In a recent interview conducted by GuitarWorld.com‘s editor-in-chief, Michael Astley-Brown, DREAM THEATER‘s guitarist, John Petrucci, was asked about whether he and his bandmates have begun collaborating on new music alongside their original drummer, Mike Portnoy, who has rejoined the group.
Petrucci responded (as transcribed by Blabbermouth.net): “Well, very soon. So, we start the new album in less than two weeks. And we’re looking forward to it.
“It’s really exciting to have [Portnoy] back in the band. We started the band together. I talked [earlier in the interview] about being 18 at Berklee [College Of Music]; that’s where we met. And we’ve been friends ever since. So, having him back in the band is really special to all of us. I know he’s really excited as well.
“We haven’t started [working on new music],” he continued. “We haven’t written a note yet, but I’m sure when we get together, it’s just gonna be like old times. So, I’m really looking forward to doing that and diving in.”
When asked about his aspirations for his guitar playing on the upcoming DREAM THEATER album, Petrucci expressed: “Uh, you know what? To me, making a new record is an opportunity to kind of say, like, ‘All right, what haven’t I done before? What can I do that’s gonna be interesting to me, that’s gonna sort of make me excited?’ And usually, if you start out with that kind of goal, it’ll happen. You’ll come up with stuff. You’ll explore. And I try not to be satisfied right away and try to like just change things up.
“So, I don’t know the answer to that. We’ll find out. But I think what’s gonna be fun is just all getting together in the studio and seeing where things go and kind of reuniting with that sort of classic magic that started the band. It’s exciting. And I think that’s gonna dictate where things go. But on the guitar, man, I don’t know. I can’t wait. I love it. I love being in the studio.”
During an interview with The Prog Report earlier this month, Mike Portnoy was asked about the current state of his various projects, such as THE WINERY DOGS and SONS OF APOLLO, and how they might be influenced by his recent comeback to DREAM THEATER.
He responded: “I did first 25 years with DREAM THEATER and then I’d spent 13 years, which is almost half that time, with the post-DREAM THEATER chapter and I did so much. I mean, it’s gotta be 50 albums or whatever with dozens of bands. I could not have been more fulfilled with how I spent those dozen years apart from DREAM THEATER. I could not have possibly written a more productive script than what I was able to do and achieve and create.
“So, some of those projects and relationships will continue into the future, but obviously DREAM THEATER is now my home again, and that’s my priority. And surely for these first couple of years back, that’s gonna be my focus, and I will be devoted to that primarily, probably without much distraction. Down the years, maybe I could revisit some stuff with some of those relationships and bands and projects and people. We’ll see. But I’m just kind of looking where I’m at now, and where I’m at now is back in DREAM THEATER, and that’s gonna be the focus.”
“We start working on a new album after the New Year,” he continued. “And I cannot wait to tour and get on stage with those guys again. That’s gonna be the most exciting thing about it, of it all. So where the future lies for any of my other bands and projects, time will tell. Some will probably slip away, some will survive. And we’ll see; it might have future chapters. But right now my focus is just on DREAM THEATER. But I do have a tremendous sense of closure for all of that stuff I did do over the last 12, 13 years. And it was an amazing adventure and an amazing ride and I couldn’t be happier with the fruits of my labor.
“Really, it was an incredible time. But I’m ready for this — I don’t wanna say ‘final act,’ but the reality is if you look at our ages, it probably is the final act… And there’s really no better place that I should be spending it than where it all began with my brothers in DREAM THEATER. We formed that band when I was in college. The three of us formed it in college as teenagers. It’s poetic justice that we should ride off into the sunset together and end it together as well. It really seems like that’s the way it should be.”
