Thought this might be of interest:
https://www.classicrockmagazine.com/news/dream-theater-have-a-new-drummer-but-theyre-not-saying-who-it-is/Words: Dave Ling
The news was revealed on December 9, when the band’s guitarist John Petrucci talked to Classic Rock about the band’s appearance at next summer’s High Voltage Festival. Given that three months to the day had elapsed since Portnoy broke the shock news of his exit, we began by pointing out how quickly the band have moved in getting back onto an even keel.
“I know, I know,” laughed Petrucci. “Dream Theater is like a train that can’t be stopped. The auditions went incredibly well, and we do have a guy and we’re really excited about our choice. But we’re not ready to make any announcement just yet. Before going public we want to make sure everything’s done right. We’re getting everything in line (behind the scenes). Everything has to be done 100 percent right. There’s no room for mistakes in any of this.
“All that I will say is everybody is very, very psyched about the band’s future,” he continues. “Mike’s decision to leave the band was such a shock; when somebody you’ve been with for 25 years is suddenly no longer around, it’s very bizarre and weird. The whole process of auditioning (replacements), making plans for the future and committing to play in Europe next summer at places like High Voltage has been very cathartic for us.”
Are you prepared to tell us whether the guy that got the job is one of the names that have been mooted?
“I’d rather not get into any of that, to be honest.”
Whoever he is, everybody knows he will have his work cut out to follow a drummer like Mike Portnoy. In some ways, the newcomer is accepting a bit of a poisoned chalice?
(Laughing): “Oh yeah, absolutely. It’s like: ‘You’re sure you want this gig?’. That’s very funny.”
The speed with which the High Voltage appearance was announced took everybody by surprise. You obviously disagreed – in the strongest possible terms – with Portnoy’s assertion that the band needed to take time off and recharge its batteries?
“Yeah. I started this band with Mike and John (Myung, bass) more than 25 years ago, and as a career it has steadily built and gained momentum. We have incredibly, passionate diehard fans around the world; we had no intentions disassembling our empire, or even slowing it down. If anything, especially coming off a US tour with Iron Maiden, we felt completely the opposite. The last record (2009’s Black Clouds And Silver Linings) was the highest charting record of our career, so it made no sense whatever to slow things down. If anything, we had to do the opposite: More, bigger, better.”
Intriguingly, Classic Rock’s sister title Metal Hammer ran a poll that asked its online readers whether DT should continue without MP. The result was an almost an even split – 52 per cent saying no, 48 saying yes…
“Wow, that’s interesting… I didn’t know that,” says Petrucci, sounding thoughtful.
Does it say something of the size of the task that awaits you?
“You know what?” he responds. “I’m a fan of bands myself. I understand that when people get used to seeing a band a certain way, they don’t want to start imaging it in another form. That makes complete sense to me. But at the same time, what people forget is that Dream Theater is a band – a collection of five people. It always has been. With those five people, the sum is greater than the individual parts. That’s very important for everybody to understand. Dream Theater is not about one person. It’s about the music we make collectively, and the relationship we have with our fans, also our artistic goals and visions. It’s hard for me, too, to picture it going on in a different way (without Portnoy), but it’s harder still to imagine the whole thing coming to a halt.”
Is the plan to get an album out in time for the European visit in the summer? Or simply come over and play?
“We start a new record in January but I don’t think it’ll be ready in time for the festivals. But it may be ready in time for August or something.”
Will we get to hear any of its songs at High Voltage?
“Maybe. It’s possible.”
Can you divulge who will produce? With Mike now gone, will you handle things alone?
“I’m gonna continue as the producer, yeah. We talked about it, and it’s a passion of mine so I will continue with the reins. Paul Northfield, who has done the last two records, will engineer with us. The only thing different is that it will be mixed by somebody else in order to gain a bit of outside perspective.”
Can you give a flavour of the new songs?
“No. Not yet. I’ve been writing here at home, laying down some idea and trading a few (with the rest of the band). But we do have a very definitive focus regarding the type of record we want to make. That’s something that will be revealed in time.”
Meanwhile, everybody else in the band is stepping up to the plate to compensate for Portnoy’s creative absence?
“Absolutely, yeah. When you have a family, or some kind of business, and something happens unexpectedly to send it into crisis or tragedy then everybody ends up pulling together. There’s a lot more communication going on between everybody. We have a wealth of talent and creativity, and it will pull us through.”
It’s interesting that both of High Voltage’s headliners will be at pivotal points in their careers; a new beginning for Dream Theater, and the end of the road for Judas Priest, who are winding up an inspirational four-decade career as part of a farewell global excursion called the Epitaph tour…
“Wow, I didn’t know that,” imparted Petrucci with an air of sadness. “I’ve always been a very big fan of Judas Priest… how could anyone not be? That’s bound to make for a very emotional evening.”
Topic: New JP Interview (Read 11823 times)
