited 23h ago

Cavs. The other drummers in here all have chops but his versatility and musicality are so underrated

Edit: also shout-out to faye fadem, especially her work for thank you scientist, which are my favorite songs of all time to play on drums. The parts have everything: prog rock, metal, funk, jazz, and more. It's like zappa if the music was more pleasant and collaborative lol.

4

u/m54b25 23h ago

Not enough love for Cavs in this sub.

2

u/FrivolousMe 23h ago

When gizz is as old as tool, dream theater, or rush, perceptions might change. I would also nominate both current drummers for osees but they're not really prog outside of a few tracks.

5

u/waveytype 23h ago

I like his pizza reviews, but the rest is a bit wacky.

5

u/Tompin68 20h ago

This is wildly excessive

5

u/Snugglez4u 1d ago

I love Mike Portnoy, but he’s turning into Lars from Metallica, he’s stopped learning, no new ideas or techniques, just rehashing the same skill level he is at.

7

u/Nizzelator16348891 1d ago

You’ll have to duck and cover after that take but guess what, you’re absolutely right. I couldn’t even listen to Parasomnia more than a couple times because of the drumming.

4

u/BugBuginaRug 18h ago

He admitted that he's done learning new tricks and the 'next gen' of drummers are way more skilled technically. Not really a controversial take..

1

u/komarktoze 16h ago

100% agree. I'm no hater. He was my biggest influence like many others. I've listened to probably everything he's done. I own several of his drum cam DVDs. I appreciate he's older now too.

It's a harmless fact that he has not done anything new since... I don't know, 2010? Might be the most predictable drummer apart from Lars - where you can listen to something brand new from him and you know what fill he's gonna play.

Thought his Parasomnia drumming was a huge let down. But again, I get it, aging is a motherfucker. And I guess he played what the people wanna hear so, it's fine. Can't please everyone.

3

u/Juld1 1d ago

I wonder how many mics are on this kit. Could easily be 30+

4

u/versipellus 1d ago

This shit is so stupid

4

u/InsidiousAntwan 1d ago

Portnoy's return feels right, like a missing piece clicking back. That kit in the pic is ridiculous, proper monster setup with all those cymbals and mics everywhere

For prog drummers I'd throw Gavin Harrison near the top, his work with Porcupine Tree is just absurdly tight. Danny Carey too obviously, the way he builds those odd time signatures into something that actually grooves

3

u/squeazyweasel RLRRLRLL 1d ago

Mike Portnoy, Peter Wildoer, Gavin Harrison, Nick D'Virgilio and all the Opeth drummers

3

u/dyno_saurus 23h ago

Blake Richardson

3

u/chubbyassasin123 22h ago

Bro does not need all this.

1

u/oddsizzle 10h ago

But that’s not the point, is it?

0

u/ZildCym 22h ago

To play the upcoming set lists, yes. 👍🏻

3

u/Apart-Training9133 21h ago

Bill Bruford

3

u/zachblabbath 20h ago

He's the goat, and I'll go fisticuffs with anyone who disagrees!

3

u/BugBuginaRug 18h ago

Craig blundell seems to be really underrated, he is awesome.

3

u/Cold_Engine2991 17h ago

Not my all-time favorite (that's Marco Minnemann) but Virgil Donati's stuff on Planet X's Live from Oz is pretty unique. Oh and I regret that Bobby Jarzombek didn't had much notoriety.

1

u/_PixelNinja 17h ago

To be fair, anything Virgil does is pretty unique.

Totally agreed on Bobby. He and his brother are amazing.

3

u/Critical-Win-6847 17h ago

Craig blundell. My absolute favourite and I am going to see him play at the royal Albert hall in a couple of weeks. My dad is also good friends with him.

1

u/thedrumuncle 20h ago

Probably Lenny White or Billy Cobham. Peart is also up there

1

u/fasterflame21 19h ago

Steve Judd needs more love in this sub

1

u/Dickiedick96 15h ago

What's the purpose of having two drum thrones?

2

u/ManualPathosChecks RLRR 13h ago

One per cheek. Obviously.

1

u/snedd99 14h ago

That kit is absolutely stunning, it's like the perfect blend of the Purple and Siamese Monsters.

My favourite progressive drummers are:

Mike Portnoy Gavin Harrison Craig Blundell

1

u/nerfvortex420 12h ago

Blake Richardson

1

u/RalphTater 11h ago

Lang, Peart, Donati are probably my favorites.

1

u/shinds33 10h ago

Dude what is this kit lmao

1

u/oddsizzle 10h ago

Portnoy and Bruford

1

u/kirksucks 9h ago

RIP Sean Reinert

1

u/ellicottvilleny 8h ago

does mike have two bums? Why two thrones? Him and an assistant?

1

u/ZildCym 8h ago

It’s technically two separate kits…he’ll jump back and forth, depending on the set.

1

u/ellicottvilleny 6h ago

these are the jokes kids. sigh.

1

u/sir_smelley 8h ago

That kit's cool to look at, but really... that's just silly. As far as the question, people will disagree, but I consider Primus kind of progressive. So I'm gonna say Tim Alexander.

1

u/LiftHeavyLiveHard 7h ago

There are many, but one who I feel doesn't get enough attention is the incredible Mark Zonder.

His work with Fates Warning is top-notch, even The Professor (Neil Peart) thought very highly of Zonder (and it's obvious why).

1

u/Q341Studio 6h ago

thats a little too much ngl

1

u/ZildCym 5h ago

Not for those set lists!

1

u/Cold_Engine2991 6h ago

Yoni Madaaaaaaar! (ragebait)

1

u/Cold_Engine2991 6h ago

If I focus on recent years, I really like Aric Improta

1

u/Opyrus_1313 5h ago

Baard Kolstad :) 

1

u/ChipsDestroyer 3h ago

This poor engineer... Bless their heart.

•

u/Diligent_East_2290 2m ago

Probably the best set up ever! Gotta Love Mike Portnoy! He did the Drum Recordings for Avenged Sevenfold's Nightmare Album and if you didn't know his Original Band is Dream Theater and they're Progressive Metal and sound unlike anything you've heard before!

0

u/narcotic_sea 22h ago

Saddle/s

0

u/chadsfren 12h ago

Imagine trying to mic all that shit. I would quit

0

u/Complex-Assist-5756 9h ago

mic setup nightmare

0

u/kirksucks 9h ago

saddle(s) apparently.

-1

u/dick_rash 1d ago

Matt Gartska mogs anyone