James LaBrie interview

Igor Miranda: There are still a few months until the tour starts in Europe and then you guys come to Brazil, but how excited are you to get back on the road with the 40th anniversary tour and having Mike Portnoy back in the band?

James LaBrie: We’re all extremely excited. Like you said, it’s been 15 years since we’ve been on stage with Mike, and we’re all pumped. We’re recording the new album right now and we’re all very, very stoked on that end, too; we’re really excited with the new album. But we’re all very much looking forward to starting this tour in October. October 20th we started the O2 Arena in London, and then from there we’ll probably be touring for a good year and a half around the world. We’re all just very, very anxious to get out there and to start bringing the music to everyone and it being our 40th anniversary, we have so much music to celebrate. Obviously we’re gonna be spanning 33, 34 years of music – of albums – and so three-hour shows and big shows, big huge production. It’s gonna be amazing, it’s really gonna be an event, for sure.

IM: That’s incredible. I know you guys are focused on the new album, but what have you guys already discussed regarding the tour setlist? Is there already any definition about songs, eras, a concept for the setlist?

JL: Well, absolutely. And just so you know, we let Mike Portnoy take over the setlist again. So he’s back to creating the setlist and he’s doing, like we were almost positive he would, he’s done a terrific job. The thing is with Mike, he was saying, “Hey, guys, if there’s a song you don’t wanna do, lemme know. If there’s songs that you really wanna do, let me know.” And so there’s some very strong and cool communication going on. But yeah, he’s glad to be putting the setlist together. I can’t reveal what the setlist will be, but I can tell you that it’s amazing. I can’t imagine any fan walking out of the venue and going, “Ah s***, man, I wanted them to play this” or “I wanted them to play that.” This setlist really touches on so many grandiose moments in the band, so it’s really like a power-punch setlist, and it’s really gonna be exciting to see the fans and then to start hearing the conversations once we’re actually playing it live. But now we’re stoked. It’s gonna be a great, great evening, amazing production. And yeah, it’s gonna be awesome.

IM: That’s amazing. Well these shows will be three hours long which is nothing new for you, but it’s something that I imagine that requires special preparation. Do you do any kind of special training preparation, whether physical or specifically vocal, to go on a tour like this? What is the routine like?

JL: Yeah, I mean I’m singing every day, and yes, getting on the treadmill, getting the cardiovascular in shape and some weights and stuff like that. You gotta be in good shape, and like I said, I’m singing every day. I know what the setlist is, I’m going through the songs, I feel great about them, and it’s all sounding great. Right now I’m also singing a lot because I’ll be going into the studio within a month and start singing vocals for the new album that we’re doing, so there’s that too. So right now, I’m vocally in amazing shape and I want to keep that going throughout the tour, so I’ve gotta be really, really committing myself to making sure that I’m taking care of myself, because being a singer is not just about the voice. It’s about keeping everything: your mind, your emotions, your physicality has to be at the top, top level, so I’m doing everything. And then making sure you’re eating properly, sleeping, exercising; all of it adds up to your body being able to give the most to your instrument. And when you’re a singer, your instrument is completely, 100% physical, so you really have to do everything you can to ensure that that’ll be the best that it can be.

IM: [For] my next question, I want to know the story from your perspective: how did you guys get Mike back into the band?

JL: Well, it was something that was slowly... We could kind of see the signs in a way, although at the time, you’re not really paying much attention to it. But now we can kind of reflect back and go, “Yeah, I guess that opened a door of maybe some dialogue that would lead to the next thing.” Like Mike got together with John Petrucci and Jordan and did an LTE album; that’s one thing that opened one door there. And then Mike got together with John Petrucci and did his last solo album. And then he did his first solo tour. So this kind of starts happening. And then Mike and I made amends a few years ago when Dream Theater was playing in New York at the Beacon Theatre, and Mike came out. It was the first time that him and I had seen each other in – holy s*** – probably 12 years at that time, at that point. I think way in the back of our head, at the time were we thinking, “Oh, yeah, it’s inevitable. We’re gonna get back together and put the original lineup back together”? I don’t think any of us were thinking that, but I think there’s probably always a little iota of that sense that it could possibly happen. And I think with us, one thing just kept leading to the other, and eventually, when we were done [with] the last world tour, when we finished that and wrapped it up [in] July of ‘23, we kind of knew at that point that we just wanted to reflect on everything and take a reading of where we were in our career, what was it that we wanted to achieve, and then the whole Mike Portnoy thing kind of started to become more a reality, where it was just like, “Hey, you know what, guys? We’re at this point in our life and career. If we’re gonna do something like this, maybe now is the time that we should be considering.” But like I said, it was several things that just started to materialize – little things that grew into little bit bigger things. It just kind of evolves from there and it mushrooms into what was undeniable to us at some point in time where we went, “Hey, let’s do this. This makes perfect sense.” And no diss to Mike Mangini – an amazing, incredible fricking musician, drummer. The albums he did with us, we’re all extremely proud of; they’re great albums. But now here we are in this chapter, back with the original drummer and our 40th anniversary world tour coming up. So it’s huge. It’s gonna be big.

IM: That’s amazing. As you said before, you guys are working on a new album. We are all following the updates at each stage. John Petrucci even said that he has already recorded the guitars. What stage is the album at now? You said you were going to record the vocals next month – is that correct?

JL: Right now, keyboards are being recorded, as you and I speak. It’s basically record keyboards and then vocals. Then it has to be mixed and mastered and all that stuff. And then, obviously, the artwork and everything that goes along with any given new album, that also has to be put into the works, and it’s being discussed and so on and so forth. There’s a lot going on, and like any given album when you record it, there’s a process, and it’s moving along; it’s coming along amazingly. So, we’re pretty stoked.

IM: That’s great. I know it’s hard to say right now because it’s not a fully finished album yet, but how is this album sounding so far for you?

JL: You know what? I would really like to save that for when we start interviewing for the new album. I’ll just tell you this: quite simply, we couldn’t be happier with where it is because it’s the album that we wanted to write. It’s the album that we wanted to create, and we nailed it. It’s everything that we wanted to achieve and more. So, what can I tell you? We’re ecstatic. We’re so, so happy about it. And that’s really the best place to be. When you’re creating something like a reunion album, you want it to be absolutely incredible. So we’re stoked.

IM: Amazing. What are Dream Theater’s plans for next year? I know you guys announced plans until the end of this year with the tour in Europe and then South America, but for next year, what can you tell us so far?

JL: In December we will be going throughout South America, and then in February I believe, we’re kicking off a North American tour; those dates are just being put together now, so I can’t really say where or the exact date that we’ll be starting. It’ll be North America probably February, March, part of April. From there, probably we start going to the South Pacific Rim, and then from there maybe doing festivals next summer, and then from there maybe going back to do another run in America – Canada too – or come back down into South America. We’re definitely gonna be touring we figure for a good year and a half on this next album and 40th anniversary tour, so it’s gonna be quite a lot going on; traversing the globe so to speak from one end to the other, so it’s going to be big.

IM: Do you have any release month plan for the album?

JL: No. At this point we’re discussing [it]. I can pretty much tell you that more than likely the album won’t be released until maybe early ‘25, but you can’t really quote me on that because we’re in discussions right now with that.