I think that most of todays drummers play in the background. Mason PLAYS and he plays not only the background but also the foreground. I love his rythm in every Pink Floyd song. What do I mean by writing 'plays' uppercase? See 'One of these days' from the 'Live at Pompei'
Mason can break a drumstick and in one second he equips a new one! He can spin his drumstick while playing and it's not like: 'play, stop playing, do the trick, play again' it's 'play and do the trick while still playing' and playing sweet
It's just part of his play. He is great.