Drummer Reacts To - Mike Portnoy Hears "Burn It To The Ground" For The First Time 

His fills are drumming genius. The double bass drums add so much more to the original recording. Getting Portnoy for a Nickleback show would be like renting a Ferrari to go to the local shop.

Mike is a fuckin genius

I can’t unhear the double bass in the chorus now it’s so good.

Both versions are awesome! But, you cannot deny the feel, power and passion, that Mike brings to whatever he does!

He improved the song like a thousand times 😂

If Mike Portnoy was doing this for Nickelback songs I definitely would have been a fan of the band. 😂

What a humble guy full of respect! He doesn’t need to put nickelback down like so many rock/metal fans and even musicians of the genre do! He is a pro full of love for music! He adds his style not to „make it better“ just showing his interpretation! Thanks for answering all the nickeback-hate in that way! Ps: i am not loving or hating them! But they deserve appreciation and for sure not that hate!

Absolutely incredible song by Mike Portnoy Colby!!!! I’ll say it again….Mike really is a genius on drums 👍👍👍

I absolutely love the way Mike Portnoy plays drums. He can turn any song into musical bliss with his drumming techniques. I would love to have heard his drum version on any Nickleback songs.

Mike's playing in A7X 'Save Me' is what got me interested in drumming, I love that song, it's my all time favourite!

This guy is So Fucking Humble! He did a phenomenal job and his improve was on point and didn't think he was a good fit? Now I gotta find where Dream Theatre is playing near me to hear this guy Tear It Up!!!

His drumming added a whole different layer depth and feeling to the original track. I could only imagine what it would have been like had he toured with them.

His signature fills, double bass drums and all his genius parts made that song 200% better.

Mike makes them sound so much better. Huge Portnoy fan

Mike is top 3 living drummers. The Dude is amazing

He made the song feel much better than the original!

People are all over el estepario Nuts and hes extremely talented. But when you see these drummers especially Mike Portnoy You see the creative Genius that many dont have. There are people that can play anything and everything But thats all they have. The ability to write is what sets players like Mike apart

There is a Soul in his drumming that makes every song new life❤

Wow, I had never heard this song before but Mike killed it. That double bass was on point in the chorus. Well done!

the double kicks in the chorus elevate the song so much!

He's so good. And seems like a really good dude. I mean some of the stuff he plays is just gross good😊

Imagine being the actual drummer for Nickelback and seeing Mike Portnoy vastly improve your work with such little effort.

See this is why I'm glad Mike is back with Dream Theater. I miss his improvising and "feel" with DT. Not to say that Mangini was bad, just different.

He played for A7X and did all the drum tracs on Nightmare...I am the one guy who doesn't love or hate NB..love how mike always talk/explains/remembers a lot, you get a drummer like Van Williams and you're f***ed as he is so quiet. He nailed this which, admittedly is like driving a Bugatti in a parking lot.

Imagine going to Nickelfest and seeing him on drums? Hell yeah!

The double bass addition was EPIC

He killed it! Love his style.

Huge nickelback fan here and you did absolute justice to their song 👍

Portnoy is so entertaining, and his improv was genius. His playing came across as effortless. Being Canadian, I may feel honour-bound to be neutral about Nickelback, and I respect their formula because no one can argue with how successful they are, but I have never heard this song before. I'd know their stuff from the 90s but after that... not at all. My true love is (prog) metal, especially when it comes to vocals, lyrics and drums, and as Portnoy illustrated, double bass makes EVERYTHING better.

Mike definitely added some cool elements to it. LOVE the double bass and the toms he added! The Toms could actually fit and not take away from the songs feel. But, I'll just say this as my opinion. Never forget the K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Stupid) rule. It's hard to actually do and have it sound good. This song, and watching this video, really proves that rule. The single pumping bass kicks keep the songs energy "Pumping" and moving along which actually makes it easier for most people, who are not musicians, to tap their feet to it and feel the songs energy and vibe. I'm sure there were takes in the studio with Nickelback where they had more complex parts and maybe even a double bass in the arrangement. But that's why you get a producer, Robert John "Mutt" Lange in this case, who can help with this. Obviously Lange's record speaks for itself.

Minus the vocals , it has a Adrenaline Mob feel to it. Love it. Thanks Colby Great reaction.

I'm a huge Nickelback fan. Especially the Feed The Machine album. And damn Mike. You took this song to a new level

This entire series is absolute gold🤘💯

Seriously great take and approach of Mike!!! WOW!!! GOLD!

This guy... 1113. Respect.

Love your videos, dude! Thank you. Great reviews!

the double bass, with the Accents on the symbol and tom, Excellent!!

As a metal drummer of 20 years. Yes he should of used the double bass, especially in the chorus

Dude I’m so glad I found this channel 👊🔥

COLBY BRUTALLIKE FROM PORTUGAL BROTHER THIS IS SICK MIKE PORTNOY PLAYING IS BRUTAAALLLL🤜🤛

When you know... you know! Awesome display of musicianship. Thanks to you for showing this...

double bass was epic...sounds better than the original imho

Thanks Colby for sharing this

Loved the double bass corus and ending of verses I think it pumps the song even more than it already is loved it wonder what he would've done to the other songs if he did do the gig

People need to understand that Daniel Adair is an absolute beast...

Absolutely phenomenal video. Yes, the musicianship of MP is top of the class as a rock drummer. Loved his improvisation and as you said “the save” which was seamless.

This song is of my childhood lmao, it was WWE Monday Night Raw's theme song when I was a kid

fascinating to watch a drummer at work. They are special human beings. A bit chaotic but in such a vital way for music.

Portnoy on the Nightmare album was incredible.

🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥smashing it all day long

LOVED what he did with this song. Soooooo good.

Mike is a legend

He brought energy to the song and made it way more interestingly

This was very fun to watch. Thank you!

MP is incredible and a fun guy to listen to. This song rocks BTW.

Mike absolutely nailed this song!! With a little fine tuning like he said, it would make non nickeback fans like the song!

Portnoy is an awesome and solid drummer who can play anything and is a very cool guy too!! Enjoyed this video very much!

He is a genius!!

He's too good for everyone ❤

Thank you. Love your videos!

I said this in the video for this on Drumeo. Nickelback drummer should smash his kits and take up playing the bass. This made this song exponentially better.

Many people hate them but they still crushing out stadiums!

This Drumeo series is the reason I bought a drum kit less than a month ago. I’ve always wanted to play, but didn’t think I could do it. I started the 30 day free trial 3 weeks ago and I’m already reading sheet music and working on learning Enter Sandman by Metallica. That’s a lot for someone who’s never sat behind a kit before! I am fairly new to the metal world, but quickly fell in love with all the amazing drummers ❤

We need more cow bell!!

mike portnoy was the rev sullivan of a7x favirote and the drummer that inspired him. Nightmare he did all the drums in respect of the rev & it was a blessing.

I was just with Mike n the last time I saw him he was still with the Winery Dogs. I told him I hope n pray that u n the guys from DT can work out whatever issues there r. At the time he wasn't sure. Again I saw saw him a week ago n said WOW, the last time I saw u, u wasn't sure. Now the bomb drops that u r back with DT..He said u wanted it now u got it..I can't wait to c them back together FINALLY

Portnoy is in the conversation with the drumming gods. They don’t get any better.

He is a genius!

Nickleback is amazing !!!! This is a kick ass song

Nickel back has got the best production. Killer driving music

Mike is the man!!!

Love this guy.

Who else has had so much fucking fun playing (trying to!) mikes version of this

fucking god of drums

He fixed the song!

He killed it

Portnoy IS Dream Theater.lol I truly enjoy watching Mike because he is incredibly humble for being SO DAMN GOOD. He keeps saying that he would've screwed up every song. More like, MADE THEM ALL BETTER!!!😆👍🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

I saw A7X live in 2010, and just now realised Mike must have been their drummer on that show, i had no idea. 🤣

Mike killed it!

You know what is crazy, I am an oboe player but I cannot get enough of watching these reactions.

I remember watching that video when it first dropped and feeling really really bad for Nickelback's drummer. Portnoy, off one listen and some crib notes, just blows it up on the spot, one take. He didn't necessarily outplay the song, not entirely, but he definitely elevated the song into something better (and made the stock drum part sound underwhelming/simple/boring, in comparison).

Portnoy was always the heart of Dream Theater for me so seeing him back in the band is super exciting for new music

That was incredible! I got a lot of fun

I've watched this twice now on two different channels... Man I'm a new fan of Mike now!

I loved it that is so cool he's fun to be around 😊

Not a touring bass player but I play with a few cover bands and I find that playing stuff like nickelback get great crowd reaction. Easy to play and fun gigs. Also the most money for the night. Haha

I kind of wish they did another take after he perfected his drum track just to see how he would have improved what is arguably an already better drum track.

Yeah I’m a bass guitarist of nearly 27 years and I’m a singer too. I love nickelback !!

I didn’t use to like Mike not that he was a bad drummer by no means I just didn’t like him. However, this video has completely changed my mind. His version of this song was way better than the original. Who knew one song can change your whole entire outlook on somebody👏👏

People who say he stole, he is reacting. Hes not a green screen kid, he is an actual drummer.

That was good drumming

What you expect Mike is one of the drumming gods yo

He definitely adds something something different to the song but i like the original too. Like Mike said, its more chilled out which sometimes i like more than something heavier. If they did it with the double bass, i think it would overpower the guitar and bass so they would have to add like a second tack of guitar and bass to balance it back out.

Oh damn, Portnoy just made this song 10x cooler than it already was! And if you hated the song, you might have to admit that it is quite enjoyable now!

Funny cause in my opinion his “1st time improvisation” was a cooler part than the actual recorded drums. And I’m not hating cause I genuinely like this song as it is, as well as playing it on my drums too, but Mike’s style & flair was just cool as fuck haha

This is amazing! ❤

This video is cool AF! Every second of it.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD MIKE MAKE THIS HAPPEN!!!!!

Daniel Adair does have the prog ability take a look at Martone. But dang mike really is a genius. Love his version for sure

The intro reminds me of 2002 Queens of the stone age album Songs for the deaf