Dream Theater Finishes Smoking Barbecue!! - Album in Food Warmer!

[TAC]

Yes, it definitely looked like Bear Tracks. I meant to post that. Didn't Bear Tracks burn down? Perhaps it's been rebuilt. That driveway looked awful familiar.

[pg1067]

Yes, it definitely looked like Bear Tracks. I meant to post that. Didn't Bear Tracks burn down? Perhaps it's been rebuilt. That driveway looked awful familiar.

I think you're thinking of Le Studio.  Bear Tracks closed about ten years ago, but as far as I can tell from Google Maps, the buildings are still there.

[gzarruk]

YES!!! Loved this video, sign me in for more

Some interesting things I can gather from it, so far:

- Looks like they're going for a different approach this time. Its's not write and record simultaneously in the studio, like DT12 was. It seems like they just rented a very cool space in the woods to write and demo everything BEFORE entering the studio. This way they can do pre production and get through all the arrangements without the pressure of "must record everything right now".
This probably has to do with them being with IO now and not having a budget as big as they had before to rent the whole studio just to write the album, or maybe not, but this kind of change seems good to me either way.

- Mangini's kit is a bit smaller than usual, as goo-goo pointed out, and some of the cymbals are in a different place/position.  Considering this is just a small room for them to write everything, maybe he got a smaller setup so that it isn't overkill with the full blown kit OR maybe he's going to record the new album on a smaller kit, as he said he was considering it on an interview a while back.

- JP said they're going to live there for the next couple months, that means the writing will probably be finished (assuming he says a couple months because they actually rented it for a couple months and not because he's just saying a "couple" as in "as long as it takes" ) by mid August-ish.

As you can tell, I'm very excited about this

[The Silent Cody]

Oh yes!!! I was waiting for this moment to come I love when DTF community are excited, especially when it get's down to new DT album I hope that, it will be something big and something which will be better than DT12 and Astonishing But lately, that album grow for me so, maybe it will click soon

[erwinrafael]

That's Mangini's practice kit, right?

They'll be together for a couple of months. Have they written an album before with a similar time period?

It also seems that James would be in the studio during the whole process. No wonder he cancelled ProgPower.

[noxon]

I do recall JP talking about a place converted to a studio in new york they were planning to rent for a couple of months. I do not know if this is it. It might be.

[Madman Shepherd]

Yes, it definitely looked like Bear Tracks. I meant to post that. Didn't Bear Tracks burn down? Perhaps it's been rebuilt. That driveway looked awful familiar.

I think you're thinking of Le Studio.  Bear Tracks closed about ten years ago, but as far as I can tell from Google Maps, the buildings are still there.

Didn't burn.  Was being sold as a residence.  There were tons of pictures from a realty site available online. 



I will echo everything that's been said.  I'm psyched they are going this route. 

That's Mangini's practice kit, right?

They'll be together for a couple of months. Have they written an album before with a similar time period?

It also seems that James would be in the studio during the whole process. No wonder he cancelled ProgPower.

Yeah, even though he said it had nothing to do with DT, and I'm not necessarily calling him a liar, I think it was just a PR move and it really was about the recording/writing.

[gzarruk]

JP got two baritone guitars there, this might end up in some very heavy riffage

[erwinrafael]

Oops. Scratch that. If the writing would be a couple of months, that would be June to August. It would not hit the September Prog Power date. So maybe DT did not really force James to cancel, but the length of writing the album would not give him enough time to prepare with his solo band.

[Architeuthis]

Nice!  That looks like a good recording environment.   Definitely excited to hear what they come up with. 

[goo-goo]

I find it a little bit hard to believe that they won't be recording at the same time however it's exciting to see that they will probably demo some of the material/ideas brought in. Maybe this studio has another room where the drums will be fully mic'd ready to record. The rest of the instruments can be recorded in the control room or something. Anyways, it's always exciting to see DT in the studio.

-2 months to demo
-2-4 weeks to record
-2-4 weeks to mix/master
-2-3 months for record label promo/prepare release
-Possibly Nov or January release

[PepeLePew]

So last week, we were talking about little video bits, and BAM, here it is!


So while I think JP is a master of "corporate speak" and saying nothing, there is a certain genuineness about him, and he seems genuinely excited for this. That has me excited.

That is exactly what I thought, too. He seems so excited to start this new cycle that I can't help being very excited myself (not that I mind...)
I hope they will give us more video bits with everyboday actually IN the studio. 

[Bertielee]

So last week, we were talking about little video bits, and BAM, here it is!


So while I think JP is a master of "corporate speak" and saying nothing, there is a certain genuineness about him, and he seems genuinely excited for this. That has me excited.

That is exactly what I thought, too. He seems so excited to start this new cycle that I can't help being very excited myself (not that I mind...)
I hope they will give us more video bits with everyboday actually IN the studio. 

Everybody in the studio. That sounds wonderful to my ears! And demos? Yeah, baby, bring 'em to me! Really excited as you can see. Can't wait to see and hear what the guys will do this time.

B.Lee

[Fritzinger]

Very hyped for this. The environment reminds me of how Genesis recorded The Lamb. Just get out of civilization, find a quiet space, and make some f**kin awesome music 

[Mladen]

I love that video. I wish I ever had the experience writing an album in such an environment.

[Logain Ablar]

Great little video, and nice to see everyone will be together in the same room for the writing sessions.

I hope they do more of these vids. I’m interested in the process of writing/recording, as well as the end result.

[MirrorMask]

Saw it too. Nice that from the get go they try to keep fans aware and interested!

BTW, was there totally a notification alert when the video was being recorded?  these days, you can't even shoot a video for your fans without someone messaging you.

[mikeyd23]

Cool stuff, nice little video.

Definitely seems like a different approach this time, that room is certainly a rehearsal space not a recording studio. So if they plan on being there for a couple months just writing and demoing, they certainly are taking a different approach (I believe they have been writing in the studio for many cycles).

I love the idea of these guys basically living together in a rehearsal space for a couple months - hopefully that will give them time to work ideas out, demo, listen back, adjust as needed, etc... before entering the studio.

[Ben_Jamin]

You know who really loves this...Myung. Didn't he say he misses hanging out and just jamming/writing.

I'm excited just for that fact. They're all in the studio just writing and demoing. No worry of recording a final product.

[gzarruk]

I love the idea of these guys basically living together in a rehearsal space for a couple months - hopefully that will give them time to work ideas out, demo, listen back, adjust as needed, etc... before entering the studio.

Indeed! Angra did the same thing for their latest album, and it is

You know who really loves this...Myung. Didn't he say he misses hanging out and just jamming/writing.

Count Mangini in there too. He’s expressed multiple times the desire to collaborate more with the writing and he’s getting the chance this time, as with DT12, where some of the best parts are bass/drums sections.

[KevShmev]

As much as I like The Astonishing, which was basically a 2-man writing job, I love seeing that this album will be all five guys in a room to write and record together.

[Anxiety35]

As much as I like The Astonishing, which was basically a 2-man writing job, I love seeing that this album will be all five guys in a room to write and record together.

You took the words right out of my mouth.

Also, it will be different (in a good way) for them to have demos on file and then enter the studio to record. Just go in and blast out the finished product.

[gzarruk]

I could be wrong, but wasn't TOT the last time they demoed everything before going to record the album?

[Madman Shepherd]

I could be wrong, but wasn't TOT the last time they demoed everything before going to record the album?

I believe you're right. 

Although you almost can't even call that demoing.  They wrote the songs in a practice space, had some live run throughs and then recorded them.  The "demos" released on Ytse Jam were just a live version of the songs with no vocals.  I'm unclear if they did in fact write vocals melodies at the time and just never put them down or if they waited to write that portion until after the songs were written.  I think it's the latter although James was in the practice space with them.

[Fritzinger]

I wonder what James will be doing there all the time... The JP, JR, JM and MM are jamming on their instruments, it's not like JLB will improvise some soaring vocal lines with random words 

I love that they're approaching their new album like this, but I just picture JLB standing there watching the guys and sometimes saying something like "hey Jordan can you play that one thing again, the thing before the other thing? That was pretty kewl"

[MirrorMask]

I wonder what James will be doing there all the time... The JP, JR, JM and MM are jamming on their instruments, it's not like JLB will improvise some soaring vocal lines with random words 

Well, maybe he should! or at the very least, get the "feel" of the song as they're coming to be!

I love that they're approaching their new album like this, but I just picture JLB standing there watching the guys and sometimes saying something like "hey Jordan can you play that one thing again, the thing before the other thing? That was pretty kewl"

...however, this is most likely how it's gonna go 

(But now, seriously: how much people in a band, including the singer, know about each other's instruments? I mean in terms of correctly describing chords, progressions, toms and cymbals, arpeggios and staccatos, stuff like that)

[mikeyd23]

I wonder what James will be doing there all the time... The JP, JR, JM and MM are jamming on their instruments, it's not like JLB will improvise some soaring vocal lines with random words 

Well, maybe he should! or at the very least, get the "feel" of the song as they're coming to be!

I love that they're approaching their new album like this, but I just picture JLB standing there watching the guys and sometimes saying something like "hey Jordan can you play that one thing again, the thing before the other thing? That was pretty kewl"

...however, this is most likely how it's gonna go 

(But now, seriously: how much people in a band, including the singer, know about each other's instruments? I mean in terms of correctly describing chords, progressions, toms and cymbals, arpeggios and staccatos, stuff like that)

I might be wrong, but I definitely think the vocal melodies can benefit from having the singer there during the writing process. I think that will (hopefully) allow James to have some more input into the melodies and the phrasing which will hopefully make the material a little easier live.

[bosk1]

I could be wrong, but wasn't TOT the last time they demoed everything before going to record the album?

I believe you're right. 

Although you almost can't even call that demoing.  They wrote the songs in a practice space, had some live run throughs and then recorded them.  The "demos" released on Ytse Jam were just a live version of the songs with no vocals.  I'm unclear if they did in fact write vocals melodies at the time and just never put them down or if they waited to write that portion until after the songs were written.  I think it's the latter although James was in the practice space with them.

But remember that with TOT, they had an initial writing session (and they may have done SOME recording--I don't remember for sure), took a break (the Escape from the Studio Tour, with Queensryche and Fates Warning), and then went back into the studio to finish up.

[Cool Chris]

I might be wrong, but I definitely think the vocal melodies can benefit from having the singer there during the writing process. I think that will (hopefully) allow James to have some more input into the melodies and the phrasing which will hopefully make the material a little easier live.

I hate to sound like an ass, but no shit having the singer involved in the writing of the vocal melodies is a good idea.

[gzarruk]

JP shared on social media that today is the first day of writing for DT14

[pg1067]

(But now, seriously: how much people in a band, including the singer, know about each other's instruments? I mean in terms of correctly describing chords, progressions, toms and cymbals, arpeggios and staccatos, stuff like that)

Well...in this band, I think everyone knows that they all know quite a bit about music theory, and I would be shocked if each of the four instrumentalists didn't know a great deal about each other's instruments.  Chords, progressions and arpeggios are chords, progressions and arpeggios, whether they're played on a guitar, a keyboard, a harmonica, a bass flute or a tubax.

[mikeyd23]

I might be wrong, but I definitely think the vocal melodies can benefit from having the singer there during the writing process. I think that will (hopefully) allow James to have some more input into the melodies and the phrasing which will hopefully make the material a little easier live.

I hate to sound like an ass, but no shit having the singer involved in the writing of the vocal melodies is a good idea.

  Chill out man, gheez.

I only mention it because there have been many instances in DT's history where it seems like James was just handed parts and asked to sing them.

[Cool Chris]

I was agreeing with you 100%. I just thought what you said was so obvious how could anyone not recognize it. And yeah just hand in the singer vocal lines with the instruction "here, sing this" isn't always the best route. Heck they wrote I&W without a singer in place. "Well I hope whoever we hire can sing these ridiculous lines."

[Madman Shepherd]

I could be wrong, but wasn't TOT the last time they demoed everything before going to record the album?

I believe you're right. 

Although you almost can't even call that demoing.  They wrote the songs in a practice space, had some live run throughs and then recorded them.  The "demos" released on Ytse Jam were just a live version of the songs with no vocals.  I'm unclear if they did in fact write vocals melodies at the time and just never put them down or if they waited to write that portion until after the songs were written.  I think it's the latter although James was in the practice space with them.

But remember that with TOT, they had an initial writing session (and they may have done SOME recording--I don't remember for sure), took a break (the Escape from the Studio Tour, with Queensryche and Fates Warning), and then went back into the studio to finish up.

So are you saying they wrote more once they left the practice space and entered the studio?  Because my understanding was they wrote the album minus Vacant in the rehearsal space, did the live run through (that is available on Ytsejam) and at that point entered the studio, did the tour, and then came back to the studio. 

So I thought the whole album minus Vacant was written and live demoed at the rehearsal space and then they entered the studio.

[MirrorMask]

JP shared on social media that today is the first day of writing for DT14

Like this, but with more enthusiasm.