Rose had Mantia learn Freese's parts note by note; Mantia had the parts transcribed, then played them from a teleprompter before trying the songs again in his style. According to Mantia, he recorded his parts in eight months and the final album features a hybrid of his and Freese's styles. Frank Ferrer replaced Mantia in 2006, saying: "I did a few tracks with and he told me to just make the songs my own. It wasn't so much conscious writing as focusing on how the music made me feel and not overthinking it." According to Ferrer, he is the only drummer on the title track; the rest of the album features drums by Mantia and Ferrer, using Freese's arrangements.