Mike Portnoy has
turned yet another great record with his massive stamp all over it. Flying Colors is his new project and it is
one of his best to date. The S/T debut of Flying Colors has melody and drive
and it begs to be listened to. Mike
recently checked in with Exiles with a lot to say about Flying Colors and his
career to date.
An interview with drumming phenom Mike Portnoy.
By Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: You guys are stellar musicians with a record trail that would put anybody else to shame. When did you know that this collaboration would work considering the magnitude of musicians involved?
Mike Portnoy: I knew that the styles and personal chemistry would work because I knew everybody before this project began. Neal and I have a deep history together with about a dozen records together between his solo work and TransAtlantic. Dave and I did some G3 tours together and he also played in my Led Zeppelin tribute band as well. I have known Steve for years even though we have never worked together but Dream Theater has toured with Deep Purple and the Dixie Dregs. I knew Casey in advance because I was a fan of his bands and he and I had become friends. I knew in advance that the guys in the band were nice and normal with no hidden agendas or quirky personalities. I knew everybody to be responsible, passionate and professional as well as having a high level of musicianship. It was just a matter of putting us in the same room and managing where we would go. Once that happened we all knew that in the first hour that everybody was going to be very compatible and we would go places that were new and exciting, places that we had yet to go beforehand.
Metal Exiles: When I first heard about this project I felt it would just be another Prog album but when I listened to it it was a whole other ballgame.
Mike: You see, that was important because Neal and I had done a dozen Prog rock albums together so there was no need to do another Prog band because we already had TransAtlantic. The whole Idea here was to go someplace else and the same thing can be said about Steve and Dave. The idea was to take these guys and go someplace new and Casey was the biggest variable to take us to new territory and he obviously did that.
Metal Exiles: I know you have amazing skills as a producer so how did it feel to hand over the reins to Bill Evans and Peter Collins? Did the fact that Peter produced Rush in the past make it easier?
Mike: Peter is someone I had always wanted to work with and back in the Dream Theater days when we still worked with outside producers he was always at the top of our wish list but it never happened. In the past I have worked Paul Northfield and Terry Brown, both noted Rush producers but Peter Collins always eluded me. Bill Evans is the one that connected Peter to the project but to be honest with you I was skeptical of outside producers for this project and only because Steve, Neal, Casey and Myself have all produced our own albums in the past and were very capable of doing this album on our own. I have to tell you now in retrospect that it was absolutely necessary and it ended up being a great thing because we are all passionate artists who have self-produced in the past but we needed that outside objectionable ear to have the final say on the album. Whenever there was a debate, a question, differences or a conflict, but always a positive conflict, Peter was able to draw the bottom line as the outside objective. It worked out great, Peter is a sweet guy, gave us all a lot of respect and easy to work with.
Metal Exile: Do you think the Flying Colors record would have been a more drawn out process if you had not of had that referee?
Mike: Absolutely and that is another reason that it worked so well to have the outside influence.
Metal Exiles: Like I said before all of you are superior musicians and a lot of songs on this record could break the top 40. Did you need Casey to bring this different avenue out of you guys?
Mike: We needed Casey to bring us to new places that we have not been before and I think Casey was able to bring not only an accessible voice but an accessible way of writing. A more pop oriented, straight ahead modern rock feel. Casey comes from a background of Coldplay, Muse and U2, stuff like that whereas Neal and I have a Prog history together and Steve and Dave have more of an instrumental history. I think all of us wanted to go in a more “songwriting” direction to give us a new vehicle in that respect. Steve had a taste of that with Kansas in the mid 80’s and I think he wanted to tap back into that again.
Metal Exiles: The songs and structures are all over the place, different ideas and feels. Was this the idea going into writing mode?
Mike: It was not a preconceived thing, it just happened that way because we are pretty diverse as artists. We would joke that on paper we are five different caricatures: I am the metal guy, Neal is the Prog guy, Dave is the Jazz guy, Casey is the pop guy and Steve is the Muso. We were joking how each of our personalities were so glaringly different we could have been the Village People. We just needed the costumes. (Editor’s note: When they play live I would almost dare them to do a Village People song…) Each of our different backgrounds and interests in music helped take us to different places and you are right the album is incredibly diverse. It will go from something like The Storm which is U2ish to Forever In A Daze which is like the RHCP or Foo Fighters. Then you have Love Is What I’m Waiting for which is like The Beatles Or Queen so it is unbelievably diverse from top to bottom.
Metal Exiles: You also have Blue Ocean which reminds me in certain parts of the Dixie Dregs.
Mike: Yes absolutely, a little of the Dregs and a little of Kansas when Steve was in the band.
Metal Exiles: I know you are the metal guy here and you have All Falls Down, which is a bombastic track, on the album. It almost seems that song is the odd man out on the album.
Mike: Neal was pushing for that. Neal said “Look, you have Dave LaRue, Steve Morse and Mike Portnoy sitting in the same room, let’s do a song where you guys can shred.” He wanted us to really go for it so Steve came up with these riffs so we rolled up our sleeves and went for it. It was the expectations to get something on the album that would show off the chops that we have so we just did it.
Metal Exiles: Do you think that by doing this album you were able to tap into something you have not done before and have always wanted to do?
Mike: Oh absolutely, 1000%. To me it was the biggest appeal for this project at this point in my career. I have always had a geek love for more pop oriented music. The classics like The Beatles or more modern day stuff like Coldplay and Radiohead, I have always loved that kind of stuff and never tapped into it. I may have touched on it here or there with certain sounds in Dream Theater but never a full album where I could immerse myself in it. It is very fulfilling to finally have an outlet for it.
Metal Exiles: Considering the pop nature of the album, do you feel that on any part of this album you were holding back with your drumming?
Mike: I was absolutely holding back because that was what was called for. If I was to play a song like The Storm and try to bust out some metal or Prog chops it would have been completely in appropriate. I have always played for the song whether it was in Dream Theater where I had to be subtle at times or very over the top or on Steve’s solo albums that walk that fine line between Prog and Pop. With something like All Falls Down where it calls for me to fire up the guns I will. If it is not called for I will not do it for the sake of it because I have always played for the song. So in the case of this album and the style of the songs it called for restraint and subtlety. That being said I will never play anything, no matter how restrained and subtle, without it sounding like Mike Portnoy, that is the most important thing. I need to make sure a character or a personality trait is present in the song. If I am playing something straight ahead like The Storm or Better Than Walking Away you can tell that it is me and not some drum machine.
Metal Exiles: I know with Theater you were involved in all aspects of songwriting so what did you bring to the table for this record and did you have to concede to the other four guys?
Mike: This band was about collaboration, all of us working together which meant that we had to back off and concede some. Steve was used to working by himself on his solo albums and the Dregs and Neal was the same with his. With Dream Theater I was a hands on controlling force but with Flying Colors we all kind of had to step back, work together and compromise. Neal and I had done that several times with TransAtlantic as well. We have to learn to work together, collaborate, and let ideas go in different places if other members felt strongly about it. I have learned in my career to give different aspects to different projects. In Dream theater I controlled everything, from writing, producing, performing, directing, the fan club, the website, the merchandise, everything. With that band I completely protected it and controlled it. In other situations I have learned to wear different hats. When I went with A7X I simply drummed, with Neal Morse and his solo albums I just played drums but with Flying Colors or TransAtlantic it was a collaboration.
Metal Exiles: What are you more comfortable with, being in complete control or working with other people?
Mike: I like both, it is the balance of each that fulfills me. With Dream Theater I had to have that kind of control, it was my legacy, 25 years of my life that I needed to protect and have its integrity intact so it was never compromised. In that particular case I was very controlling but in other situations when you are starting from scratch with new chemistry you have to give and take and let everybody find their place. Different personalities work different ways. When you get into that situation you have to go in open minded, see what everybody’s strengths and weaknesses are and see what roles people are comfortable with and go from there.
Metal Exiles: One of the things I brought up to Casey is that the material was very personal. What was your opinion of the material that was coming out of Casey lyrically?
Mike: To be honest my personal take I left the lyrics to Neal and Casey to work on and develop together. Like we were talking about earlier about finding what peoples roles and strengths were in the band it became obvious that Casey and Neal were the two that were passionate ones about what was being said lyrically. I personally let them have their way and I am sure Steve and Dave felt the same way.
Metal Exiles: With everything you have going on musically what was the biggest draw for performing in Flying Colors?
Mike: The biggest draw was working with Steve because I had not worked with him yet and he has always been one of my favorite guitarists. I have followed him from his time in the Dregs on through Kansas and his solo career so for me it was finally working with Steve. This was the first time we have worked together so it was great to watch his genius and creativity in songwriting and guitar playing unfold before me.
Metal Exiles: Bill Evans put together this band. Would you guys have ever worked together if it was not for him?
Mike: Possibly not because Neal and I have our relationships, Steve and Dave have their relationships and I do not know if our worlds would have collided if Bill had not of intervened. Casey being from a different genre I do not know what capacity I would have worked with him even though it was I who suggested him to this line up. The intersection of this lineup would not have happened if Bill had not of suggested it.
Metal Exiles: One of the biggest aspects of Mike Portnoy is his fan base. Your fans buy everything that you are a part of, the diehard ones. What do you think the opinions that your fans will have for this record?
Mike: I think the fans, especially the ones from Dream Theater, will really take to this album. I know when Adrenaline Mob surfaced last year there was skepticism amongst them because it is a band that does not have Prog elements because it is a band in the vein of Disturbed and Pantera. I know why people were a little closed minded about or had a hard time swallowing it. However Flying Colors will satisfy that area of the fan base that is interested in diversity or Prog elements although Flying Colors is not a Prog band. There is a part of me that hopes my fan base will be open minded and come along for the ride with no matter what I do because I know I am a huge fan of so many types of music so that is what I am looking to do with my music post Dream Theater. It could range from the sounds of Lamb Of God to Jellyfish and everything in between. Something like Flying Colors will be different from Adrenaline Mob which will completely different from my next project. I would hope that the open minded fans will listen to them all with an unbiased ear and take them for what they are. Do not compare them to Dream Theater as I have already done Dream Theater, I did 25 years of it. I am not looking to do another Dream Theater; I want to do something different in 2012.
Mike Portnoy has taken yet another turn in his career with Flying Colors and if you are indeed a true fan of his music you will come along with him on his journey.
BUY Flying Colors!
BUY Flying Colors on Vinyl!
Official Flying Colors Site
An interview with drumming phenom Mike Portnoy.
By Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: You guys are stellar musicians with a record trail that would put anybody else to shame. When did you know that this collaboration would work considering the magnitude of musicians involved?
Mike Portnoy: I knew that the styles and personal chemistry would work because I knew everybody before this project began. Neal and I have a deep history together with about a dozen records together between his solo work and TransAtlantic. Dave and I did some G3 tours together and he also played in my Led Zeppelin tribute band as well. I have known Steve for years even though we have never worked together but Dream Theater has toured with Deep Purple and the Dixie Dregs. I knew Casey in advance because I was a fan of his bands and he and I had become friends. I knew in advance that the guys in the band were nice and normal with no hidden agendas or quirky personalities. I knew everybody to be responsible, passionate and professional as well as having a high level of musicianship. It was just a matter of putting us in the same room and managing where we would go. Once that happened we all knew that in the first hour that everybody was going to be very compatible and we would go places that were new and exciting, places that we had yet to go beforehand.
Metal Exiles: When I first heard about this project I felt it would just be another Prog album but when I listened to it it was a whole other ballgame.
Mike: You see, that was important because Neal and I had done a dozen Prog rock albums together so there was no need to do another Prog band because we already had TransAtlantic. The whole Idea here was to go someplace else and the same thing can be said about Steve and Dave. The idea was to take these guys and go someplace new and Casey was the biggest variable to take us to new territory and he obviously did that.
Metal Exiles: I know you have amazing skills as a producer so how did it feel to hand over the reins to Bill Evans and Peter Collins? Did the fact that Peter produced Rush in the past make it easier?
Mike: Peter is someone I had always wanted to work with and back in the Dream Theater days when we still worked with outside producers he was always at the top of our wish list but it never happened. In the past I have worked Paul Northfield and Terry Brown, both noted Rush producers but Peter Collins always eluded me. Bill Evans is the one that connected Peter to the project but to be honest with you I was skeptical of outside producers for this project and only because Steve, Neal, Casey and Myself have all produced our own albums in the past and were very capable of doing this album on our own. I have to tell you now in retrospect that it was absolutely necessary and it ended up being a great thing because we are all passionate artists who have self-produced in the past but we needed that outside objectionable ear to have the final say on the album. Whenever there was a debate, a question, differences or a conflict, but always a positive conflict, Peter was able to draw the bottom line as the outside objective. It worked out great, Peter is a sweet guy, gave us all a lot of respect and easy to work with.
Metal Exile: Do you think the Flying Colors record would have been a more drawn out process if you had not of had that referee?
Mike: Absolutely and that is another reason that it worked so well to have the outside influence.
Metal Exiles: Like I said before all of you are superior musicians and a lot of songs on this record could break the top 40. Did you need Casey to bring this different avenue out of you guys?
Mike: We needed Casey to bring us to new places that we have not been before and I think Casey was able to bring not only an accessible voice but an accessible way of writing. A more pop oriented, straight ahead modern rock feel. Casey comes from a background of Coldplay, Muse and U2, stuff like that whereas Neal and I have a Prog history together and Steve and Dave have more of an instrumental history. I think all of us wanted to go in a more “songwriting” direction to give us a new vehicle in that respect. Steve had a taste of that with Kansas in the mid 80’s and I think he wanted to tap back into that again.
Metal Exiles: The songs and structures are all over the place, different ideas and feels. Was this the idea going into writing mode?
Mike: It was not a preconceived thing, it just happened that way because we are pretty diverse as artists. We would joke that on paper we are five different caricatures: I am the metal guy, Neal is the Prog guy, Dave is the Jazz guy, Casey is the pop guy and Steve is the Muso. We were joking how each of our personalities were so glaringly different we could have been the Village People. We just needed the costumes. (Editor’s note: When they play live I would almost dare them to do a Village People song…) Each of our different backgrounds and interests in music helped take us to different places and you are right the album is incredibly diverse. It will go from something like The Storm which is U2ish to Forever In A Daze which is like the RHCP or Foo Fighters. Then you have Love Is What I’m Waiting for which is like The Beatles Or Queen so it is unbelievably diverse from top to bottom.
Metal Exiles: You also have Blue Ocean which reminds me in certain parts of the Dixie Dregs.
Mike: Yes absolutely, a little of the Dregs and a little of Kansas when Steve was in the band.
Metal Exiles: I know you are the metal guy here and you have All Falls Down, which is a bombastic track, on the album. It almost seems that song is the odd man out on the album.
Mike: Neal was pushing for that. Neal said “Look, you have Dave LaRue, Steve Morse and Mike Portnoy sitting in the same room, let’s do a song where you guys can shred.” He wanted us to really go for it so Steve came up with these riffs so we rolled up our sleeves and went for it. It was the expectations to get something on the album that would show off the chops that we have so we just did it.
Metal Exiles: Do you think that by doing this album you were able to tap into something you have not done before and have always wanted to do?
Mike: Oh absolutely, 1000%. To me it was the biggest appeal for this project at this point in my career. I have always had a geek love for more pop oriented music. The classics like The Beatles or more modern day stuff like Coldplay and Radiohead, I have always loved that kind of stuff and never tapped into it. I may have touched on it here or there with certain sounds in Dream Theater but never a full album where I could immerse myself in it. It is very fulfilling to finally have an outlet for it.
Metal Exiles: Considering the pop nature of the album, do you feel that on any part of this album you were holding back with your drumming?
Mike: I was absolutely holding back because that was what was called for. If I was to play a song like The Storm and try to bust out some metal or Prog chops it would have been completely in appropriate. I have always played for the song whether it was in Dream Theater where I had to be subtle at times or very over the top or on Steve’s solo albums that walk that fine line between Prog and Pop. With something like All Falls Down where it calls for me to fire up the guns I will. If it is not called for I will not do it for the sake of it because I have always played for the song. So in the case of this album and the style of the songs it called for restraint and subtlety. That being said I will never play anything, no matter how restrained and subtle, without it sounding like Mike Portnoy, that is the most important thing. I need to make sure a character or a personality trait is present in the song. If I am playing something straight ahead like The Storm or Better Than Walking Away you can tell that it is me and not some drum machine.
Metal Exiles: I know with Theater you were involved in all aspects of songwriting so what did you bring to the table for this record and did you have to concede to the other four guys?
Mike: This band was about collaboration, all of us working together which meant that we had to back off and concede some. Steve was used to working by himself on his solo albums and the Dregs and Neal was the same with his. With Dream Theater I was a hands on controlling force but with Flying Colors we all kind of had to step back, work together and compromise. Neal and I had done that several times with TransAtlantic as well. We have to learn to work together, collaborate, and let ideas go in different places if other members felt strongly about it. I have learned in my career to give different aspects to different projects. In Dream theater I controlled everything, from writing, producing, performing, directing, the fan club, the website, the merchandise, everything. With that band I completely protected it and controlled it. In other situations I have learned to wear different hats. When I went with A7X I simply drummed, with Neal Morse and his solo albums I just played drums but with Flying Colors or TransAtlantic it was a collaboration.
Metal Exiles: What are you more comfortable with, being in complete control or working with other people?
Mike: I like both, it is the balance of each that fulfills me. With Dream Theater I had to have that kind of control, it was my legacy, 25 years of my life that I needed to protect and have its integrity intact so it was never compromised. In that particular case I was very controlling but in other situations when you are starting from scratch with new chemistry you have to give and take and let everybody find their place. Different personalities work different ways. When you get into that situation you have to go in open minded, see what everybody’s strengths and weaknesses are and see what roles people are comfortable with and go from there.
Metal Exiles: One of the things I brought up to Casey is that the material was very personal. What was your opinion of the material that was coming out of Casey lyrically?
Mike: To be honest my personal take I left the lyrics to Neal and Casey to work on and develop together. Like we were talking about earlier about finding what peoples roles and strengths were in the band it became obvious that Casey and Neal were the two that were passionate ones about what was being said lyrically. I personally let them have their way and I am sure Steve and Dave felt the same way.
Metal Exiles: With everything you have going on musically what was the biggest draw for performing in Flying Colors?
Mike: The biggest draw was working with Steve because I had not worked with him yet and he has always been one of my favorite guitarists. I have followed him from his time in the Dregs on through Kansas and his solo career so for me it was finally working with Steve. This was the first time we have worked together so it was great to watch his genius and creativity in songwriting and guitar playing unfold before me.
Metal Exiles: Bill Evans put together this band. Would you guys have ever worked together if it was not for him?
Mike: Possibly not because Neal and I have our relationships, Steve and Dave have their relationships and I do not know if our worlds would have collided if Bill had not of intervened. Casey being from a different genre I do not know what capacity I would have worked with him even though it was I who suggested him to this line up. The intersection of this lineup would not have happened if Bill had not of suggested it.
Metal Exiles: One of the biggest aspects of Mike Portnoy is his fan base. Your fans buy everything that you are a part of, the diehard ones. What do you think the opinions that your fans will have for this record?
Mike: I think the fans, especially the ones from Dream Theater, will really take to this album. I know when Adrenaline Mob surfaced last year there was skepticism amongst them because it is a band that does not have Prog elements because it is a band in the vein of Disturbed and Pantera. I know why people were a little closed minded about or had a hard time swallowing it. However Flying Colors will satisfy that area of the fan base that is interested in diversity or Prog elements although Flying Colors is not a Prog band. There is a part of me that hopes my fan base will be open minded and come along for the ride with no matter what I do because I know I am a huge fan of so many types of music so that is what I am looking to do with my music post Dream Theater. It could range from the sounds of Lamb Of God to Jellyfish and everything in between. Something like Flying Colors will be different from Adrenaline Mob which will completely different from my next project. I would hope that the open minded fans will listen to them all with an unbiased ear and take them for what they are. Do not compare them to Dream Theater as I have already done Dream Theater, I did 25 years of it. I am not looking to do another Dream Theater; I want to do something different in 2012.
Mike Portnoy has taken yet another turn in his career with Flying Colors and if you are indeed a true fan of his music you will come along with him on his journey.
BUY Flying Colors!
BUY Flying Colors on Vinyl!
Official Flying Colors Site
