New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ Roadrunner Records) Dream Theater drummer Mike Mangini was recently interviewed by TechnologyTell.com , and talked about preparing for the band's 2014 world tour, how he approaches material from before he joined the band, and more.
Regarding the upcoming tour (for which dates will be announced soon), he says fans can expect to see "Relief—once we're onstage doing it—from all the prep work that we're doing. Yes, I think you can expect to see five very happy faces, and when you look around at the crew, I think people can just look at these guys and expect to see proud, happy faces that all the work we're putting into it is going to be worth it. That's first and foremost. An Evening With means that it's a very, very long show, and I am going with the flow about what would be great for the fans, based on what the guys have talked about putting into the set. So they have talked about what's going into the set in great detail and put a lot of thought and emotion into it."
On the subject of playing old songs, he says, "To a point, if I play it too exact, that's a little creepy, you know what I mean? But I want to uphold the greatness of those drum parts. I want the fans to be happy that they're hearing what they're used to. And I also like to put a bit of a twist in it, so I can just feel a little bit self-expressive and also maybe even take it to a place that excites the band and the fan."
He also says he's adjusted his kit, saying, "I'm getting rid of my two extreme bass drums. I had a huge bass drum, a bass drum #4, to my left side, and bass drum #3, to my right for dynamics purposes. I have replaced these with trigger bass drums where I can make those kick drum shells make any sound I want. And so, with the need for percussion in certain songs, I need this. That way, I don't have to carry around a tympani with me. I don't have to carry around a glockenspiel, cowbells or a set of Vibraslaps. I can just make these trigger pads trigger any sound I want. I've also thickened up the cymbals a bit too."
