Based in a love of the sophistication of YES, the virtuosity of RUSH, and the heaviness of IRON MAIDEN, DREAM THEATER had a desire to create complex, heavy, and progressive from the very beginning. Guitarist and bassist PETRUCCI and MYUNG grew up together on Long Island, New York. After high school, both received scholarships to the esteemed Berklee University of Music, where they met drummer PORTNOY, who, incidentally, grew up in a nearby area. The trio soon became friends and began making music together and settled upon the name MAJESTY. This name came about when PORTNOY described RUSH's song "Bastille Day" as "majestic" as they were waiting outside a Rush concert to open. As the band became more "serious," they went out looking for a keyboardist and vocalist. Eventually the band found PORTNOY's high schoolmate Kevin MOORE to play keys as well as schoolmate Chris COLLINS to sing in 1986. The new 5-piece recorded a 6 song demo titled simply "The Majesty Demos" in 1986 on PORTONY's analog 4-track cassette recorder, making an initial run of 1,000 tapes. The tapes, to the band's surprise sold out relatively quickly, which was aided also by the band's distribution of the tapes to friends, family, local rock and metal magazines.
Only a few months after the release of the band's demo, vocalist Chris COLLINS was fired from the band. Even before this, all four instrumentalists had dropped out of college because they could not balance their hectic schedules and the four musicians, with their constant independent study of music, did not feel music school could teach them much more than they already knew. As an independent band, MAJESTY resorted to playing live as consistently as they could at local New York bars and clubs. The band found a new vocalist, the significantly older and more experienced Charlie DOMINICI, late 1987. With this added stability, the band's tour schedule increased and the band began to develop a small fan base and significant amounts of experience. However, not long after the hiring of DOMICI, the Las Vegas rock band MAJESTY contacted the New York MAJESTY and threatened legal action if they did not change their name. As a young fragile band, the five had no choice but to go on the hunt for a new name. Various names bounced around in their head, ranging from Magus to M1 to Glasser, among others. Eventually PORTNOY's father suggested "DREAM THEATER," a name he got from a small theater he ran in Monterey, California, and the name stuck.
With the threat of legal dissolution behind them, DREAM THEATER began to focus more steadily on playing live and making a name for themselves. This touring paid off, as the small record label Mechanic Records contacted the band late June of 1988. Ecstatic at the prospect of being signed, the band eagerly made a meager contract with the label to release their debut record. The label bought them time at a small studio in Pennsylvania, and the band set to record their debut album in the summer of 1988. After about 3 weeks, the band's debut "When Dream and Day Unite" was finished. On March 6, 1989, DREAM THEATER made their official debut into the music world.
As an early progressive metal band in a music scene dominated by punk and hair metal, the album did not sell as well as the band had wanted. Nevertheless, the band initiated a small supporting tour for the album, even after the unsupportive label cut contractual ties to the band after the album's failure. The tour was comprised of five shows, and after the fourth tensions led the band to let DOMINICI go. However, as the fifth show was opening for the popular neo-prog band MARILLION, DOMINICI was allowed to sing one last time.
B. A New Singer and Success (1990-1993)
The next two years were uneventful for the band. The band auditioned over 200 vocalists, including former FATES WARNING vocalist John ARCH, and near all of them were rejected, save Steve STONE. STONE was debuted in a mid-1990 show, but STONE's embarrassing performance during the show led the band to fire him immediately after the performance. As a last ditch effort, the band summoned Canadian vocalist Kevin LABRIE of the glam metal band WINTER ROSE to audition in January 1991. Amazed by his ability, he was hired immediately after the audition. LABRIE dropped his first name to avoid the confusion of having two Kevins and became James LABRIE (James being his middle name). Armed with a new singer, the band began touring around the NYC area yet again as well as perfecting the vocal parts for the new music the band had written during their inactive period.
After being sent a 3-track demo, Atco Records contacted the band and offered a 7 album contract on their label. The band eagerly accepted the offer. The band's sophomore release, the famous "Images and Words," was recorded late fall of 1991 in significantly nicer quarters than Mechanic had provided. The album was released July 7, 1992, and after relentless touring both in the U.S., Europe, and, for the first time, in Japan, the album became a smash hit and is currently registered Gold by the RIAA. This was also largely due to the huge success of the album's second single "Pull Me Under," which not only gained significant radio play but also scored play time on MTV with the song's video.
such pressing problems, the band rushed many auditions to fill the empty keyboardist position so they could try to kick off their "Waking up the World" tour as soon as possible. Among those who auditioned were Jens JOHANSSON, who would go on to join STRATOVARIUS, the band's primary choice, Jordan RUDESS, and formed Berklee schoolmate Derek SHERINIAN. While RUDESS was their main choice, RUDESS declined the offer in favor of a part time gig with the DIXIE DREGS. The band instead chose Derek SHERINIAN to fill the spot. SHERINIAN was permanently hired after the tour and the band continued being a band, despite LABRIE's shabby vocal position. The band did, however, go on to release an EP containing their legendary "epic" "A Change of Seasons," which was composed in 1989 and sparsely played live from '89 to '95. The 23-minute long song was joined by some live tribute songs the band recorded at a show in London.
After the release of "A Change of Seasons," the band went on a short break. During this time, the band's label EastWest went through a number of changes, which included the firing of the band's main contact. When the band returned to the studio in 1997, their new producer expected the band to make a commercially accessible album. The band, who had written enough material for a double album, had planned on something entirely different. After a long and stressful studio session, the band's fifth studio album, "Falling Into Infinity," was released September 23, 1997. The album's heavier emphasis on accessibility and, to some, "un"progressive rock and metal, made the album generally unpopular amongst fans and critics. Shaken, the band teetered on the edge of dissolution.
Jordan Rudess and The New Millennium (1999-2006)
PORTNOY and PETRUCCI's experiences with keyboard "wizard" Jordan RUDESS solidified their belief that he was the best keyboardist for their sound, and RUDESS finally agreed to play with the band after this as well. Before they began work on their sixth studio album, the band told SHERINIAN that he was being cut from the band. The band and SHERINIAN have remained on good terms since.
With a new keyboardist and a creative spirit in mind, the band went back to the studio in early 1999. The label had given the band complete creative control, so the band planned on pouring all they had into the album. Similar to the spirit in which PORTNOY, PETRUCCI, and RUDESS had created the LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT albums, much of the music was composed based on improvising over basic groundwork. The album materialized as their most ambitious work yet - a near 80-minute concept album that acts as the sequel to "Metropolis Part 1: The Miracle and the Sleeper," one of the definitive tracks of the band's influential sophomore album.
The band's sixth studio album, "Metropolis Part 2: Scenes From a Memory," was released October 26, 1999 to very good critical reception. However, despite its positive feedback, it was generally unsuccessful commercially, peaking at #73 on the Billboard 200. Undaunted, the band embarked on their largest and most successful tour yet, which culminated in a recorded show in New York that not only included a massive 4-hour long set list but also on-stage actors that acted out the parts of the concept album, of which the entire album was played live.
The band returned to the studio yet again March of 2001. This session was another ambitious one, as the band had a double album in mind. This album was also to be a concept album, although it was more "conceptually" based than "Metropolis Part 2," which was more story based. The album, which precipitated into "Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence," detailed different themes of human struggle. This album was especially notable because the second disc was occupied by one song only, the massive 42-minute epic title track. Despite the dark and experimental nature of the album, the album did very well commercially and is well regarded by fans.
If "Six Degrees." was dark, the band's seventh studio album, "Train of Thought," was heavy. The band returned to the studio quickly after the close of the supporting tour of "Six Degrees." in March of 2003. The music from those sessions proved to be their heaviest and most metallic yet, taking much influence from Metallica's heavier era. The album was released November 11, 2003 to mixed critical response. The heavy emphasis on metal was a stark contrast to the symphonic nature of the previous album, which alienated some fans. Nevertheless the band embarked on another ambitious international tour with another DVD recorded at the famous Budokan hall in Tokyo.
Expectedly DREAM THEATER returned again to the studio in October of 2008. "Black Clouds & Silver Linings" was released on June 23, 2009 and, to no surprise, the band embarked on a world tour in support of the album. The second Progressive Nation tour, aptly titled Progressive Nation 2009, was also launched after this album, and DREAM THEATER was supported by ZAPPA PLAYS ZAPPA, SCALE THE SUMMIT, and BIGELF. DREAM THEATER also announced they would be the official starting act of IRON MAIDEN's Final Frontier world tour in 2010.
These tours, however, would be founding drummer Mike PORTNOY's last with DREAM THEATER. In a shocking message to all of the band's fans, PORTNOY announced he was leaving his band on September 8, 2010. This sparked a heated controversy amongst fans and the band, as PORTNOY had recently recorded metalcore band AVENGED SEVENFOLD's new album after their drummer THE REV died and had toured with the band as well, and many fans believed this "foreign contact" had alienated PORTNOY from DREAM THEATER's usual routine. However, PORTNOY's official statements (of which there were quite a few) stated that he had left because he "the DT machine was starting to burn [him] out" and "[he] really need[ed] a break." Reportedly the band did not agree with PORTNOY's sentiment of taking a hiatus and wanted to continue writing and touring as they had for so many years before. So, PORTNOY, easily the most influential member of the band, left DREAM THEATER.
These tours, however, would be founding drummer Mike PORTNOY's last with DREAM THEATER. In a shocking message to all of the band's fans, PORTNOY announced he was leaving his band on September 8, 2010. This sparked a heated controversy amongst fans and the band, as PORTNOY had recently recorded metalcore band AVENGED SEVENFOLD's new album after their drummer THE REV died and had toured with the band as well, and many fans believed this "foreign contact" had alienated PORTNOY from DREAM THEATER's usual routine. However, PORTNOY's official statements (of which there were quite a few) stated that he had left because he "the DT machine was starting to burn [him] out" and "[he] really need[ed] a break." Reportedly the band did not agree with PORTNOY's sentiment of taking a hiatus and wanted to continue writing and touring as they had for so many years before. So, PORTNOY, easily the most influential member of the band, left DREAM THEATER.
Of course, as the band planned on re-entering the studio in January of 2011, auditions for a new drummer were to commence immediately, and they did in October of 2010. But, even months after the auditions seemed to have finished, the band sustained air of complete ambiguity about the subject. Even when the news of the album being finished written and tracking had begun the new drummer's name was still unknown. PETRUCCI had said on his forum that seven "world class" drummers had been auditioned and the band was "busting at the seams" to make the announcement. However, April 2011 rolled around and DREAM THEATER announced the names of the seven drummers: Mike MANGINI (known for session work, Steve VAI, EXTREME, as well as James LABRIE's solo work), Virgil DONATI (known for session work and former DREAM THEATER keyboardist Derek SHERINIAN's side project PLANET X), Marco MINNEMANN (known for session work), Peter WILDOER (known for DARKANE and James LABRIE's solo work), Thomas LANG (known for session work), Derek RODDY (known for session work and various bands), and Aquiles PRIESTER (known for HANGAR and ANGRA). After releasing a small documentary series of the auditions, Mike MANGINI was announced as DREAM THEATER's new drummer to positive buzz from fans. Around the same time the band also released the first single off their eleventh studio album, titled "A Dramatic Turn of Events" which was released September 13, 2011 to an overall positive critical reaction.
The band returned to the stage for a lengthy tour of this album which lasted nearly two years. Without skipping a beat, however, the band returned to the studio to begin work on their 12th offering, this time with the aid of Mangini for composition. Within some months of they arriving at Cove City Studios with renowned engineer Richard Chycki, they announced their next album, which was to be self-titled.. The band designed this recording to be organic - as soon as they arrived, the microphones were recording. On September 23, 2013, the album was released to great critical and fan response.
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