Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

(New York, NY): The recent announcement that Mike Mangini would be joining Dream Theater, replacing departed drummer Mike Portnoy caused such fanfare that Mangini was a trending topic on Twitter, second only to England's Royal Wedding. Now, the band is revealing more information about their upcoming album. The new album is titled A Dramatic Turn of Events. The much-anticipated platter, which marks Mangini's recorded debut, will be released via Roadrunner Records on September 13th and will be supported by a massive world tour.


"I'm incredibly psyched with the way this album came out and can't wait to share it with everybody," guitarist John Petrucci, who also serves as the producer for A Dramatic Turn of Events, said. "We are currently in the mix stage with the great Andy Wallace and it's all sounding amazing!"


"We have poured our hearts and minds into the creation of this album," keyboardist Jordan Rudess offered. "All the life changing events that surrounded us before, as well as during the whole process, fueled our desire to dig deep within ourselves and create the best music we possibly could."


Vocalist James LaBrie said, "In the grand scheme of Dream Theater's career, the last several months have been such an incredibly positive, fulfilling and rewarding experience. The new songs and sound has never been so spirited or rejuvenating. I cannot wait for every one of our fans to sink their audio senses into this batch of tunes."


The track listing for A Dramatic Turn of Events is as follows:

1. On the Backs of Angels
2. Build Me Up, Break Me Down
3. Lost Not Forgotten
4. This is the Life
5. The Shaman’s Trance
6. Outcry
7. Far From Heaven
8. Breaking All Illusions
9. Beneath The Surface

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

So how many CDs will this be? They can't possibly fit nine whole Dream Theater tracks on one disc.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Sweet!

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Hopefully with Portnoy gone we'll get some tighter tracks, and less meandering trying to make every song epic. I'm hoping for something along the lines of Awake or SFAMII, but with only 9 tracks, sadly it seems my hope is misplaced.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Can't say I like the album title, but still excited to hear this. This is my #4 most anticipated release of the year, behind Opeth, Steven Wilson's solo record and Blackfield.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

So you do like albums that Steven Wilson doesn't work on.... ;)

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Just looking at the titles, I think "Shaman's Trance" has a good shot at being an instrumental. I love their instrumentals.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Yeah, but I am a Steven Wilson fanboy I admit it. I know a lot of people think Wilson ruined Opeth but for me that's when they got really interesting.

I don't expect this new DT record to be anything truly progressive. I'll be happy with a more energetic and less stale version of what they have been doing. I am not expecting I&W 2.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Maybe not. There are a lot of good rhymes for "trance".

Pants, dance, romance, lance, chance, whence, etc.

I could see those words all making an appearance in DT lyrics.

After all, I never thought I'd hear the word 'inventory' in metal lyrics (or any lyrics), but DT made it happen.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

That's one of the things I like about Metal. It's one of the few musical genres where you can literally write a song about anything and make it work. Whenever people doubt me I always use DT's "The Great Debate" to shut them up. If you can make a badass song about Stem Cell research, you have a genre with wide subject matter.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Welcome to our fortress tall
Take some time to show you around
Impossible to break these walls
For you see the steel is much too strong
Computer banks to rule the world
Instruments to sight the stars

Possibly I've seen to much
Hangar 18, I know too much

Foreign life forms inventory
Suspended state of cryogenics
Selective amnesia's the story
Believed foretold but who'd suspect
The military intelligence
Two words combined that can't make sense

Possibly I've seen to much
Hangar 18, I know too much

- Megadeth, "Hangar 18"

You hast proven thyself un-metal!

:sad:

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Oh shit I should have known better! I've been listening to that for 20 years!

I think it sticks out more with DT the way Portnoy shouts INVENTORY! So cheesy. I hate his vocals and lyrics. Just think, almost an hour of material from their last 5 releases was devoted his personal issue.

Great Debate is good, and the lyrics aren't nearly as clumsy as some of the AA stuff Portnoy wrote.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Is it bad that I consider myself a pretty big DT fan, and off the top of my head I have no idea which of their songs has the word "inventory" in it?

Anyway, I look forward to the album, but considering my lukewarm feelings towards Octavarium, Systematic Chaos, and Black Clouds and Silver Linings I'm not holding my breath. Still, I'll probably pick it up the week it comes out.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Black Clouds is the only one I couldn't get into, still can't. Four songs over 13 minutes long and fifth at 9 minutes. However, I love me some Systematic Chaos.

The Glass Prison is probably my favorite tune, but after that the AA thing just never gelled like it should have.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

It's from Shattered Fortress on Black Clouds.

I agree with Corvin - Glass Prison is awesome. I never felt like that one was forced. But every subsequent AA song just seemed to be more and more forced to fit the pattern.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Well it was a themed series after all. And it was supposed to someday be all played together live. Whoops.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

I'm down for a themed series, but it just seemed so paint-by-numbers. Frankly if Portnoy was still around and they announced one set of their tour would be devoted to playing the AA suite, I would skip seeing the tour. With the exception of Glass Prison, the AA songs have been consistently the weaker songs on the last four DT discs IMO.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

I think that I'll miss Portnoy being in the band, but I'm excited to hear what this is like. I'll be picking it up.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

"On the Backs of Angels" will be on Roadrunner's YouTube page starting at 11am EST.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

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Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

LOL that snare sounds better than any of the ones Portnoy recorded.

I don't think this is a great opener for the record though. There's some cool instrumental stuff in it, but the vocal melodies aren't grabbing me much. Mix sounds good though without the Portnoy influence.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

I've listened to it about 5 times now. I was expecting something heavier to show off Magnini's chops for the debut track, but outside of those expectations, I'm digging it.

It's got an older, pre- SFAM, feel to it. It also straddles a nice tonal balance. It feels like it's just ready to break out into an ultra heavy vibe(post SFAM), complete with Pornoy growling vox, but shows some restraint to give it a good balance and sound. Also Rudess shines on this one. He's been in the shadows for the last couple albums so it was a nice change of pace.

I love Labrie, but I do agree that the vocals/lyrics/melodies (based on a few listens), seem to be the weak spot of this tune.

I still have a problem with length. :horse: Not every song needs to be epic.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

for once a DT song thats 8 min, but doesn't have a 3 minute jam sequence (prob a Portnoy thing)

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

I like it but I don't love it. I'm glad that nothing about it reminds me of the last 2 albums. For an opener (and the fact that it's DT) I was also expecting something for Mangini to really show off on... but that's not a real complaint.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

... And I agree with pretty much all of that. I think the chorus could have been not repeated as much to trim it down a little, but still, I'm liking this a fair amount.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

one of my friends complained that the opening clean guitar part sounds like the opening of Call of Ktutu by Metallica
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Also i love that you can clearly hear Myung on bass for once

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Alright, this is pretty fucking cool. First(?) cover of the new song:



All recorded independently then mixed together. Vocalist isn't half bad (on this track anyway*), and the overall mix is damn good, IMO.

Also, the top reply is from Jordan, which has to be cool for these guys.


*checked out Metropolis and he just can't match LaBrie on that one.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

It just seems strange to me that people with that much musical ability would spend that much time and effort performing someone else's material. It's a nice homage, but it almost seems like it's more about solving the latest Dream Theater video game then actually being a musician with their own voice.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

:shrug: Some people can't write original stuff, but as noted in the vid and on YouTube they use the video to promote their own band.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

I didn't see that much. That's kind of a double-edged sword doing that - the prog metal community is pretty fickle and doesn't suffer the ever-present DT clones very well.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

A review of the album can be found here:

http://www.rich-wilson.com/

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

:lol: You're obviously not a musician yourself.
Strange comment. What's wrong with just having fun playing?
They actually all do their own stuff too, but it's a lot easier getting attention with a cover of someone famous.

I think it sounds better than the original. The drums in particular.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

:lol: - I've been playing for 23 years and have recorded bass, backing vocals and some keys on several original albums myself. I've opened for national artists. Not that it's a big deal, but my comments come precisely from the perspective of a musician who makes original music a priority over covers.

Covers are IMO a cheap and gimmicky way to get attention if you're an original band. Cover bands have overrun the local scene here so no one wants to take a chance hearing a new original band - they just want to sing along to "Don't Stop Believin'" for the 1000th time. Then when one of these bands actually tries an original, everyone heads for the bars or the toilets.

My point was covering DT in a manner that detailed takes some time and effort. I know, because I've covered their stuff before myself. It was fun for a little bit, but I would never dedicate hours and days or even months of my musical time to doing it right, nor would I want it to represent who I am as a musician. I'd rather spend that time on my own musical pursuits. Not too mention it's bad enough most prog bands in the past 2 decades can usually be labeled as "sounding like Dream Theater" to some degree, but to invite the comparison and pigeon-hole yourself as a band by using it as a way to draw attention is just something I think is misguided and will ultimately backfire. I'd rather have people hear my music without any preconceptions.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Considering the large amount of material that DT has released of themselves covering other bands that they like, I think it's pretty appropriate that other bands are covering DT. Some people just really like playing songs that they like, whether it is their own or not.

If they make original music that sounds like a copy of DT, then yeah, criticize them all you want. But DT covered a wide range of artists, and no one accuses them of not being original.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Difference being DT already had stature as a major label original band who basically helped pioneer the sound of what we know as "prog metal" before they started churning out all the Ytsejam Records stuff. Plus to keep the comparison appropriate, these other bands should be covering a large range of artists, not just DT.

And IMO DT overdo the cover thing themselves but I think that was largely Portnoy's doing. Don't even get me started on how much their influences started permeating their recent records. Someone listened to A LOT of Muse before Octavarium. :)

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

How do you know that this band is only covering DT, and not a wide range of artists?

Besides, plenty of bands played plenty of covers early in their careers, before they were on major labels. Or any labels. REM, Van Halen, Metallica, etc. It didn't hurt any of their careers.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

Well, how did we come to know of them? Because they've covered a lot of DT to the letter it seems.

The bands you noted came up in a different time. There was no internet. People didn't associate them with the bands they covered because they still had enough of their own sound. They weren't going to get pigeon-holed as a Led Zeppelin or Diamond Head clone band by what they were doing. Plus I don't think Eddie Van Halen was sitting there learning everything he covered to sound exactly like the record. They made it their own, a la "You Really Got Me" or "Am I Evil?". Big difference between that and what these DT cover guys are doing.

My ultimate point here was these guys obviously have a lot of musical talent. I think getting known for covering DT songs to the letter is a waste of that talent. Talent and chops are a good start, but there's much more to being a good musician IMO.

And I stand by my comment before about how this seems to be about solving the latest DT puzzle. Otherwise, why would they work that fast to get a recording up of a song that isn't even in general release? To be the first on the internet to do it? OK - but who cares?

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

If they write their own music, and it's good, that is what they will be known for, not covering DT songs.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

I hope that becomes the case for them.

Re: Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn of Events (9/13)
 

That's a LaBrie who's 20 years younger and without vocal cord damage. LaBrie can't match LaBrie either. I'm also fairly sure that the vocalist in the Metropolis video isn't the vocalist in this video. Different drummers, too.