[Mr Ected]

It has to be done. A buddy at work and myself always go back and forth arguing who is the best drummer. Of coarse it's all in fun and the topic is very subjective, but I thought it would be fun to see what you guys think.

[Dealas]

Portnoy is arguably my biggest influence, and even though I highly respect Peart, I like Portnoy 10x better. Their styles are very different, though...

[Mr Ected]

Dealas, on Dec 4 2007, 09:10 PM, said:

Portnoy is arguably my biggest influence, and even though I highly respect Peart, I like Portnoy 10x better. Their styles are very different, though...

I hear that. Portnoy was a huge influence for me. I love his raw, but very creative style. His cymbal work is the best I've ever heard!

[DrumLife]

I would have to say that Peart is better because some of the things that Portnoy does is copied from Peart. But to be honest, they are both the same, its just that one is old school (Peart) and the other is close to new school (Portnoy). In somethings, Portnoy is better and others Peart is better. It just depends on the style of music that they are playing.

[Jared Falk]

I can't get into this one. They are both great drummers. I have watched both of their DVDs and they're quite entertaining.

[DrummerGirl]

Jared Falk, on Dec 5 2007, 09:56 AM, said:

I can't get into this one. They are both great drummers. I have watched both of their DVDs and they're quite entertaining.

Yah they are both good drummers, however Portnoy is the bomb. He seems to have a more creative edge then Peart.

[DoubleBassKing123]

DrummerGirl, on Dec 5 2007, 10:48 AM, said:

Yah they are both good drummers, however Portnoy is the bomb. He seems to have a more creative edge then Peart.

I think Portnoy is better at double bass IMO.

[Dave Atkinson]

Jared Falk, on Dec 5 2007, 05:56 PM, said:

I can't get into this one. They are both great drummers. I have watched both of their DVDs and they're quite entertaining.

I have to agree with Jared on this one, they are both amazing drummers. Comparing drummers of this skill level is very difficult to do, it usually ends up becoming a popularity vote on which style of music you like better, Rush or Dream Theater. Which is where I am torn again since 2 of my favorite bands are Rush and Dream Theater!

[Mr Ected]

My vote went to Portnoy, but here is what my buddy at work has to say about Peart (he doesn't have an account here yet, I will make him create one though).


"To me, what makes an excellent drummer is (not necessarily in the order listed):
1) it's creativity
2) playing the right things at precisely the right time
3) adding delicacy and fluidity to the music through your playing

Those three things are IMO what makes drumming so hard to pull off (i.e. so you don't sound like a stupid hack)

I don't think by any measure Portnoy is more creative, however.

If you listen to Rush's older music (especially from the Grace Under Pressure or Moving Pictures albums), you'll hear drumming which is the most creative I've ever heard."

[Schroeder]

Mr Ected, on Dec 4 2007, 08:14 PM, said:

I hear that. Portnoy was a huge influence for me. I love his raw, but very creative style. His cymbal work is the best I've ever heard!

I'll admit Portnoy had a hand in shaping how I played, but then I found out about these three crazy cats from Europe:

Thomas Lang, Benny Greb, and Jojo Mayer

Thomas for his INSANE independent limb coordination, Greb for his groove and pocket, and Jojo for thinking outside the box

YouTube Video ->Original Video

YouTube Video ->Original Video

YouTube Video ->Original Video

[cableman26]

I love them both, but Peart is so mathmatical sometimes. I feel he does not have much groove, I notice this more on his earlier work. That being said Pornoy is not my favorite either, lol. But this is one of those things that there is no right or wrong answer, it's all in who inspires you personally. That being said I leave you with one name, John Bonham.

[Johnathan H]

What about keith Moon from the Who, hmmmm many of you might not be old enough to remember that band

[the tama bomma]

Schroeder, on Dec 5 2007, 02:18 PM, said:

Thomas for his INSANE independent limb coordination, Greb for his groove and pocket, and Jojo for thinking outside the box

YouTube Video ->Original Video

wow... Thomas Lang is damn good... thanks for the video Schroeder

[LloydDobbler]

Without Peart, there is no Portnoy. Not to mention, Rush is a legendary group and Dream Theater is, well, not.

[Dave Atkinson]

LloydDobbler, on Dec 7 2007, 07:15 PM, said:

Without Peart, there is no Portnoy. Not to mention, Rush is a legendary group and Dream Theater is, well, not.

Every Drummer gets influenced by other drummers whether they mean to or not, that is just the way we progress. Look at the early years with Buddy rich and Gene Krupa, there are hundreds of drummers who are influenced by them. I think Portnoy would still be a great drummer without the inspirations of Peart, however there is no doubt that he modeled himself after Peart. That does not mean Peart is better in any case. Mike Portnoy also says he was influenced by Keith Moon, but does that mean Moon is a better drummer?
Rush is an amazing band that has been around since the late 60's (68 i belevie) however, you cannot put down Dream Theaters efforts, as they are one of the biggest Prgo Rock bands to date, (forming in the mid 80's)

[Mr Ected]

Schroeder, on Dec 5 2007, 03:18 PM, said:

YouTube Video ->Original Video

I really love this video. It really shows how much you can do with a very simple kit and a lot of imagination!

[timotimot]

portnoy ahehe

This post has been edited by timotimot: 03 January 2008 - 11:58 PM

[Dave Atkinson]

timotimot, on Jan 1 2008, 07:15 AM, said:

portnoy sucks. who needs 3 bass drums anyway.

Kit set up has nothing to do with this comparison. Have you seen the size of Pearts kits? they are the same size if not bigger then Portnoys.

[Schroeder]

Mr Ected, on Dec 31 2007, 05:23 PM, said:

I really love this video. It really shows how much you can do with a very simple kit and a lot of imagination!

It's true. I had a chance to check him out at a clinic and have dinner with him. Awesome awesome guy. Super nice and tons of really cool stories. Good friends with Thomas Lang also.

[Dealas]

3 bass drums gives a nice variety of sounds... I actually like more how his smaller (right) kit sounds.