DREAM THEATER – “Dark And Foreboding, Daunting And Haunting”

It’s ironic that Dream Theater‘s members have spoken and continue to speak at length – both individually and collectively – about the current positive vibe within their ranks, while having released what stands as the darkest, most aggressive album of their 40- year existence. Chalk that up in part to the return of founding drummer Mike Portnoy after 13 years of being away from the fold.

Not that Dream Theater have even been at a loss when it comes to creativity, but Parasomnia is being heralded by the press and fans alike as something vibrant and exceptional from the prog metal kings. Even the fence-sitters of the past 25 years, who wrote the band off following 1999’s grandiose Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory, have been vocal in their praise of the new record. Parasomnia sees Dream Theater pulling off something unexpectedly new for a veteran band, while somehow managing to make a callback to what many followers consider to be the band’s early ’90s prime.

“We had a lot of fun making the record,” confirms vocalist James LaBrie, doubling down on the band’s internal chemistry. “We’re having a lot of fun, I should say. We’re at a point in our career where we’ve gone through transformations here and there. We’ve been up, we’ve been down, we’ve gone through the growing pains, so I think at the end of the day we’re able to sit back and look at what we’ve created musically, and this being out sixteenth album, we’re in a good place. We’re all healthy physically, emotionally and mentally, and we’re really feeling it on stage. Sure, we have our asswipe critics out there, because nothing is ever good enough, but really, who cares?”

“Lyrically and musically, it’s a dark album,” he agrees. “I think one has to support the other, so once we knew the lyrical content was going to be based around parasomnia (sleep disorders), that already lends itself to ‘I know the direction we’re going to go musically.’ It’s gonna have to be dark and foreboding, daunting and haunting, and ominous. It just makes sense that this album has that tonality to it. I think that also lends itself to the fact that this album, if you listen to it from beginning to end, you’re getting hit hard. Even though it has its beautiful moments, there’s a driving force throughout.”

Parasomnia is a cohesive record from beginning to end. Nothing sounds forced or out of place; even the instrumental opening track “In The Arms Of Morpheus” – clocking in at 5:22 – works far better than one would expect. It feels as if all of the pieces in writing the album simply fell into place, as if it wrote itself.

“There is that aspect to it, sure,” says LaBrie. “When we established first and foremost that the lyrics would be dealing with this subject, it was only natural to feel the only way to genuinely and sincerely support something like that is that it has to be cohesive. The interactions of the music with the lyrics, one had to support the other. It had to naturally go that way, and if it didn’t it would have been forced, and that would have been a travesty in the end. We knew that with parasomnia being the subject of the album, it just opened itself up to that musical direction and approach.”

Dream Theater is known first and foremost for their instrumental fireworks. Some might consider LaBrie’s role secondary, but it was no accident that Dream Theater had their 1992 breakthrough with his entry on Images And Words. Parasomnia features LaBrie in his element, delivering a standout vocal performance even without the belting high end range his younger self was known for.

“I have to have fun doing every album, or else I’m not there for the right reasons,” he says of his performance. “With something like this, it was exciting enjoyable even before I got to the studio and started singing. I was able to listen to these songs over and over again, and the night before I was supposed to go in and record a specific song. I was there with my headphones losing myself in it. It was like preparing for that big race, getting yourself psyched up for it. I’m always trying to create something different in any given recording that I do that shows another side of me. Something that shows growth not only as a singer, but in how I express the subject and how I want it to be interpreted. It’s one thing to be able to sing the notes; it’s another thing when it’s being done with the emphasis on being the conduit to the narrative. The narrative, being the lyrics, has to be felt on all of its levels. People like Freddie Mercury (Queen) and Lou Gramm (Foreigner) did that best, even Steve Perry (Journey) and Steven Tyler (Aerosmith), Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin); listen to those guys, those albums, those songs and what they’re singing about. It’s like, ‘Fuck, I feel it.’ That’s what I wanted to do on Parasomnia.”

The new record also boasts some monstrous guitar arrangements from John Petrucci. Known for being a technically astounding player when it comes to lead guitar shred, he is often overlooked as a riff monster. Petrucci sends people back to school on Parasomnia, serving up some crushing and infectious arrangements. LaBrie is quick to praise him for his performance.

“A lot of it is so natural for John because he such a phenomenal musician, but the other part of it too is that even when John establishes a foundation of a song, he keeps building on it. So, he’s never really done until he’s done, and I think that’s what makes him a unique and incredible musician. And that just adds to who and what we are.”

And it wouldn’t be a Dream Theater album if the band didn’t go off on instrumental tangents in almost every song, miraculously getting back on track just when you think they’re going to go off the thematic rails.

“One thing lends itself to the other. There’s always purpose behind it being a thematic album, but that’s always been a part of who and what we are. If we’re not going to have those instrumental interludes or sections within a song, that would just be us denying ourselves of our true identity.”

Parasomnia as a whole succeeds on the ebb and flow from the opening of “In The Arms Of Morpheus” to the closing epic, “The Shadowman Incident”. It takes you on a ride that, by the end, you’re invested in going back for another run rather than feeling exhausted, or worse, bored. In that, the record is indeed a callback to the likes of Images And Words.

“It’s great to hear you say all those things,” LaBrie says, “because ultimately, I can’t wait for the fans to hear it. And when they do hear it, they’re gonna want to hear it again and again. All of these songs are begging to be played live. We’ve already talked about it, and we can’t wait, at some point – in fact we’ve all agreed – that ‘The Shadowman Incident’ needs to be played live. So, at some point on this world tour we’ll be busting that out. It’s going to be exciting. The stage production that we’ve got on this tour is pretty big; with the lasers, the lighting design, the screens, the imagery… there’s a lot going on.”

It’s safe to say Mike Portnoy’s return injected some new old energy into the proceedings. As a founding member of Dream Theater, his 2010 departure came as a shock to everyone, as did some of the negativity that spilled over into the press at the time. Drum legend Mike Mangini came aboard in Portnoy’s absence, graciously making way for his return. The question is, when did LaBrie and his bandmates see a reunion on the horizon?

“I would say that on the last world tour there was some foreshadowing,” he reveals. “We could see things happening, and it was also about how the band felt at that point, too. Aside from the fact that Mike did John Petrucci’s solo album (Terminal Velocity in 2020), and then he did that tour, and then he did another Liquid Tension Experiment album (LTE 3 in 2021 with Petrucci and keyboardist Jordan Rudess), we could slowly hear the door creaking open when these things happened. The fact that Mike and I mended all of our bullshit soap opera crap was also a factor. People were saying, ‘Don’t you think it’s inevitable that Dream Theater’s going to put the classic line-up back together?’ so yeah, there were a lot of things pointing towards a reunion. It was like, ‘You know what? If there’s ever going to be a time, I think that time is upon us.’ All things pointed towards that, and it was a very loud message.”

Portnoy’s return didn’t come without conditions, however. He has been very open about the fact that he had to respect the creative dynamic that was forged in his absence, thus leaving him with less of a hands-on role. Previously, he co-produced Dream Theater’s albums with Petrucci, but it was decided that the guitarist would take on production alone for Parasomnia. It worked in the band’s favour, no question.

“It does work,” says LaBrie. “It’s undeniable, and I think this album solidifies that.”

As for the positive energy that created Parasomnia’s foundation, LaBrie feels it was a case of the band coming home.

“All of us, because we felt comfortable around one another again, we got back to being who we are. This is who we were in the past, but even better; maybe because of all those growing pains and situations that occurred in between. It makes us a little more appreciative, and it made us reflect on what it is that we’ve created together. This is something that begs to be brought back while we can still do it. I think we’re all in a great place, and that’s why the album came out the way it did.”

(Live photos – Carl Begai)