Alexander77

Stoney, don’t make the same mistake as before, which ktulu is pointing out to you: I find some of Portnoy's drum parts excellent, and I am not alone, considering that many of his colleagues sing his praises...no one is a judge...I don’t want to turn this into a matter of taste: "I believe that his aseptic nature is inversely proportional to how much he gets on people's nerves" was not directed at anyone in particular, but you’ll agree that he has certainly attracted some antipathy! That said, I can also try to explain to you why Portnoy is very good (I’m not saying he’s the best... that’s nonsense, and the best in music doesn’t exist), but I need to resort to technical arguments and I'm not sure if that's the way to go...if we approach it from the perspective of inspiration, then you’ll agree with me, it becomes very difficult to discuss without expressing at least a part of one’s subjective point of view. This is not about competition, but about music! Larrok, the session musicians for Ramazzotti are also musicians, they don’t only play as session musicians! ;) As for the rest of your post, I don’t know, it seems like I have to start the conversation from the beginning as usual...I repeat, in my opinion, there is too much tendency to exaggerate...Let me point out one thing: with the technique they possess, do you think they have trouble avoiding sounding predictable, or making pieces with a predictable and citationist structure?! I really don't think so...If anything, their limit is wanting to showcase the entire repertoire every time in the 5-6-7 minutes of each song! That is their true limit...

@larrok: the Ramazzotti's touring musicians (I believe you know this) are top-notch musicians! Honestly, I think that his appearing aseptic is inversely proportional to how much he gets on people's nerves... I don't think he sounds aseptic at all, rather, excessive at most! But he has some beautiful drum fills... then he gets lost in his nonsense, which penalizes him... in my opinion, someone else is the aseptic one in DT... Artist, musician... I have my personal opinion, which may not correspond to the correct one (if it exists) or to yours: simply something that moves me (please accept that) or conveys something to me! We could discuss this for dozens of pages...

@Stoney: I’m not surprised, Stoney, because it’s logical that the young aspiring kid gets excited... just like it happens with Vai... however, from my perspective, there is much more behind I&W and Awake (my opinion) than just something for kids! Fundamentalism arises from the fact that a kid tends to be very emotional, we’ve all been there... Look, I wouldn't be so sure that this only concerns DT fans; there are hordes of fanatics around Debaser (and many of them aren’t kids anymore) ready to sacrifice themselves for the cause of their idols... As for why many then turn their backs on DT, I think it’s another kind of fanaticism in reverse... I loved them, but now I'm enlightened and I hate them... as usual, a little balance wouldn't hurt...

One last thing, Stoney: the good marks I was talking about obviously refer to I&W, to Awake (which I really like, aside from the usual excesses), and some to SFAM...after that, more or less, I'm done...a few great songs here and there but nothing more...I believe they simply saw something new in it and that they liked that something new (baroque elements usually don't appeal to me, but it's not necessarily a flaw; some people appreciate it)...in short, what may seem like unbearable flaws for some (your case, for example) can be seen as strengths for others, or at most characteristics that don’t harm the final result...That’s it! The usual "de gustibus," which makes me prefer Meddle, The Wall, and Animals (each for different reasons) over Dark Side or the other Floyd albums...just to name one!

Stoney, your latest post is perhaps the most balanced (and therefore understandable) in terms of judgment...I believe that you simply don't like the "aesthetic" of their music (baroque elements, fluty voice, excess technicality)...and that's completely understandable and acceptable...it's another thing to write nonsense like "Portnoy can't play, has no soul, has no style"...that's a colossal nonsense; he may be an overexcited jerk, okay...but to turn that into him being a hack seems to me far more ridiculous...and anyway, fanaticism and radicalism are always prone to error, and the fans seem pretty dull to me...Larrok easy explains well until he brings it into the art of rhetoric, where he has shown to be very gifted, creating loops of words ad infinitum where the only final solution was de gustibus...and saying that Portnoy is not a great drummer is heresy; there are other "weaker" elements in the group...

that review is full of bullshit, of an abysmal superficiality, of fools with the argumentative skills of a clam and of easycure having fun with the idiots I mentioned earlier...

oops, the five is always for eddie

No, that's not acceptable to me, I want a serious answer... I asked you a question, respond sincerely and it will be appreciated... nothing more and nothing less... let it be clear, I don’t care about changing your opinion, I'm fed up with stubborn radicalism... both the one expressed by the fans and the one expressed by the detractors.

Nothing but the extreme exasperation of technical cleanliness and the convoluted attitude of a "mathematical" composition (the album is packed with pieces originally in 4/4 to which an extra eighth was added later on, just like that, for free, because it looks cool: it’s pointless, you don't know what you’re talking about, and you assume that if they sound cold to you, it must be the same for others... considering that despite 300 prompts you don't respond, I'll try again: HOW COME USERS MORE EXPERIENCED THAN YOU (FROM WHOM YOU'VE WRITTEN YOU WANT TO LEARN) HAVE GIVEN HIGH RATINGS TO I&W AND AWAKE, BUT HAVE SHIED AWAY FROM THE STUPID DISCUSSIONS YOU ALL RAISE EVERY TIME FOR THE DT (AS IF FANATICISM DOESN'T BELONG TO THE FANS OF NIN OR THE PIXIES... JUST GO READ THE THINGS THEY WRITE TO FIND A BUNCH OF CRAP)! IT’S IN CAPS, LET'S SEE IF YOU SEE IT AND RESPOND!

Come on, it's not that bad... after all, it gives a good idea of Bunker's living context... his biography is one of the most beautiful things I've ever read.

More than with any other stars... I never understood why in the second one they changed the character design and the voice actor... the first was killer!