Dream Theater Name New Drummer

Former Steve Vai, Extreme and Annihilator drumer Mike Mangini has been named as the new drummer for Dream Theater, ending the band's long search for a replacement for band principle Mike Portnoy who quit the band last year.

In the third of their behind the scenes videos, The Spirit Carries On, Mangini was confirmed as the man with the job. He beat six other top drummers to land the role.

Until recently Mangini was a teacher at the Berklee College of Music in Boston and he has held five World's Fastest Drummer world records.

Guitarist John Petrucci remarked: "Well, it's been a very exciting for all of us in Dream Theater and we are happy to finally share the news that Mike Mangini is our new drummer! He is not only a beast of a player but an incredible person as well who truly and fully understands and values everything that we strive to be as a band. Thank you for being so patient and incredibly supportive to us throughout the years and especially over the last several months. Thank you for your faith in us and your immediate and practically across-the-board acceptance of Mike Mangini as our new drummer. Thank you for the positive words about the documentary and all of your passion and dedication. The movie is our gift and our invitation into something that would traditionally be very private and I appreciate everyone's sensitivity towards that. There's a lot of work to be done, so back to the studio. JM finished tracking bass today and Jordan is recording as I type. Things are real busy around here. Can't wait for everyone to hear the new music and to begin playing live with Mike!"

You can watch the latest Spirit Carries On video below:

All three of these videos will be put together to form one film which will be included with the band's forthcoming new studio album, which is due later in the year.