10 Hard Rock Musicians Who Outshined The Lead Singer

Dream Theater is probably the one band that has come the closest to achieving technical perfection on a hard rock record. Across albums like Octavarium or Metropolis Pt. 2, each member is at the top of their game with some of the most complex arrangements the rock world has ever seen. Even though vocalist James Labrie delivers his high-end voice to this band, everyone wants to know who is behind that mammoth drumkit.

Born and bred from the school of Neil Peart and John Bonham, Mike Portnoy remains one of the greatest drummers still working in the hard rock world today. It's easy to dismiss the guy's mammoth kit for being just excessive, but across the length of any of the band's past shows, Portnoy puts every single tom head and cymbal to work, as he pummels his kit with a mathematical precision.

When working outside of his prog home, Portnoy has been a more-than-capable interim drummer for bands like Twisted Sister and even filling in for Avenged Sevenfold's trademark skinsman The Rev for a while after his death in the late 2000's. Even when not behind the kit, Portnoy's charismatic presence shows that he still is a music lover who wants to continue honing his craft. Most drummers are typically defined as the dumb one in the group, but Portnoy's behavior both on and away from the kit puts all those naysayers to shame.