DREAM THEATER ANNOUNCE THE RETURN OF DRUMMER MIKE PORTNOY

[Herrick]

He’s the guy that goes widdly widdly widdly on the bass and worships Xenu

I would think Elron would be worshipped rather than Xenu. Xenu isn't a good guy in their...holy writings.

[Trav86]

I doubt the topic of setlists has even been brought up in conversation with them. More than likely it’s…

1. Personal relationships with the band members being squared away.
2. Musical direction and desire for making a new album
3.  Business and legal formalities.

[wolfking]

Holy fuck, is this April Fools?  Wow.....just fucking wow.....

[Lonk]

The land down under is just waking up to the news? 

[wolfking]

It's nice they were able to work things out......but for the love of god keep him away from the microphone.

No, this will be an immense help to James.

[lonestar]

When MP was last in the band, I was still a raging drunk....


They also announced it on my birthday, that was kinda fucked up tbh...

Holy fuck, is this April Fools?  Wow.....just fucking wow.....

Good morning lol

[wolfking]

The land down under is just waking up to the news? 

Correct!  13 pages already. 

[wolfking]

When MP was last in the band, I was still a raging drunk....


They also announced it on my birthday, that was kinda fucked up tbh...

Holy fuck, is this April Fools?  Wow.....just fucking wow.....

Good morning lol

Super late to the party I see. 

[ResultsMayVary]

Adding to the trend of people posting for the first time in years and who also could not really register this news initially.

[lucasembarbosa]

Holy molly, MP is back and Indiscipline is still alive!!!!!!!!   

[Wim Kruithof]

One moment I was over the moon due to Feyenoord kickin' Lazio's in the Champions League, after a long day of work. As a routine I went to the forum... but since then life's made a twist. Staring at all my Dream Theater vinyls, I realize I will actually see founder Portnoy in the line-up at next tour. I am thrilled... saw them for the first time in '17, wonder so badly what it would be. How on earth will I ever make a good night rest with my head being blown away...

And wow, there are so many old-forum members crawling under all those stones and coming back to this forum. So nice.

This will be a night I'll cherish forever... I just can't believe it's true. Wow...

[Grizz]

I thought that the wording from MM, while professional, was a bit odd. But I don't want to overspeculate on private conversations.

When MP left the band, I was 12. Crazy to think that was more than half of my life ago. As a preteen drummer, I loved his boisterous style and larger-than-life personality, and cherish the two shows that I got to see with him on stage. I was enthralled to see him play DT classics with Haken in NYC, and to see him on JP's tour. I'm certainly looking forward to seeing this lineup live again.

Was Bridgeport the worst attendance of DreamSonic, or were they all that bad? I actually got a lot out of it because I managed to sneak into the front section with my cheaper tickets.

[gzarruk]

My understanding is that this was the band's decision, not his.

OK, but you don't know that.  You are assuming that.  That's all.  Bottom line is, we just don't know any of the details at all.  "It was the band's decision" does not really mean anything.  Let's say, hypothetically, that MM decided he had to leave because a loved one has a long term serious health condition and he wants to be around them for that.  100% his decision to leave in that scenario, and to respect his privacy, the band isn't going to give the reasons.  It's still the band's decision to bring Mike Portnoy back in, and a press release isn't going to do much to shed light on what happened.  So, again, I'm just saying we shouldn't assume.

I don't think anybody is assuming anything here, Bosk. The announcement literally starts with MM saying he understands the band's decision to get MP back. Not enough proof? Just watch Rodrigo's interview with Mike, which was just linked in MM's thread. He gets asked about entering the studio with DT and he pretty much says he's waiting for the call, that he's ready and prepared. I don't think that leaves enough room for interpretation.

Like TAC said, there's no intent to paint the band as the villains here, it's just how things apparently went. Do we have all the details? Absolutely not, but it's not that hard to work out what really happened here or back in 1999 with Derek getting the same treatment.

[bosk1]

I am aware of both.  But the press release is a short quote without any context, and the interview...let's just say he was understandably being very evasive.  You are reading a lot into those quotes without having any context or details.

[wolfking]

Reading the press release, definitely the bands decision.  Business is Business.

It's funny though, I can't recall there ever been the impression given off that MM was just warming the seat.  All that talk seems weird to me.

[wolfking]

I am aware of both.  But the press release is a short quote without any context, and the interview...let's just say he was understandably being very evasive.  You are reading a lot into those quotes without having any context or details.

All fair but to me it feels like the band gave MM the boot. 

[TAC]

I'm not making assumptions here. However I obviously wasn't there for the conversations.


I found the official statement oddly...honest.

I think since MP left, JP's been happy to blow smoke up our asses. This statement does not read like smoke blowing.

[Trav86]

I am aware of both.  But the press release is a short quote without any context, and the interview...let's just say he was understandably being very evasive.  You are reading a lot into those quotes without having any context or details.

Bosk is just being the lawyer.

[wolfking]

Actually, MM's first line of his statement answers all the questions.

[wolfking]

I'm not making assumptions here. However I obviously wasn't there for the conversations.


I found the official statement oddly...honest.

I think since MP left, JP's been happy to blow smoke up our asses. This statement does not read like smoke blowing.

Agree.

[TAC]

I am aware of both.  But the press release is a short quote without any context, and the interview...let's just say he was understandably being very evasive.  You are reading a lot into those quotes without having any context or details.

Bosk is just being the lawyer.

Well, I cut Bosk some slack because he's moderating the unofficial, but well known (by the management at least), forums.

But him and Stadler are definitely lawyering up the MM thread.

[sneakyblueberry]

It’s crazy, when I read the news that MP left DT I was 18 years old and a few months into dating this girl. When I read MP rejoined the band, at 31 years old I was laying in bed next to my wife (that same girl) and our first child (one week old!). Life is crazy man.

When MP was last in the band, Barack Obama was in his second year as president (w/ Joe Biden as VP) and Donald Trump was nothing more than a real estate mogul turned reality show star. 

The day that MP left the band was the day I got the news that a friend of mine had passed away from Leukaemia. 

It was a very surreal day... today feels like that a little bit, although I am much less of a fan as I was back then.

I am looking forward to what the future holds.  I've never really been able to gel with the MM-era, although I'll give him his flowers.  I always felt that DT lost a lot of the attitude and fun that made me want to watch and listen; I'm hoping that feeling comes back with MP. 

[Dellers]

This really came out of nowhere, and I thought I was reading something wrong at first. I thought the drumming and sound was really top notch on the latest album. I really think it's the best DT album when it comes to just the drums, and was looking forward to the next one assuming it would continue the good trend in that department. It's also the best sounding metal album of all time IMO, it's just so much better sounding than anything else in the genre. Most of their albums sound just ok, but the last was very nice sonically.

Honestly I'd rather see James being replaced. Hardly any live note is in tune anymore, and unfortunately the situation isn't much better in the studio. I just can't stand (audible) pitch correction, but there has been a ton on James lately.

[HOF]

I'd like to think that this was mostly a matter of "man, we miss being together in the band like it was in the old days, and we're not getting any younger, so we better do it now while we still can." Especially with the 40th anniversary coming up. You imagine they plan to get the next album out in time to do a major tour celebrating that in 2025, and if they were already considering incorporating MP into those shows in some way, maybe that got the ball rolling and forced the issue of "if we're gonna get him involved, we need to go all the way." If you're gonna do an album to promote during that tour, you better make it with MP in the band or it would be kind of a wasted opportunity.

I also kind of wonder if the band feel like MP can help them better handle their back catalog/vault/boots/rarities, etc. Like maybe they want to do some box set reissues or something and need someone with his enthusiasm to spearhead it and really do it right. Mangini mentioning not being able to fill all the roles MP did makes me think this could be part of it. Not that Mike couldn't have contributed as an outsider, but maybe all of that kind of coincides with everything else.

[lovethedrake]

Wow!!! Enormous news.  When my buddy sent me the press release I thought it was fake.

I like MM but the last two albums definitely showed Dream Theater going into “brand” mode.  I liked both albums a lot but they were generic Dream Theater.

This will be so exciting to see how they shake things up again.

Very pumped that Portnoy is back.  I always felt so bad for all of them and glad they patched it all up.

Good luck to MM and very excited to the future of DT.

[gzarruk]

Actually, MM's first line of his statement answers all the questions.

That's what I've been saying.

I am aware of both.  But the press release is a short quote without any context, and the interview...let's just say he was understandably being very evasive.  You are reading a lot into those quotes without having any context or details.

Not trying to start another debate or anything, but there's nothing here indicating that this could've been a decision on Mike M's part. He's on record talking about being ready for the next DT chapter as recent as a couple weeks ago, also a few comments on facebook from before. We, or at least I, don't have any inside info on how things went, but I don't think I (or TAC and wolfking) are making any crazy assumptions based on suppositions we have.

[MinistroRaven]

When host Eddie Trunk pointed out to Petrucci that the guitarist's reunion with Portnoy, including their run of tour dates in support of "Terminal Velocity", had resulted in DREAM THEATER fans speculating about Portnoy's possible return to the band, John said: "I've been very vocal about this and outspoken and very careful about this to be clear with my intentions and Mike and I and our reuniting. The stuff that we are doing together with my solo stuff, with LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT, with Mike touring with me, this is its own thing, and DREAM THEATER is its own thing, and the history that we now have with Mike Mangini in the band for 12 years, it's important for me to make sure that people don't misunderstand this. Because it's not good for anybody; that kind of weirdness or controversy, as we all know, it's just toxic. So I've been saying… Maybe I'm selfish but I feel so lucky that I get to do this with Mike [Portnoy] and play live with him, play this instrumental music, record, and being in DREAM THEATER with Mangini, it's like I've kind of been spoiled. I get two of the greatest drummers in the world to be able to play with. And I think it's important for people to know that and to have that clarity — I really do."

This didn't age well lol.

What tells you he wasn’t 100% honest at that time?

Or maybe by that time, the plan was just exactly as he told us.

[Sacul]

I haven't entered this section of the forums in nearly a decade, but damn, big news

[genome]

I like MM but the last two albums definitely showed Dream Theater going into “brand” mode.  I liked both albums a lot but they were generic Dream Theater.

That's actually a great way of putting it. Good music, but very on brand.

[Stadler]

My understanding is that this was the band's decision, not his.

OK, but you don't know that.  You are assuming that.  That's all.  Bottom line is, we just don't know any of the details at all.  "It was the band's decision" does not really mean anything.  Let's say, hypothetically, that MM decided he had to leave because a loved one has a long term serious health condition and he wants to be around them for that.  100% his decision to leave in that scenario, and to respect his privacy, the band isn't going to give the reasons.  It's still the band's decision to bring Mike Portnoy back in, and a press release isn't going to do much to shed light on what happened.  So, again, I'm just saying we shouldn't assume.

I don't think anybody is assuming anything here, Bosk. The announcement literally starts with MM saying he understands the band's decision to get MP back. Not enough proof? Just watch Rodrigo's interview with Mike, which was just linked in MM's thread. He gets asked about entering the studio with DT and he pretty much says he's waiting for the call, that he's ready and prepared. I don't think that leaves enough room for interpretation.

Like TAC said, there's no intent to paint the band as the villains here, it's just how things apparently went. Do we have all the details? Absolutely not, but it's not that hard to work out what really happened here or back in 1999 with Derek getting the same treatment.

I guess I live in a different world.  I don't see any of those things.  I watched Rodigo's video; there was NOTHING in there that I saw that says anything of the kind. He said "I've been waiting to find out exactly what is going to unfold. I haven't been given any kind of date."   Is that his tour?  Is that when MP's notice that he was back was going to be released?  Is that something else? 

I just take these words on their face. 

[Stadler]

Actually, MM's first line of his statement answers all the questions.

That's what I've been saying.

I am aware of both.  But the press release is a short quote without any context, and the interview...let's just say he was understandably being very evasive.  You are reading a lot into those quotes without having any context or details.

Not trying to start another debate or anything, but there's nothing here indicating that this could've been a decision on Mike M's part. He's on record talking about being ready for the next DT chapter as recent as a couple weeks ago, also a few comments on facebook from before. We, or at least I, don't have any inside info on how things went, but I don't think I (or TAC and wolfking) are making any crazy assumptions based on suppositions we have.

They may not be crazy - they may actually be true - but they ARE assumptions.   Nothing of the kind was said in any of the interviews I saw or heard.

[MrMike]

We may never know exactly how this all went down.  Could be that JP has felt stuck creatively or just gotten tired of being the main guy, reached out to MP for help as far as ideas or songwriting and it organically grew into 'how would you like to come back full time?'.

[MinistroRaven]

Good news on the NMB camp


Does this means that Soto knew about MP rejoining the band?

[The Letter M]

Just looking at things from an MP-to-DT perspective, we know that:
-Mike had rejoined JP to play on his solo album, Terminal Velocity, and did a tour with him and Dave LaRue (which I went to, and it was AWESOME).
-Mike had rejoined JP and JR to do LTE3 not long after, and it seemed like there was a lot of positive vibes from both John and Jordan during those sessions. Supposedly, their contract with Inside Out also puts them at having one more LTE album to do, so there was always the expectation that those three would continue to play together in the near future.
-Mike began working with John and the band to provide back catalog music for the Lost Not Forgotten Archives, and while releases in this series have seemingly come to a halt this year, it now seems more likely that they'll continue this series with more re-issues and brand new/never-before-released content from MP's personal library of DT music past.
-Mike has reconnected with JLB and become friendly again, and both have publicly announced their openness to being friends after all this time.  Hopefully it sticks and stays that way!
-Mike has become more open to seeing DT in concert, and even noted how weird it was to watch the band from the audience. He was seen visiting the band backstage during shows he went to as well, and seemed to be very friendly with everyone, including taking pics with some of them.

All of the MP-conspiracy theorists were really reading into these situations and felt like this was inevitable, but hopefully they're not being a-holes about it. This is definitely a surprise, but it isn't really all that surprising when you consider how MP has become closer to the band in recent years. Couple that with MP's declining number of bands and side-projects in the past two years since the pandemic, and things were starting to slow down for him. I don't know if this was intentional or just a unique set of circumstances that seemed to line up, but it seems like MP and JP decided now was the time for this to happen. Hopefully things will work out for Mangini in his future endeavors and that they're all still on friendly terms.

It would be melt my heart to see a show in the future where MP has his twin monster and Mangini comes out to jam with them. That would say to me that they're all still friends and show the fans that there's no animosity between them all.

-Marc.

[Stadler]

I am aware of both.  But the press release is a short quote without any context, and the interview...let's just say he was understandably being very evasive.  You are reading a lot into those quotes without having any context or details.

Bosk is just being the lawyer.

Well, I cut Bosk some slack because he's moderating the unofficial, but well known (by the management at least), forums.

But him and Stadler are definitely lawyering up the MM thread.

Kind of, yeah, I am.  I went through this back around September of 2010.  People were flat out talking out their asses.   Maybe it's my business, or my career, but I deal with this easily on a weekly basis: I know something and I can't talk publicly about it.  So we say truths, but maybe not the direct truth.    Mike in Rodrigo's interview DIDN'T say "I'm waiting on Dream Theater to call me so we can go into the studio".  He didn't say that.  He said he was waiting to see how the plan would unfold.   We're ALL doing that, aren't we?  That could or could not include MP's news.  It could or could not include his tour.   It could or could not include what he's having for dinner.  I'm planning to go to Florida next week and close out my parents' estate.  But I don't know how long it will take or whether I'm driving back or flying back.  So in so many words, I'm "waiting to see how the plan would unfold".   

I don't know; we're all worried about how Mike M. feels, but our words matter.  Maybe not speculate or assume what happened in his career and let him tell us when he's good and ready.