DREAM THEATER ANNOUNCE THE RETURN OF DRUMMER MIKE PORTNOY

[The Letter M]

If they *ever* do the 12SS with Mike now back in the band, it would be neat if they followed it up with "The Best Of Times" to mimic the sequencing on BC&SL of that song coming after "The Shattered Fortress". And then do "A Change Of Season". Just do all songs with MP lyrics that fans love. Toss in "Home" and "Finally Free" as well, and maybe "New Millennium" and "Burning My Soul" (the original version to boot).

It would be a fun set to see them pull all those songs out, especially if they haven't played them in a long time.

-Marc.

[Dedalus]

I wish they would strip back the over-production on the sound.
It’s brick wall mastering to the max with the modern DT.

Strip back the sound and music so there’s more space between the instruments.
And room for the vocals to move and thrive. 

Production sound in the vein of  Scenes from a Memory or Failing Into Infinity or Awake would be great.
And let’s get away from the “heavy metal” sound.  Enough of that already.
Let’s make a prog rock album like Scenes.
No more cookie cutter prog metal please.

Great productions, but that was in the 90s. It was so long ago. I was still young and thought life would be wonderful.
It seems unlikely.

[Dedalus]

The Nightmare discussion always amused me because everybody makes such a big deal out of MP's vocals, while overlooking that the song as a whole isn't particularly good, and wouldn't have been no matter how they did that passage. At the same time, the middle Beautiful Agony section is truly wonderful. Portnoy also lays down some great drum work. There's a whole lot more to take away from the song than a 20 second vocal passage, yet that seems to be most people's main takeaway.

It's like, how can we make a bad song even worse?

[Lethean]

I hope we get the more melodic side of the band back - the last few albums have been ruined by this "everything louder than everything else" vibe they've been going for. Not saying there isn't room for the heavy stuff, but the contrast was always part of what made DT special.

TIL that melodic means something else in English than what I'm used to. With my understanding of the Norwegian version of the word I couldn't understand what possibly wasn't melodic about these albums. I guess the Norwegian version of mellow is closer to what you guys are talking about, based on my googling. Funny how words can have slightly different meanings even if they have the same origin.

I was having the same thoughts as you, and I'm a native English speaker.  I think mellow probably isn't perfect either but does seem like a better word for what they're looking for.

[Lethean]

I love A Nightmare to Remember.  I was never dramatic enough to say that MP ruined the entire song, but I thought those vocals sounded awful and even if they'd been good, they didn't at all fit the lyrics.

Someone else pointed out how much more they liked the live version with James handling those vocals - that's how it was for me as well and I'm really glad I got to see it.

I don't like MP's vocals in Flying Colors either, but it bothers me less, maybe because I like Flying Colors much less than DT.  I don't want MP to sing with DT and at all but I know he's going to, so I'll hope that they limit it to live backing harmony vocals that aren't too loud in the mix for new stuff, and recognize that of course he'd sing stuff he's already recorded like Constant Motion.

[blackmetal666]

I wish they would strip back the over-production on the sound.
It’s brick wall mastering to the max with the modern DT.

Strip back the sound and music so there’s more space between the instruments.
And room for the vocals to move and thrive. 

Production sound in the vein of  Scenes from a Memory or Failing Into Infinity or Awake would be great.
And let’s get away from the “heavy metal” sound.  Enough of that already.
Let’s make a prog rock album like Scenes.
No more cookie cutter prog metal please.

Great productions, but that was in the 90s. It was so long ago. I was still young and thought life would be wonderful.
It seems unlikely.

It would be easy for them to do.

Scale back on the brick wall mastering.
Don’t layer so many guitars and get rid of the “chocolate cake” sound that Petrucci is so enamored with.
Portnoy’s drum sound will already have more dynamics and sound more natural than Manginis drum machine sound.
Take away all of the vocal tricks and auto tune on Labrie’s voice. Create a natural less Layered and less synthetic vocal sound.  With Labries vocals lately…you might as well have a computer sing the lines.
Listening to Scenes now…and his vocals sound so much more pure and natural and HUMAN.

[Madman Shepherd]

I love A Nightmare to Remember.  I was never dramatic enough to say that MP ruined the entire song, but I thought those vocals sounded awful and even if they'd been good, they didn't at all fit the lyrics.

Someone else pointed out how much more they liked the live version with James handling those vocals - that's how it was for me as well and I'm really glad I got to see it.

I don't like MP's vocals in Flying Colors either, but it bothers me less, maybe because I like Flying Colors much less than DT.  I don't want MP to sing with DT and at all but I know he's going to, so I'll hope that they limit it to live backing harmony vocals that aren't too loud in the mix for new stuff, and recognize that of course he'd sing stuff he's already recorded like Constant Motion.

Have you heard him sing Comfortably Numb with Sons of Apollo? It sounded OK. It also sounded very doctored but it was ok.

[TAC]

I don't like MP's vocals in Flying Colors either, but it bothers me less, maybe because I like Flying Colors much less than DT.  I don't want MP to sing with DT and at all but I know he's going to, so I'll hope that they limit it to live backing harmony vocals that aren't too loud in the mix for new stuff, and recognize that of course he'd sing stuff he's already recorded like Constant Motion.

Flying Colors main vocalist is bad enough on his own.

[jammindude]

I think what people mean is the more mellow side of Dream Theater.

Mike once said something to the effect that people tend to forget that U2 is almost as big an influence to DT as Metallica is.  I mean, Take the Time is very melodic and heavy. But I think there are some of us that want to hear more of the Another Day, I Walk Beside You, Surrounded, and Solitary Shell side of Dream Theater. Mixed in with heavy stuff of course.

[HOF]

I think what people mean is the more mellow side of Dream Theater.

Mike once said something to the effect that people tend to forget that U2 is almost as big an influence to DT as Metallica is.  I mean, Take the Time is very melodic and heavy. But I think there are some of us that want to hear more of the Another Day, I Walk Beside You, Surrounded, and Solitary Shell side of Dream Theater. Mixed in with heavy stuff of course.

I'd rather hear those type of songs without the heavy stuff.

[cramx3]

I've always loved the song ANTR, and MP's vocals on it never ruined it or anything, but they certainly didn't add to the song. It's just kind of there for me.  BUT I've always loved the jokes around it all. EVERYONE SURVIVED for some reason is hilarious to me and I think it's all from the jokes, not really the song itself.

Also, JLB singing that part kind of solidified my opinions that there's really nothing wrong with that verse in and of itself.  I think I "get" what MP was going for, it just didn't really work. I wonder how everyone would have taken the song if it originally had JLB singng the verse.

[Lethean]

I don't like MP's vocals in Flying Colors either, but it bothers me less, maybe because I like Flying Colors much less than DT.  I don't want MP to sing with DT and at all but I know he's going to, so I'll hope that they limit it to live backing harmony vocals that aren't too loud in the mix for new stuff, and recognize that of course he'd sing stuff he's already recorded like Constant Motion.

Flying Colors main vocalist is bad enough on his own.

 

He's not my favorite but I don't think he's bad.  Just kind of there.  The songs that I like are good enough for me not to care.

[crystalstars17]

Octavarium as the encore?

YES. PLEASE. 😭

If they do this not only will I cry my face off, but I can die happy.

[Riitasointi]

Long time forum lurker jumping in here to share a few thoughts.

I, like everyone else, was so excited to read these news. I think the band's last couple of albums have been fairly good, but it definitely feels like they are repeating themselves and there's a certain spark that's missing. ADTOE was amazing and by far the best MM era album, and the quality has slowly gone downwards since then. So I'm very interested to see what the next album will be like, if they can capture some of that magic from their golden years.

I also agree about the vibe of the live performances in recent years. It has just not been very engaging or soulful. LaBrie's ability to perform (or lack thereof) is a big thing, but I also think the click has a lot to do with it. MM, while being technically unmatched, is a a little robotic to begin with and playing to click probably magnifies that. I know the guys are also just getting older, but injecting some of that soul and life and push & pull into their concerts would do so much. Hope MP can bring that.

This news is obviously a very big deal all over the prog metal music world. I was at The Aristocrats (you know, Guthrie Govan, Marco Minnemann, Bryan Beller) gig yesterday here in Finland and Beller made sure to include "Hey by the way, isn't it so exciting that Mike Portnoy is gonna be back with Dream Theater?? Yeahh I know right" bit into one of his speeches.

[TheCountOfNYC]

Octavarium as the encore?

YES. PLEASE. 😭

If they do this not only will I cry my face off, but I can die happy.

I’ll be a blubbering mess if I ever hear this live. It’s my favorite song of all time.

[axeman90210]

The Nightmare discussion always amused me because everybody makes such a big deal out of MP's vocals, while overlooking that the song as a whole isn't particularly good, and wouldn't have been no matter how they did that passage. At the same time, the middle Beautiful Agony section is truly wonderful. Portnoy also lays down some great drum work. There's a whole lot more to take away from the song than a 20 second vocal passage, yet that seems to be most people's main takeaway.

Hard agree with this. Beautiful Agony is one of the best sections of music the band came up with post 6 Degrees, but most of the rest of the song is decidedly much more average.

[Jamesman42]

The Nightmare discussion always amused me because everybody makes such a big deal out of MP's vocals, while overlooking that the song as a whole isn't particularly good, and wouldn't have been no matter how they did that passage. At the same time, the middle Beautiful Agony section is truly wonderful. Portnoy also lays down some great drum work. There's a whole lot more to take away from the song than a 20 second vocal passage, yet that seems to be most people's main takeaway.

I agree on this. I like that someone made a standalone versio of Beautiful Angony (with some tweaking to make it feel like its own song).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tADH8iWSqg

[hefdaddy42]

The Nightmare discussion always amused me because everybody makes such a big deal out of MP's vocals, while overlooking that the song as a whole isn't particularly good, and wouldn't have been no matter how they did that passage. At the same time, the middle Beautiful Agony section is truly wonderful. Portnoy also lays down some great drum work. There's a whole lot more to take away from the song than a 20 second vocal passage, yet that seems to be most people's main takeaway.

Indeed. 100%

[1neeto]

I have a weird take on touring before hitting the studio.

If they tour first, playing all their previous material, there may be sort of a 'muscle memory' factor that is inevitable. Whether or not this would impact their studio approach or not, and to what degree, is unknown. I think they might get into a headspace where they utilize call-backs and nuggets from previous material. And while this might appeal to some, or even many, I would love for them to enter the studio without having toured first.

I am going to tamp down my expectations however I think their goal is going to be to try to create something very special. My guess is a concept album but who knows.

I'm fine with them hitting the studio first, I just think it's silly to sit on the momentum from this announcement until nearly a year from now by the time they're able to release DT16. You could leave December/January/February for writing and recording the new album, let Mike go off and do the Flying Colors gig on CttE in early March, and then after he's back from that start band rehearsals for a tour that starts by early April. Do a "Welcome Home" tour spring into early summer. Then some time off as they ramp up interviews and such for the promo cycle for the new album. New album drops and we get a tour behind it in the fall.

DT16 that’s 8 albums after their 8th Octavarium. Could be something cool like a follow-up or some great epic.

[Wim Kruithof]

I don't even remember him singing on The Absolute Universe.

Looking for the Light has Portnoy's lead vocals and it's honestly pretty good. I love that raw echo when he sings...

[KevShmev]

I don't even remember him singing on The Absolute Universe.

Looking for the Light has Portnoy's lead vocals and it's honestly pretty good. I love that raw echo when he sings...

He also sings the lead vocal in the second verse of Reaching for the Sky. 

[DTwwbwMP]

I like that someone made a standalone versio of Beautiful Angony (with some tw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tADH8iWSqg

Aside from the intro being too long and the ending not working, I really like this!

[Buddyhunter1]

The Portnoy vocal section of ANTR was ill-conceived and poorly executed, but all these takes saying the song as a whole is lame are wack. It's a fantastic song, even with that one part that kinda sucks. It's less than one minute in a 16 minute song.

[Rammstein]

What makes me wonder: will JP now shave his face clean since he more or less let it grow when MP left 😂

[TAC]

What makes me wonder: will JP now shave his face clean since he more or less let it grow when MP left 😂

Blue beards for everyone!

[El Barto]

What makes me wonder: will JP now shave his face clean since he more or less let it grow when MP left 😂

I certainly hope not. We always share a mutual appreciation moment when he comes to Dallas.

[Bluefish]

And let’s get away from the “heavy metal” sound.  Enough of that already

I didn't expect these comments from someone with the username "blackmetal666." 

[TAC]

And let’s get away from the “heavy metal” sound.  Enough of that already

I didn't expect these comments from someone with the username "blackmetal666." 

 

[Lethean]

I think what people mean is the more mellow side of Dream Theater.

Mike once said something to the effect that people tend to forget that U2 is almost as big an influence to DT as Metallica is.  I mean, Take the Time is very melodic and heavy. But I think there are some of us that want to hear more of the Another Day, I Walk Beside You, Surrounded, and Solitary Shell side of Dream Theater. Mixed in with heavy stuff of course.

I love all of those songs, and certainly have no problem with them having a couple on the next album.  I'm also good with it if they don't, especially if the albums are as good as the last two.

[Lethean]

I love A Nightmare to Remember.  I was never dramatic enough to say that MP ruined the entire song, but I thought those vocals sounded awful and even if they'd been good, they didn't at all fit the lyrics.

Someone else pointed out how much more they liked the live version with James handling those vocals - that's how it was for me as well and I'm really glad I got to see it.

I don't like MP's vocals in Flying Colors either, but it bothers me less, maybe because I like Flying Colors much less than DT.  I don't want MP to sing with DT and at all but I know he's going to, so I'll hope that they limit it to live backing harmony vocals that aren't too loud in the mix for new stuff, and recognize that of course he'd sing stuff he's already recorded like Constant Motion.

Have you heard him sing Comfortably Numb with Sons of Apollo? It sounded OK. It also sounded very doctored but it was ok.

Yes.  It's not the worst thing I ever heard, but I don't like it.  "Ok" is a big stretch for me; it's actually uncomfortable sounding for me.  It still just sounds like his speaking voice (which is fine, but not as a singing voice.  I don't know if I'm making any sense but I know exactly what I mean.)

And Sons of Apollo has two guys that can sing well.. why doctor up someone who can't when you have them? 

[dparrott]

I really feel that this is being done for one last hurrah for the band.  By the end of the next album tour, JR will be almost 70, the rest of the band above or near 60.  It's not like they're AC/DC or the Stones playing mid tempo basic rock.  They can't keep up this music forever.

[gmillerdrake]

I really feel that this is being done for one last hurrah for the band.  By the end of the next album tour, JR will be almost 70, the rest of the band above or near 60.  It's not like they're AC/DC or the Stones playing mid tempo basic rock.  They can't keep up this music forever.

I had this thought as well. maybe not a 'last' hurrah but certainly 10 years from now they'd be semi or fully retired as a band one would think.

Maybe they get two....perhaps three studio albums with MP but if they followed their past formula of touring for a year (or two) following release then you're staring at 6-8 years from now for three albums....who knows.

One would think they're gonna make some bank this next record/tour cycle though.

[Peter Mc]

I don’t know if I agree with this. Some of his lead vocals with Flying Colors are actually pretty good. Nothing spectacular, but he carries the songs just fine since they were written for his voice.

I’m not saying he’s terrible, he is in tune but he’s not a singer and it just sounds functional to me, not interesting to listen to.  It’s all subjective though so each to his own.  At the end of the day, he’s never sung more than a few lines in DT and there’s no reason to think that will change.

[RaiseTheKnife]

I wish they would strip back the over-production on the sound.
It’s brick wall mastering to the max with the modern DT.

Strip back the sound and music so there’s more space between the instruments.
And room for the vocals to move and thrive. 

Production sound in the vein of  Scenes from a Memory or Failing Into Infinity or Awake would be great.
And let’s get away from the “heavy metal” sound.  Enough of that already.
Let’s make a prog rock album like Scenes.
No more cookie cutter prog metal please.

Great productions, but that was in the 90s. It was so long ago. I was still young and thought life would be wonderful.
It seems unlikely.

It would be easy for them to do.

Scale back on the brick wall mastering.
Don’t layer so many guitars and get rid of the “chocolate cake” sound that Petrucci is so enamored with.
Portnoy’s drum sound will already have more dynamics and sound more natural than Manginis drum machine sound.
Take away all of the vocal tricks and auto tune on Labrie’s voice. Create a natural less Layered and less synthetic vocal sound.  With Labries vocals lately…you might as well have a computer sing the lines.
Listening to Scenes now…and his vocals sound so much more pure and natural and HUMAN.

Production-wise, I agree.  JP should also dial back on the "chocolate" layered live sound in his rig.

[RodrigoAltaf]

I for one am hoping for some nuggets of MP-era songs sprinkled over the new songs.