Dream Theater Signs With SONY MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT via its INSIDE OUT imprint

[Evai]

Maybe ROADRUNNER dropped them due to poor sales of The Astonishing

[Cool Chris]

But having IO and them specializing in prog is a huge advantage over what they had in Roadrunner, which was more metal oriented.

Why is that a huge advantage? Isn't prog much more of a niche market than metal?

[Mindflux]

Maybe ROADRUNNER dropped them due to poor sales of The Astonishing

It came in at #11 on the US Billboard

I can't say for certain but I don't think "sales" was the problem.

[Sycsa]

Definitely in good company. And the trash talk from SoA is sure to stop now.

[countoftuscany42]

DT/SOA double bill anyone? 

[Anguyen92]

Maybe ROADRUNNER dropped them due to poor sales of The Astonishing

I would think The Astonishing (which was a double album and is going to cost more than a single CD) selling 25k copies on the first week is better than selling around 35k of a single CD.

Besides, plenty of bands that have name value have left Roadrunner in the last couple of years.  Nickelback (went to BMG).  Alter Bridge (went to Napalm Records).  Opeth (went to Nuclear Blast).  Black Stone Cherry (went to Mascot Records) to name a few.

Anyway, Inside Out has a good amount of great prog bands.  I'm sure DT will be fine, especially when they are most likely the most well known band on the label so the label support should be there.  It worked for Alter Bridge when they switched to Napalm.

[MirrorMask]

Yeah, give or take from the list of bands, I'd say that DT is now the biggest band on Inside Out. Pain of Salvations, Devin Townsend and Ayreon if they'd actrually tour are the only other acts I can think that would draw at concerts the same numbers of DT... and I'm not so sure about PoS either.

EDIT: Checked out Setlist.fm for PoS and Devin's last gigs in Italy, PoS played a quite small club, and Devin Townsend a mid-to-big venue, I was there for a folk-rock act I follow since many years and to me it was absolutely packed and the singer himself told me there were 1700 people, so if that wasn't a sellout, I can't imagine the venue holding more than 2000. DT here always play the same venue Iron Maiden fill.

[cramx3]

I can tell you that DT (Devin Townsend) is no where close to as popular as DT (Dream Theater)

From my perspective, Dream Theater is the biggest band on this label. 

DT/SOA double bill anyone? 

Honestly would be amazing for both bands to do this, but yea, not going to happen.

[Cool Chris]

Honestly would be amazing for both bands to do this, but yea, not going to happen.

No way. If DT went on their next tour with either a supporting act or co-headliner, there are dozens and dozens of other bands their fans would rather see on the bill.

[cramx3]

Eh, I don't know about that.  Sure we can argue day and night about which bands we want to see, and never agree, but I think many DT fans would appreciate seeing MP and DS again and not have to go to a separate show to do so.  I'd guess many of the people who aren't fans of SOA would still get to the show on time to check them out if they opened for DT whereas I know I've purposely missed some of DT's openers in the past.

[Sycsa]

Eh, I don't know about that.  Sure we can argue day and night about which bands we want to see, and never agree, but I think many DT fans would appreciate seeing MP and DS again and not have to go to a separate show to do so.  I'd guess many of the people who aren't fans of SOA would still get to the show on time to check them out if they opened for DT whereas I know I've purposely missed some of DT's openers in the past.

Yeah, in a normal world, SoA would be about the best imaginable opening act for DT. Then Mike and Derek could join DT for a song or two in the encore. But yeah, it would never happen, there are better odds for both Elvis and JFK being alive today.

[Madman Shepherd]

I'm fascinated by the state of the record industry.  When I started getting into music in the 90s, Roadrunner was known for getting obscure bands from Denmark and Brazil, and then signs a somewhat biggish band like Dream Theater. 

Now Inside Out that I knew of as the label that released obscure side projects gets Dream Theater. 

Nuclear Blast is a pretty big label now as is Century Media. 

Of course all of those have been absorbed by huge labels but it is still amazing to me.  I used to have to drive to this small record store in another state because I knew they carried most of the stuff by these tiny labels. 

I also think that proves that this modern age and the whole debate about downloading and whatever really only hurt big labels.  Arguably it helped small labels. 

[GasparXR]

So... Haken opening for Dream Theater might be a possibility now?

[gzarruk]

So... Haken opening for Dream Theater might be a possibility now?

That would be great, but it actually happened before (kinda). In 2015, DT played a couple shows in Europe where both Haken and Devin Townsend Project opened for them. A full tour with Haken would be much better, though

[CodyWanKenobi]

Now if only we could get JP to sign with InsideOut so we can get that damn follow up to Suspended Animation.

[mioist]

Didn't Dream Theater sign a three-record deal with Roadrunner before the self titled album? I wonder why they left Roadrunner, I seem to recall Opeth and several other bands abandoning the label.

I think they did sign a 3-album deal and the third album should be upcoming live album from the Images & Wordls 25th Annniversary tour. In other words, the Astonishing does NOT count as two albums, I don't know why anyone would think that.

[erwinrafael]

Do live albums count? Because if they do, then BTFW already fulfilled the requirement.

[Mladen]

If they do, Luna Park should also be taken into account. What does make the most sense to me is counting a double album as two albums, I've heard of that before.

[erwinrafael]

LALP was not Roadrunner, right?

[noxon]

Correct, it was Eagle Rock.

[?]

But having IO and them specializing in prog is a huge advantage over what they had in Roadrunner, which was more metal oriented.

Why is that a huge advantage? Isn't prog much more of a niche market than metal?

On IO DT is by far the biggest fish in the pool, so they're probably much more motivated to promote and push the band than RR, where DT was always going to play second fiddle to the likes of Korn and Slipknot. When you add the fact that they've got Sony's distribution on top of that, I can't see the next album doing much worse than the last few.

[Polarbear]

Had no idea that InsodeOut has been acquired by Sony!...

But InsideOut has been a quality label in the past, so this should be a good move by DT!

[mikeyd23]

On IO DT is by far the biggest fish in the pool, so they're probably much more motivated to promote and push the band than RR, where DT was always going to play second fiddle to the likes of Korn and Slipknot. When you add the fact that they've got Sony's distribution on top of that, I can't see the next album doing much worse than the last few.

That's a good point, hopefully IO really promotes and pushes DT since, like you said, they are the biggest act on the label now.

[Skeever]

Saying DT are moving "up" to Inside Out because they fall under Sony is pretty fallacious, because by that logic DT are already part of Warner. Inside Out is a cool label though, and it seems like the bands there move kinda at their own pace. DT aren't moving "up" though, they are downsizing. They are moving from a label where they are "one of" the bands signed (maybe a mid-tier one), to a label where I imagine they'll immediately be the largest band in the portfolio.

[noxon]

Saying DT are moving "up" to Inside Out because they fall under Sony is pretty fallacious, because by that logic DT are already part of Warner. Inside Out is a cool label though, and it seems like the bands there move kinda at their own pace. DT aren't moving "up" though, they are downsizing. They are moving from a label where they are "one of" the bands signed (maybe a mid-tier one), to a label where I imagine they'll immediately be the largest band in the portfolio.

Yes, and? For all intents and purposes Warner was the label for DT. All people I were in contact with regarding DT in both Norway and the us were Warner employees, not roadrunner employees. Roadrunner has been completely consolidated into the Warner organization and currently exists only as brand name. Not to mention they've been leaking bands for years - they're not the go to metal label they once were... look at their roster, it's tiny and narrow. Not at all fitting with DT.

InsideOut is much earlier in the same process with Sony - and still exists as its own enitity - but i will have to contact Sony locally. Sony is a bigger label than Warner.

[Skeever]

Saying DT are moving "up" to Inside Out because they fall under Sony is pretty fallacious, because by that logic DT are already part of Warner. Inside Out is a cool label though, and it seems like the bands there move kinda at their own pace. DT aren't moving "up" though, they are downsizing. They are moving from a label where they are "one of" the bands signed (maybe a mid-tier one), to a label where I imagine they'll immediately be the largest band in the portfolio.

Yes, and? For all intents and purposes Warner was the label for DT. All people I were in contact with regarding DT in both Norway and the us were Warner employees, not roadrunner employees. Roadrunner has been completely consolidated into the Warner organization and currently exists only as brand name. Not to mention they've been leaking bands for years - they're not the go to metal label they once were... look at their roster, it's tiny and narrow. Not at all fitting with DT.

InsideOut is much earlier in the same process with Sony - and still exists as its own enitity - but i will have to contact Sony locally. Sony is a bigger label than Warner.

This is great information but I don't see how it's relevant to my post at all. Yes, Sony are bigger than Warner. No, DT are not "moving up" and getting the "big label treatment" with this move, as some have suggested. If anything, they are moving to a smaller home, where they will be one of (if not the uncontested) largest band on their label. This isn't a good or bad thing, just a logical move for them in their career, and I hope it'll foster for them a more healthy creative environment and less awkward tour pairings (lookin' at you, Trivium). If the band give any more input as to why this change was made, perhaps that will shed some light on why they decided to move from their current label to a smaller one, but for now, I am hoping to sober the thoughts of some who apparently misunderstand the meaning of the headlines, which in fairness were pretty unclear.

For me, maybe this allows this move lets them finally ditch the compulsory creativity they seem to have gotten themselves into with their rigorous tour/album cycle. Maybe they take more time, tour less, ditch the mallgoth threads, who knows. Until when/if the band speak, we really don't know what they're thinking, or why they want to do this, and honestly we don't even know if leaving RR was their choice, but I think it's fair to presume that obviously something about what they've been doing for the last few cycles wasn't sitting right.

[Skeever]

I will say as an amendment to that, we now have Steven Wilson, Opeth, and DT who all came aboard RR around the same time, all off Roadrunner, with the former two on record as having been very unhappy with the label. I suspect JP will keep things above board, but I wouldn't be surprised if DT's issues weren't similar to those faced by Wilson and Opeth.

[Madman Shepherd]

I wonder if the RR problems happened more towards the end of their tenure, like around the time of the Astonishing.  Things were mostly smooth with ADTOE and DT12.  I mean, Live at Luna Park was delayed for a while but I wonder if that was a RR problem or something with the recording.  The album releases and tours were pretty well run and they were able to hit #7 and #8 on the Billboard Top 200.

[rumborak]

This is entirely my personal perception of the matter, but when DT joined RR, it seemed they had a "plan" with DT, and that plan was to go metal, and by extension, go big. That's what RR signs, it's what they do.So, the hair got long, dyed black, and it was all leather jackets and gritty promo pics.
But, in the end DT is DT, and TA was an assertion of what they are about, which is "dare, or go home". Tour-wise it didn't work out, we all know that.
In my mind, that's probably how this long IAW tour came about, as an attempt to revitalize the base, and please RoadRunner at the same time.
However, I think we all know that there is a huge difference between the number of people who show up for "IAW Live" versus "Best of DT12 and TA". As kingshmegland's friend so poignantly said before the Boston gig "two new album songs, max. Nobody wants to hear that stuff!"
From that realization I think all parties probably said "let's part here, and we'll move to a label that specializes in smaller, dedicated fans bases". I am very happy with that development, I think a less hamstrung DT will make for better music.

To reiterate, all just personal hunch and theories.

[7enderbender]

Funny that now they are with the same label than Sons of Apollo

I would actually think that "hurts" more for SoA than for DT

And maybe this opens up future options for, shall we say reunions, that may not be limited to a throne? And maybe Russel Allan is looking for a new label as well. Just sayin'

[Ninjabait]

The more I read about the two labels, the more I think this was a really good decision. tbh, looking over the roster for Inside Out, this seems like it's a much better fit for where DT is now than RR was. I'm kind of curious how this is going to change their overall sound and image since Inside Out is heavily prog-centered, while RR was primarily more about metal. The possibilities of touring with Haken, Frost*, Headspace, Haken, Redemption, and Haken are pretty cool too. Honestly, the only thing I could see possibly being better for them would be signing with the main branch of a major label or pulling a Metallica and starting their own label. I think they're on the cusp of being popular enough to pull either of those things off.

And I doubt there's even a remote possibility of a SoA/DT reunion.

If anything, they are moving to a smaller home, where they will be one of (if not the uncontested) largest band on their label.

Oh yeah, I'd say they are unquestionably the biggest band on the label by a huge margin. The only ones that come closest to DT are Kansas, Arjen Lucassen and his projects, Neal Morse, and Steve Howe (who is no longer on the label) and there's a huge gap between them. In terms of "in-house prestige", I'd say this is definitely a huge step-up for them. They're probably going to be treated like royalty while with Inside Out.

I will say as an amendment to that, we now have Steven Wilson, Opeth, and DT who all came aboard RR around the same time, all off Roadrunner, with the former two on record as having been very unhappy with the label. I suspect JP will keep things above board, but I wouldn't be surprised if DT's issues weren't similar to those faced by Wilson and Opeth.

A bit off-topic, but does anyone have a link to an interview where Steven Wilson talked about leaving RoadRunner? I couldn't find anything when I searched, but found a little bit on why Opeth left (even though it didn't go into extreme detail).

[Lethean]

I don't really think the label change is going to have an effect on the music.  Maybe Road Runner wanted to push the metal image, and maybe they went along with it (or maybe they liked that image anyway), but I don't think RR made their music any better or worse than it would have been had they been on a different label.  Dream Theater did Train of Thought before Road Runner, and I'd say that's their most metal album from start to finish.  Yes you've got Systematic Chaos on Road Runner, but I don't think Black Clouds is super metal, and certainly not the last 3 either.  I think they are and having been making the kind of music they want to make.  I suspect that's exactly what they'll continue to do with Inside Out.

[Madman Shepherd]

I don't really think the label change is going to have an effect on the music.  Maybe Road Runner wanted to push the metal image, and maybe they went along with it (or maybe they liked that image anyway), but I don't think RR made their music any better or worse than it would have been had they been on a different label.  Dream Theater did Train of Thought before Road Runner, and I'd say that's their most metal album from start to finish.  Yes you've got Systematic Chaos on Road Runner, but I don't think Black Clouds is super metal, and certainly not the last 3 either.  I think they are and having been making the kind of music they want to make.  I suspect that's exactly what they'll continue to do with Inside Out.

They also recorded Systematic Chaos before they got the RR deal. 

I think whatever influence RR had on DT it was minor and had no bearing on the actual music.  I don't doubt that RR was a little weirded out by The Astonishing and maybe its tepid reception but I honestly think the switch had more to do with RR having problems in general and DT probably getting a sweet deal from Inside Out.   

[Anguyen92]

Once again, lots of bands with name value left Roadrunner in the last couple of years.  I don't think Dream Theater leaving Roadrunner had much to do with the reception of The Astonishing, but rather the status of the label as a whole.

[Ninjabait]

My bad, should've been clearer. I meant that changing labels from the more metal-centered RR to Inside Out was possibly more of an indication of how the band wanted to develop their style and image for the time being, not that RR was going all "Riffson. Rick Riffson. Super Metal Records" on Dream Theater and forcing them to be metal. DT's gonna do their thing no matter what, I was just thinking that this is more of an indicator of what they want.

And I disagree about BC&SL and DT12 not being particularly metal. Those two are up there with Systematic Chaos, Awake, and ToT as being their most metal-centric album (DT12 moreso).