Ok I’m a fan of Mike Portnoy

I wish I liked Sons of Apollo. I really tried. I'm afraid to say it, but the songs I heard all sounded "derivative". Like I couldn't put my finger on it, but they often sounded like songs I'd heard before. .

Well, Sons of Apollo keyboardist Derek Sherinian was in Dream Theater, and on the first song on the SOA album, he plays numerous phrases he played on the song Lines in the Sand when with DT. I suppose some of that is on purpose, as a little nod to the past. But also does take away from feeling like SOA is fresh and new.

Jeff Scott Soto has, of course, been the singer in a million different bands over the years, so you probably have heard his voice.

Overall, to me, SOA sounds like a band trying to copy aspects of Dream Theater.

The same mix of Deep Purple, Rainbow, Iron Maiden, Yes, Rush, ELP, and Metallica influences DT has been using for years.
 
Well, Sons of Apollo keyboardist Derek Sherinian was in Dream Theater, and on the first song on the SOA album, he plays numerous phrases he played on the song Lines in the Sand when with DT. I suppose some of that is on purpose, as a little nod to the past. But also does take away from feeling like SOA is fresh and new.

Jeff Scott Soto has, of course, been the singer in a million different bands over the years, so you probably have heard his voice.

Overall, to me, SOA sounds like a band trying to copy aspects of Dream Theater.

The same mix of Deep Purple, Rainbow, Iron Maiden, Yes, Rush, ELP, and Metallica influences DT has been using for years.

And since I never listened to any of those people, it's all new to me. However, I wonder if the keyboardist playing familiar old lines isn't so much a nod to the past but a rib to the old band?
 
And since I never listened to any of those people, it's all new to me. However, I wonder if the keyboardist playing familiar old lines isn't so much a nod to the past but a rib to the old band?

Maybe.

I just picture a very awkward phone call:

Derek: Hey Mike, it's Derek, remember how you fired me from Dream Theater?
Mike: uh, yeah....
Derek: Yea, so how about you join up with me and form a band that sounds a lot like Dream Theater, and we'll pick up where Falling into Infinity left off
Mike: Well, I quit Dream Theater because I got tired of playing Dream Theater songs, so what makes you think I want to form a new band that will sound exactly like the band I quit?
Derek: I'll let you co-produce the album
Mike: I'm in!
 
Awkward phone call:

Derek: Hey Mike, it's Derek, remember how you fired me from Dream Theater?
Mike: uh, yeah....
Derek: Yea, so how about you join up with me and form a band that sounds a lot like Dream Theater, and we'll pick up where Falling into Infinity left off
Mike: Well, I quit Dream Theater because I got tired of playing Dream Theater songs, so what makes you think I want to form a new band that will sound exactly like the band I quit?
Derek: I'll let you co-produce the album
Mike: I'm in!

Done. Put a fork in it. Great post!!!!

SOA tickets are going for low prices compared to other acts on StubHub. Doing a comparison with other groups for their upcoming show in Minneapolis as an example:

SOA: $25
Eric B: $44
Smallpools: $36
Jay Pharaoh: $10 (that's embarrassing)
Randy Houser:$20
Helmet:$35
Memphis May Fire: $32
Sum 41:$60
DJ Biz Markle: $26
Bad Wolves: $41

Right now SOA ticket price is just about the same as DJ/rapper DJ Biz Markle. I think for that show he may be spinning tunes from 80's and 90's.

But man, Sum 41's "Does This Look Infected" Tour, which is fetching $60 prices on secondary market in Minnesota, is smokin' hot it seems. Or at least in Minnesota lol.

Awkward conversation: "Hey honey can you come over here....does this look infected to you???"
 

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He did a vid in the 90s which was like an idiots guide to counting odd time. I still have it somewhere and it was a great learning tool. It also had basic double bass drum fills which you can put onto a single pedal fairly easily.

Thanks for mentioning this. It spurred me to look for this video, or others, with help for the odd time signatures. Something I struggle with. I dunno why it never occurred to me to search for that specific need, but now I see several videos (including a clip from the Portnoy one you mentioned) that I will dig into when I have the appropriate time.

Very cool.
 
I was supposed to see them in San Antonio, and they canceled at the last minute. I'm guessing it was due to low ticket sales, as they weren't too forth coming about the reason, and most bands don't wanna admit to that. Regardless, I was disappointed, as I wanted to at least see Billy Sheehan along with Portnoy live. I guess I'll have to settle for the Winery Dogs, as Portnoy will probably quit soa if this tour didn't do well.
 
I was supposed to see them in San Antonio, and they canceled at the last minute. I'm guessing it was due to low ticket sales, as they weren't too forth coming about the reason, and most bands don't wanna admit to that. Regardless, I was disappointed, as I wanted to at least see Billy Sheehan along with Portnoy live. I guess I'll have to settle for the Winery Dogs, as Portnoy will probably quit soa if this tour didn't do well.

I've been wondering how people are expected to even know that bands like SOA exist. It was random that I learned about them at all. Google figured out I was searching on prog rock and Portnoy and stuck something into my feed once.

There's so much music out there, much of it bad, and the gems are hard to find.
 
Well, if it weren't for the people in SOA, I don't anyone would pay any attention to them.

Agreed. It takes a lot for me to actively seek out music. Billy Sheehan was just nice to me at the NAMM show and even posed for a photograph for me, and then told me had a project in the works that I Should check out. This after I told him how much I loved his playing with Niacin and Dennis Chambers from the 90s.
 
Dream Theatre are shite and Mike seems a bit grating in interviews but you can't deny his playing is excellent.
 
I was supposed to see them in San Antonio, and they canceled at the last minute. I'm guessing it was due to low ticket sales, as they weren't too forth coming about the reason, and most bands don't wanna admit to that. Regardless, I was disappointed, as I wanted to at least see Billy Sheehan along with Portnoy live. I guess I'll have to settle for the Winery Dogs, as Portnoy will probably quit soa if this tour didn't do well.

They were supposed to play in SA? I wish I had known that earlier. Maybe my ticket would have been the one ticket to push them over the break-even point.
 
I've been wondering how people are expected to even know that bands like SOA exist. It was random that I learned about them at all. Google figured out I was searching on prog rock and Portnoy and stuck something into my feed once.

There's so much music out there, much of it bad, and the gems are hard to find.

I don't know really. They do have a few videos on youtube, but I had to look for them. There really isn't a platform anymore where people can randomly hear something, sans a site like Blabbermouth, which is where I heard of them. But, if you don't go there all of the time you'll miss out. I also think in this case the local promoter sucked, as they didn't do any promoting at all, (putting an event on FB does NOT constitute promoting to me), so most people that would have been interested never even knew about this show.
 
They were supposed to play in SA? I wish I had known that earlier. Maybe my ticket would have been the one ticket to push them over the break-even point.

yeah, and the show was canceled hours before start time. The promoter obviously sucked in this case, although the band is not doing much better at promoting themselves. They didn't even post that the show was canceled on their page or the event page. Luckily some other people posted on that page that it was canceled, or I would have made a long drive for nothing.
 
Well, if it weren't for the people in SOA, I don't anyone would pay any attention to them.

yeah, maybe they're banking on that too much, and not focusing enough on promoting themselves. A lot of these legendary musicians think their names alone will be enough to get people to shows, but I've found that in most cases that's not always true. There's gotta be a lot of hype, and trendiness, (a hit single doesn't hurt either), to get a lot of people to a show. With soa being a new band maybe they should have toured with somebody else bigger to get some exposure, as headlining a tour is a crap shoot for a new band. You might do well in certain cities, but totally flop in others.
 
yeah, maybe they're banking on that too much, and not focusing enough on promoting themselves. A lot of these legendary musicians think their names alone will be enough to get people to shows, but I've found that in most cases that's not always true. There's gotta be a lot of hype, and trendiness, (a hit single doesn't hurt either), to get a lot of people to a show. With soa being a new band maybe they should have toured with somebody else bigger to get some exposure, as headlining a tour is a crap shoot for a new band. You might do well in certain cities, but totally flop in others.

Agreed.

I'm not sure how Portnoy keeps thinking he can jump from band to band and keep a following.

OK, it worked for some of his projects, but it's not going to keep working.

When I get into a band/album I like, I want to really get into it and see the shows, etc. When it's a side project (even though SOA claims not to be) it's hard to get that enthused about it knowing it won't be around for long.

Portnoy quite Adrenaline Mob to be in Winery Dogs, now Winery Dogs have dissolved and two of three members are in SOA. Even if SOA was a success, how long unitl it disolves into the next thing.....
 
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