In a recent interview with Rolling Stone magazine, the five members of DREAM THEATER deliberated over their choice to reconcile with Mike Portnoy last October, marking his return to the progressive metal powerhouse after a 13-year hiatus from the band’s drumming duties.
When asked about their motivation for wanting Portnoy back, vocalist James LaBrie said: “I think we had to return the band back to its strongest form.”
Guitarist John Petrucci added: “It wasn’t one singular thing; it was sort of a series of life events that caused an organic conclusion. We all talked about it. It was like, ‘Yeah, this makes sense right now.'”
Keyboardist Jordan Rudess chimed in: “There’s so many factors involved, and each of us has our particular relationships. And it was just a moment when everything seemed to come together, and we went, ‘You know what? Let’s do this. Now’s the time.'”
Bassist John Myung concurred, saying: “It was a collective moment of certainty.”
When asked whether he felt surprised by the invitation to rejoin the band, Portnoy responded: “Before the Covid pandemic, if you had asked me or any of these guys, ‘Was a reunion in the cards?’ I probably would’ve said, ‘I doubted that it could happen.’ I think if the lockdown hadn’t happened, you guys probably would’ve been on tour, and I would’ve been on tour with one of my 48 bands. But once we were all locked down, John asked me to play on his solo album. Then, from there, Jordan, John, and myself did the LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT album. And then I did John‘s tour. So there were just these series of events of reconnecting us — not only on a musical level but also on a personal level for many years prior to that.
“All of our families are friends. And my daughter and John‘s daughter shared an apartment together for many, many years. And John Myung lives right down the block from me, and his wife’s at my house every night. There was just a series of events both personally and musically that started to feel like, ‘Well, maybe this really is in the cards. Maybe this is the right time.'”
Earlier today, DREAM THEATER announced the European segment of their “40th Anniversary Tour 2024 – 2025”. Dubbed “An Evening With Dream Theater,” this tour marks the band’s first journey since drummer Mike Portnoy rejoined in October last year.
DREAM THEATER‘s “40th Anniversary Tour 2024 – 2025” in Europe spans 23 cities, commencing on October 20 and concluding on November 24.
The European leg of DREAM THEATER‘s “40th Anniversary Tour 2024 – 2025”:
October 20 – London, England – The O2
October 22 – Berlin, Germany – Uber Eats Music Hall
October 23 – Koln, Germany – Palladium
October 25 – Milan, Italy – Forum
October 26 – Rome, Italy – Palazzo dello Sport
October 28 – Munich, Germany – Zenith
October 29 – Zagreb, Croatia – Arena Zagreb
November 1 – Budapest, Hungary – Budapest Arena
November 2 – Prague – Czech Republic – Fortuna Arena
November 3 – Lodz, Poland – Atlas Arena
November 6 – Helsinki, Finland – Metro Areena
November 8 – Stockholm. Sweden – Waterfront
November 9 – Oslo, Norway – Spektrum
November 10 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Poolen
November 12 – Luxembourg – Rockhal
November 13 – Zurich, Switzerland – The Hall
November 14 – Lyon, France – Halle Tony Garnier
November 16 – Lisbon, Portugal – MEO Arena
November 17 – Madrid, Spain – La Cubierta de Leganés
November 20 – Stuttgart, Germany – Beethovensaal
November 21 – Frankfurt, Germany – Jahrhundderthalle
November 23 – Paris, France – Adidas Arena
November 24 – Amsterdam – AFAS Live
