I knew that this day would come… and see Mike Portnoy return to his band, Dream Theater. Today, October 25, 2023, is that day, so I couldn’t be more happy.
Dream Theater, the American progressive metal band, formed in 1985, whose original name was Majesty, consisted of John Petrucci (guitars), John Myung (bass), and Mike Portnoy (drums). Then they were joined by their third vocalist James LaBrie and after some keyboard players, Jordan Rudess joined in the keys. This was the lineup that most people recognized, but this changed when Mike Portnoy left in 2010, due to the fact that he wanted a hiatus and the band didn’t. He also wanted to play in other bands and projects, like Avenged Sevenfold, and Adrenalin Mob, to name a few. He was replaced by Mike Mangini, who is an extremely talented drummer too, but it wasn’t the same.
I got the chance to see Dream Theater twice in Chile. First in 2010 at their Black Clouds and Silver Linings Tour (with Mike Portnoy) and then in 2019 at The Distance Over Time Tour, which celebrated 20 years of the Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory album (with Mike Mangini).
Both shows were amazing, and I was very happy to see both shows, but I always wanted to see Mike Portnoy returning to Dream Theater because his part of the soul of the band. So, now that the band is reunited with him, I hope they release new music soon and to see them on tour, again.
Here’s the official link to their announcement… https://dreamtheater.net/dream-theater-announce-the-return-of-drummer-mike-portnoy/