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HISTORICAL FACTS: 2 - Caught on Camera

“He transcends metal, he transcends rock, he transcends music”: Iconic metal drummer says Ozzy Osbourne’s death has made just as big an impact as John Lennon’s

Mike Portnoy of progressive metal luminaries Dream Theater weighs in on the widespread mourning following the Prince Of Darkness’ death last month

Metal Hammer

“He does feel a bit like our saviour. It’s good to know he’s kind of protecting us”: How Mike Portnoy helped save Avenged Sevenfold after the The Rev died

Dream Theater man’s stand-in role may have complicated his own position, but the younger band were grateful for his unflappable optimism as they fought to keep going

Metal Hammer

“They use notes out of sequence – they’re more experimental than bands like Dream Theater, who are very respectful of tonalities”: Novelists’ Florestan Durand is passionate about Periphery (or at least their early albums)

Misha Mansoor’s work was the catalyst for Durand’s discovery of djent, as he moved on from the “simpler music” of Steve Vai and Joe Satriani

Louder

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“We knew the album would stick out like a sore thumb and we’d have to show real tenacity. But if it wasn’t for Pull Me Under there’s a strong chance we wouldn’t be having this conversation”: When Dream Theater beat the odds with Images And Words

They were crossing Metallica with Yes and Rush while grunge ruled the world. But despite problems with their producer and label – and even rumors of a plot to replace James LaBrie – the prog metal pioneers survived and thrived

Louder

“He was the leader of the band, he would write the setlist, he would deal with the fan clubs and the merchandise, co-produce the albums and co-write the music. He, to me, was a role model”: Which A-list metal drummer could Mike Portnoy be talking about?

Dream Theater man talks influences with El Estepario Siberiano

MusicRadar

Gentle Giant's Derek Shulman to publish career-spanning memoir, Giant Steps, in October

Giant Steps traces Derek Shulman's career from Simon Dupree & The Big Sound through Gentle Giant to record executive working with Bon Jovi, Dream Theater, AC/DC and more...

Louder

Meshuggah pioneered it, Periphery took it to new levels, and John Petrucci thinks it opens up "a new world" – here is everything you need to know about learning 8-string guitar

Six different ways to get the most from your 8-string guitar by Haken’s Charlie Griffiths

Guitar World

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“The first time I played Rush’s YYZ I almost broke my fingers!” Epica bassist Rob Van Der Loo’s prog timeline, from Jon Lord to Dream Theater

Deep Purple’s Concerto For Group And Orchestra opened the door to the Dutch artist’s own career in symphonic rock

Louder

“In 1989 I paid a scalper $400 for a ticket to see The Who play Tommy. It was worth every cent”: Mike Portnoy on his top prog songs and artists, and why the Rolling Stones have the greatest-ever prog album sleeve

The Dream Theater drummer’s musical world includes Rush, Yes, King Crimson, Roger Waters and Frank Zappa – alongside the Bee Gees

Louder

"I'm scared for my life and career at this point." Dream Theater's Mike Portnoy jokes he's worried about his job after spate of drummer firings

Josh Freese, Zak Starkey and Jason Bonham have been let go – which Portnoy says makes it a weird time for drummers

Metal Hammer

“The whole prog movement is about fairies and elves and we’re proud of that. But there are no fairies and elves on this album”: How prog metal icons Dream Theater went full nerd-mode with epic concept album The Astonishing

There’s big, and then there’s Dream Theater’s 2016 prog metal blow-out The Astonishing

Metal Hammer

“Everything I’m doing is purposely very different. If I’d wanted to keep doing what Dream Theater do, I’d still be in Dream Theater”: How Mike Portnoy reinvented himself after the trauma of leaving two massive bands

In 2011, while trying to find homes for his enormous collection of Dream Theater drumkits, Mike Portnoy was planning a new direction with Flying Colors, Adrenaline Mob, PSMS and Transatlantic

Metal Hammer

“I oversaw every element - not just the music and the lyrics and the melodies and the production, but also the merch and the fan clubs and everything”: Mike Portnoy talks about his years away from Dream Theater

“I was fried” he says, “but I went off from there to form, like, 87 bands”

MusicRadar

“I made a decision that essentially was very selfish”: Mike Portnoy admits he “hurt” Dream Theater bandmates with 2010 exit

“We had just played Madison Square Garden with Iron Maiden and then, like, a month later I left the band”

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Metal Hammer

The best metal albums of 2025 (so far)

From Cradle of Filth to Whitechapel, Bloodywood to Spiritbox, these are some of the best metal releases of 2025 so far.

Guitar World

“A new drummer affects everyone in Dream Theater. We all play off the time keeper”:John Myung on how the return of Mike Portnoy has changed the band – and his bass playing

Parasomnia is Dream Theater's first new album with drummer Mike Portnoy for 16 years

Guitar World

“I used really weird things like the Tristan chord and the Prometheus chord to give some of the songs a mystical vibe”: With the return of Mike Portnoy, Dream Theater are fully reborn – and John Petrucci's still not done exploring new guitar frontiers

Wielding naught but his signature Ernie Ball Music Man Majesty, Petrucci has been studying different types of scales and different types of chords – and he says having Portnoy back on the drum stool makes the prog-metal institution feel like they're all 18 again

Metal Hammer

“I went from being James LaBrie’s biggest critic to being his biggest cheerleader. I want him to succeed more than anybody”: Now Mike Portnoy is back in Dream Theater, he only wishes it had happened sooner

Co-founding drummer discusses how easy 16th album Parasomnia came together, his sadness when he thought a reunion might not happen, and how he’s not quite the control freak some people think he is

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“In between songs, we had to ask if there was a chiropractor in the house and literally stopped the show": How Mike Portnoy has played through pain for over two decades

Dream Theater man is latest drummer to feel the strain

Metal Hammer

“A fan said the teaser was 36 seconds long and already better than The Astonishing… another said they already knew they wouldn’t buy it. You’ve got to love that stuff”: When Dream Theater slimmed down for Distance Over Time

The prog metal giants’ sleek, super-powerful 14th album was a conscious move away from its complex, opinion-splitting predecessor

Metal Hammer

The 50 metal albums you need to hear in 2025

From Ghost to Babymetal, Halestorm to Sleep Token, these are the metal albums you should keep an eye out for in 2025

Louder

“I’ve always wanted to be in a metal band… Pantera and Dream Theater are great”: Carl Palmer on his desire for a life beyond classic prog, the final ELP show, and why he wishes they’d had a guitarist

After Emerson Lake & Palmer’s High Voltage concert, the drummer shared his thoughts on his former bandmates and pondered an unfulfilled ambition

MusicRadar

"I love them, they just sing, they’re absolutely gorgeous:" Mike Portnoy just crashed Sabian’s party with seven sexy cymbals

The Dream Theater maestro just MAX’ed out the cymbal collection for his favourite brand

Louder

"There's a rejuvenated feel to this reunion album": Dream Theater's dream team return with a sharper-edged heaviness to the sound on Parasomnia

None shall sleep

Louder

“Most is more than familiar… but there’s a sense of excitement in having this chemistry back in place”: Dream Theater’s Parasomnia largely lives up to the hype

It’s back to the future as Mike Portnoy returns to the prog metal giants – bringing a little of their old magic with him

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