Returning Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy has told fans what to expect from their 16th album.
Having rejoined the Boston prog metal band in October last year after a 13-year absence, Portnoy has said (via Blabbermouth) the upcoming record will pick up where his last effort with the band left off.
“There’s a certain style that the five of us have when we write together,” Portnoy explained.
“And if you listen to the album with this lineup from 1999, ‘[Metropolis Pt. 2:] Scenes From A Memory’, through 2009’s ‘Black Clouds & Silver Linings’, if you look at that string of five or six albums, that’s the sound and style of these five people.
The last tour with our current lineup was the Black Clouds & Silver Linings world tour, which started in Europe in the summer of 2009 followed by legs in Oceania, South America, North America (supporting Iron Maiden) and two final shows in Japan.
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“So I think that’s a good indication of what you can expect with the new Dream Theater album. It definitely sounds like classic Dream Theater.”
Portnoy – who co-founded the band in 1985 with John Myung and John Petrucci, and left Dream Theater in 2010 – has been steadily sharing updates on the upcoming album.
In April, he told fans the band were “blown away” with the material they had so far, and teased: “We cannot wait for you all to hear this… but patience, all will be revealed in due time…”
Following a period of burnout and a desire to work on other projects back in 2010, he played with a variety of bands like Avenged Sevenfold, Sons of Apollo, Metal Allegiance, Twisted Sister, and The Winery Dogs.
Before his shock return to Dream Theater last October, Portnoy’s spot was filled by Mike Mangini.
In a statement on the band’s official website following the news Portnoy was back in the fold, Mangini wrote: “I understand Dream Theater’s decision to get Mike Portnoy back at this time. As was said from Day 1, my place was not to fill all the roles that Mike held in the band. I was to play the drums in order to help the band carry on…
“To the fans: thank you so much for being amazing to me. I cherish the pictures I have of you all losing your minds and having fun. Finally, I really love the band, crew and management and wish them and the entire organisation all the best.”
Dream Theater go on their first tour with Portnoy back on board this autumn, kicking off a European tour with a show in London on October 20. Get your tickets here.