Keeping Their Dream Alive

What could these guys be thinking? Don’t the members of Dream Theater know that if you want to make it in the rock world these days, you’ve got to either grind out your sound, like Pearl Jam, or strip it down to its bare minimum, a la Green Day?

“We know what we’re doing is against the grain,” said Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy, explaining the group’s intricate music, melding progressive rock with heavy metal. “But the most important lesson we’ve learned in the nine years we’ve been together is that we have to stick to our guns and not sell out.”

By adhering to its musical principles, Dream Theater has become an unlikely success story.

The group’s 1992 album, Images And Words, propelled the then Long Island-based band into the spotlight.

“The song that really broke us was this eight-and-a-half-minute, really heavy song [‘Pull Me Under’],” said Portnoy, who along with fellow band member John Petrucci (guitar), recently moved to Hackensack. “It wasn’t like anything else out there, but its success made us realize that people appreciate us for what we are.

“At first, we primarily appealed to other musicians. But once radio and MTV kicked in, the exposure helped us reach head-bangers as well as people into the old progressive stuff.”

The success of Images And Words led to a year-and-a-half of touring for the band, which initially took root while three of its members were students at Boston’s Berklee College of Music. Once the road trip ended, they almost immediately headed into the studio to begin work on the follow-up to their 1992 effort.

On Tuesday, the fruits of that labor – Awake – will be released. The group – which also includes James LaBrie (vocals) and John Myung (bass) – will mark the occasion with a 6 p.m. in-store appearance at Tower Records, 809 Route 17 south, Paramus.

The lyrics of Awake are in some ways similar to those of Images And Words,” said the 27-year-old musician. “We’re writing about adversity again.”

The first time that topic made sense because of all Dream Theater had been through. In addition to the usual young-band tales of bad management and even worse recording deals, for a while, the vocalist’s spot in the group resembled a revolving door. But adversity again? After their collective dream has seemingly come true?

“No matter how good life is on the surface, there’s little things that tick away at you,” Portnoy said. “Now, we’re facing problems being away from our homes and families, and trying to find ways to balance our professional lives with our personal ones.”

There’s also the little matter of finding a replacement for keyboardist Kevin Moore, who left the group after the recording of Awake. The parting was amicable, Portnoy said, but the timing put the band in a bind, since its tour kicks off Oct. 20 in Rhode Island. On Oct. 28, Dream Theater, with special guests I Mother Earth, performs at the Manhattan Center.

“For the time being, we’re going to be using a hired gun – Derek Sherinian, who played with Alice Cooper and Kiss,” Portnoy said.

“Derek might be the right guy. But if he’s not, we’ll be on tour for a year and a half and we’ll probably cross paths with the right person.”