In a brand new interview with Australia’s “Everblack” podcast, drummer Mike Portnoy, who rejoined progressive metallers DREAM THEATER in October 2023 after a 13-year absence, was requested if he feels he and his bandmates are “stronger now as mates” than they ever have been up to now. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “Completely. I feel we’re simply a lot older and wiser at this level. Once I left the band again in 2010, I used to be in my early forties, and now right here I’m, I am in my late fifties. All of our youngsters have grown up and gone off and left the homes at this level. So, we’re very a lot older and wiser and we now have all of these experiences that we had during the last decade and a half aside. I went and did dozens and dozens of albums with dozens of various bands, and these guys have had all of the experiences they’d collectively with out me, so coming again collectively, I feel we’re a lot stronger folks. We’re simply extra mature, older, wiser, calmer. I feel we’re simply higher folks at this level.”
Portnoy went on to say that the robust bond between the DREAM THEATER members affected the songwriting and recording course of for the band’s sixteenth studio album, “Parasomnia”, which is due on February 7, 2025 by way of InsideOut Music. He mentioned: “I imply, you’ll be able to undoubtedly really feel the vitality. I discover it just like the vitality we had with ‘Photos And Phrases’ and with ‘Scenes From A Reminiscence’. In each of these circumstances, we have been making data with a brand new lineup — ‘Photos And Phrases’ was the primary album with [singer] James [LaBrie] within the band, and ‘Scenes From A Reminiscence’ was the primary album with [keyboardist] Jordan [Rudess] within the band. And there was a particular spirit to the chemistry in each of these circumstances. And I feel it is a very comparable vitality to the spirit of this album, simply actually being energized by the lineup change. It actually impressed us to rise to the event.”
Relating to what it has been like touring with DREAM THEATER once more for the primary time in 14 years, Portnoy mentioned: ”It has been unbelievable. We did a full European leg to this point and we did a full South American leg to this point, and each present, the feelings have simply been unbelievable. I imply, on one hand, there is a large celebration of the reunion of this lineup, and there is lots of people within the viewers that have not seen this lineup collectively in so lengthy, or there’s lots of people within the viewers that weren’t even born when this lineup final performed collectively. So there’s lots of people within the viewers that by no means noticed this lineup collectively. So for that cause alone, there’s lots of feelings within the air, but in addition the celebration of 40 years and this unbelievable discography of songs and music to work with and select from when placing collectively the setlist. I put collectively a setlist that I feel actually celebrates the complete spectrum of the band’s profession. There is a cross part of fan favorites and deep cuts as nicely. So I feel it is a present that the followers have actually been loving.”
“Parasomnia” marks DREAM THEATER‘s first launch with Portnoy since 2009’s “Black Clouds & Silver Linings”.
“Parasomnia” was produced by guitarist John Petrucci, engineered by James “Jimmy T” Meslin, and combined by Andy Sneap. Hugh Syme returns as soon as once more to lend his artistic imaginative and prescient to the quilt artwork.
Clocking in at 71 minutes, “Parasomnia” takes the listener on a musical journey that has grow to be synonymous with the band for the reason that starting of their profession. “Parasomnia” is a time period for disruptive, sleep-related disturbances together with sleepwalking, sleep paralysis, and night time terrors. Songs like “A Damaged Man”, “Useless Asleep”, “Midnight Messiah” and “Bend The Clock” all construct upon the themes introduced on by the album title. The primary single, “Evening Terror”, is a musical thrill experience captured within the simply shy of ten minutes listening expertise.
Portnoy co-founded DREAM THEATER in 1985 with guitarist John Petrucci and bassist John Myung. Mike performed on 10 DREAM THEATER albums over a 20-year interval, from 1989’s “When Dream And Day Unite” by means of 2009’s “Black Clouds & Silver Linings”, earlier than exiting the group in 2010.
Mike Mangini joined DREAM THEATER in late 2010 by means of a broadly publicized audition following the departure of Portnoy. Mangini beat out six different of the world’s prime drummers — Marco Minnemann, Virgil Donati, Aquiles Priester, Thomas Lang, Peter Wildoer and Derek Roddy — for the gig, a three-day course of that was filmed for a documentary-style actuality present known as “The Spirit Carries On”.
