PARASOMNIA

One word: Fine. It's fine, it sounds exactly like Mangini era DT with Portnoy on drums, not a huge surprise but still a little disappointing especially considering his extensive tenures into other prog projects. The epic while decent can't hold a candle to the majority of their others. Dream Theater has clearly settled into a specific sound and has no desire to innovate and who can blame them? They're all quite rich and have more than made their artistic statements in the past, it's a fine addition to their huge backlog and not terrible by any means. If you're looking for a stellar late career album that actually pushes a band's sound forward I would highly recommend checking out Opeth's latest album.

I had the opportunity to see Dream Theater live twice, together with Mangini and with Portnoy. It's an amazing band live. I've been listening to Dream Theater since 1993. The first album that bought me was Awake. Maybe their best album until Scenes From A Memory pt.2. Images And Words is also one of their most iconic. I have positive divided opinions on the Parasomnia album both from the technical and artistic aspect. A very well thought out album in every way. The artistic side does not lag behind the previous albums. In fact it is very fresh, aggressive thru out the tracks, and it is conceptual as they announced. Songs have an inflow of melody and harmony from one song into the next, which hints at mysterious passages that only they play originally and in a way that is acceptable to everyone WHO KNOWS DT very well. The album has quite a dark note, which I personally like the most. That's where they bought me the most. I wouldn't want to single out a song by song because this music album must be viewed as a whole concept of collected dreams, nightmares and the consequences of bad conditions during dreams. So they've set their sights on where they've always wanted to go and to be, and that's to really be Dream Theater as a whole collective. Portnoy is back in the big gates and they really are playing better than ever. The rating is definitely almost 5

WOW FINALLY THE GREAT RETURN OF DREAM THEATER WITH THIS LONG-LONGED-FOR ALBUM!!!!☺ ...HERE IS MY TRACK BY TRACK REVIEW:

1. In the Arms of Morpheus: a good aperitif on what we will taste in the continuation of the album-instrumental-vote 9/10

2. Night Terror: a mix of almost everything that DT can do vote 9/10

3. A Broken Man: great vocal line and theme that we will hear again in the rest of the album, great solo by PETRUCCI (LTE style) vote 9/10

4. Dead Asleep: for those who like songs with an acoustic guitar intro (like me) this is a gem, splendid prog metal song- vote 10/10

5. Midnight Messiah: great METAL song (old style but very welcome to METALLICA, JUDAS PRIEST) - vote 9/10

6. Are we dreaming? : interlude for the pearls that are about to arrive - rating none

7. Bend the Clock : passion in every element of this song but legendary guitar solo by a MAJESTIC PETRUCCI - rating 10/10

8. The Shadow Man Incident : and we have arrived at the emotional peak of the album ... can I exceed the limit of 100 words? NO? then I will only use the most obvious: MASTERPIECE ... authentic PROG METAL song, many tempo changes, fantastic piano solos (FINALLY JORDAN) excellent guitar solos by PETRUCCI, great bass work by a tireless MYUNG, a monster on drums PORTNOY, and a LABRIE who does his job well - RATING 11/10

We are lucky to have groups like DT who cheer up all those hungry for progressive metal music of such quality ... See you soon and PROG ON from ITALY.

Mike Portonoy left Dream Theater because he thought they were writing the same music over and over again, and he suggested a break. The other band mates didn't share his opinion and went forward to make five additional albums with Mike Mangini. Fifteen years later Portnoy is back and guess what, the music sounds pretty much the same as when he left. So, I guess the break didn't help too much.

"Parasomnia" is an okay album. The three singles released before the album came out were all meh for me. We've heard it before folks. For me, the highlight is "The Shadow Man Incident", but is that a riff from Metropolis I hear? Anyway, this is the longest track on the album, gives light and dark shades, holds my interest and is a really good tune.

As for the production. I hate it. Portnoy's drums are mixed really loud and they don't sound good. It hurts my ears if I listen too long. Pay attention to the cymbals... why do they sound like hitting a metal trash can lid, and where is the natural decay? I much prefer the triggered drum sounds used on Images and Words (Portnoy hated them) to these. Again, you have to strain to hear Myung's bass lines. Why?

Overall, this is a decent release, but I don't see myself returning to this often.

The first album since the return of the legendary drummer Mike Portnoy, Dream Theater did not disappoint with their 16th double LP "Parasomnia". I never saw it coming, but this album turned out to be a concept album, not just a theme, but an obscure but interesting story. I was one of the general masses that did not dig the singles (Especially "Midnight Messiah") very much when they were released, it just seemed like "copy and paste" from past records and the lyrics just seemed very? generic? But when I listened to the whole album, all the songs just came together and I enjoyed every moment of it, and that is because the album is musically very connected with many tracks bringing up melodies from others, with the most notable being the chorus from "A Broken Man" brought up in almost every song except the singles and two others. The album starts with the interlude - "In The Arm Of Morpheus", it is an amazing preview of what we are going to experience in the rest of the album with it connecting musical phrases from the other songs, and then it transitions to the first single "Night Terror". "Night Terror" is in my opinion the song with the best chorus, and it is also said that this song was the first one they made after Portnoy returned. "A Broken Man" starts with a Rush-like 5/4 riff, and also ends with it. When I first saw the lyrics of this one, I thought it was another generic song about the trauma of war, but after listening in the context of the whole album, it gets more interesting because we now see that it is a nightmare. "Dead Asleep" was the song that almost made me "Dead Asleep", definitely the most boring song on the album, the nightmare's story's pretty good though. "Midnight Messiah" is the only track where Mike Portnoy writes the lyrics, and you can really see that by phrases like "Strange Deja Vu", not really sure about the transition from the 6/8 verse to the 4/4 chorus. "Are We Dreaming?" is a one-minute track of people saying "Are We Dreaming?), which paved the way for "Bend The Clock". It is another one of those slow Dream Theater ballads that are kinda slow and boring at the start but still win you over with that amazingly emotional Petrucci solo at the end.

The ending 19-minute epic "The Shadow Man Incident" can be considered to be one of my favourite songs from Dream Theater. It starts with a creepy musical box intro with a goofy riff cutting it off, but later in the song it just transcended into an epic orchestral riff. My favourite part of the song has got to be the Jordan Rudess piano solo (probably his best) in the middle, I rocked so hard to that part on my first listen that my head nearly fell off. It has several musical references to Metropolis Pt. II - Scenes From A Memory (my favourite Dream Theater album) like in the interlude, they used the classic synchronized marching rhythm with Portnoy's kick drum doing 4/4 quarter notes in the back, and in the end, you can voices saying "wake up" which can be connected to "open your eyes" in SFAM, and interestingly, at exactly 19:28, there is a male voice saying the phrase, potentially referencing the song "Overture 1928" in SFAM, coincidence? I think not. It is also the song that sorta explained the connections between the other songs.

Speaking about the story, I won't spoil too much but it is basically songs about several nightmares and a man trapped in slumber to experience them, and if its story is actually connected to SFAM, then I think the man trapped is the "Sleeper", and the "Shadow Man" is the spirit of the "Miracle". All in all, I would say this might be my favourite Dream Theater album since Octavarium which was exactly 20 years ago, it's very well done and might be the best album of 2025 yet. (And I have a shimmer of hope that their next album will be Metropolis Pt III.)

Rating: A

Fav Tracks Musically: The Shadow Man Incident Fav Tracks Lyrically: The Shadow Man Incident Worst Tracks: Dead Asleep

Having now listened to Parasomnia for a third time (though its singles a few more times each), and this time more closely, I offer a track by track review:

With In the Arms of Morpheus, it's a fine instrumental, though I think that it doesn't quite pick up until like halfway through with the keyboard solo, where that and the guitar solo start to pick up the creativity and really make the payoff of listening to the intro worth it.

For Night Terror, I think it's decent and is even pretty good in some sections, though some of the production and vocal melodies don't sit quite right with me. But the riffs and solos hit well I think, which is refreshing overall on the album. I do kinda wish that it felt a bit heavier though, but that's alright.

Broken Man is still a great track and I do really appreciate the incorporation of that jazzy part in the middle. Just overall quite solid with a hard opening riff. Definitely would've been my #1 choice for a single off of the album. This track to me signals more of a return to creativity from the earlier Portnoy era of the band.

Dead Asleep is where we start to see a good bit of creativity on display. Great intro with some awesome riffs right at the beginning. Additionally, the vocal melodies in this song don't seem that contrived. And the guitar and keyboard solos don't just seem like generic JP and JR noodling but actually contribute to the song which is nice. The transitions are also well done. And it ends as softly as it begins.

Midnight Messiah might be my favorite track on the album. This song is unmistakably thrash-y though also decidedly a DT song and I quite love it. It feels like a musical homage to some of DT's influences like Metallica. And the lyrics are themselves throwbacks to earlier DT, which is fun. And I do also love the 80s-like guitar shredding from JP after his other guitar solo.

Are We Dreaming? offers a brief somewhat unsettling though gentle interlude between the last song and Bend the Clock. Not much to say about this track.

Bend the Clock naturally is the next track, and is the ballad of the album. I'm somewhat surprised they didn't make this song a single, as it seems more suited for that than Night Terror. After a soft intro, the guitar kicks in and leaves us with a good ballad. Not much does stand out to me from this song except for the guitar solo at the end, which is long, melodic, and well performed. That alone makes this song worth listening to.

And that finally leaves us with The Shadow Man Incident, the epic of the album. It's a little disappointing to me that the beginning of it really seems to reflect a lot of their earlier work and especially A View From The Top Of The World. That's not to say it's bad, just derivative. However, around the 3 minute mark, the real riffing kicks in and it starts to actually feel like its own song. Then, the song goes back to being soft and as two stories are sung about interactions with the 'Shadow Man.' But, the music builds and after a spoken line the song really picks up, and this 'Shadow Man' is revealed as the antagonist. After that there is a flurry of many musical ideas lasting throughout the rest of the song. The song to me doesn't feel quite like an epic, but more like a longer song based off the rest of the album if that makes sense. That said, I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing as the rest of the album is pretty good. But the same song could have potentially been like 7 or 8 minutes, though I will take this "extended" edition.

Overall, it seems like they are keeping pace with where they left off with A View From The Top Of The World, which (for me at least) is a welcome sign. Yes, Dream Theater has their sound which they won't change. But, taken on its own (and even as part of the DT catalogue), this is a great album. Especially with the age of the band, it's really cool that they can still make good music. And while there is more I could say about how this compares with their other albums, that's not what this review is for.

This is my first PA review! I've been using the site since around 2005 when my love for progressive music bloomed. I'll start by saying I'm a DT fanboy and they are my #1 band since 2005 when i first heard the itunes preview for The Root of All Evil and was instantly hooked and acquired all their albums.

When Portnoy left the band I literally cried from the loss. Mangini was an excellent replacement and his output with the band was fantastic. His technical and inventive drumming has kept the Portnoy sadness away. Then in late 2023 the news broke that Portnoy would return to the band. I was a bit shocked and thought poor Mangini with all his hard work to get the boot. Well that melted away when I thought how much Portnoy brings back to the fold after all these years and albums later. His many albums when he was out of the band really show he is a legend.

After hearing the singles I knew we were in for a real treat. The heavy vibes of the songs and the lyrical content checked all the boxes. The album was released at midnight and I immediately buckled up with headphones and was treated to a really cool intro setting the stage for the music to unfold.

The album is a masterclass in progressive metal and the sequencing of the tracks is great. I feel like Mikes input was well utilized, though I'm surprised he didn't co produce with Petrucci this time. Nonetheless Mike's backing vocals and song writing prowess are in top form.

The whole production of the album is top notch and just sounds so meaty. Everyone is at the top of their game as always and James brings it all together with his mostly lower pitch singing and emotional performances.

Album opener In The Arms of Morpheus is super cool and Petrucci's 8 string is on fire here. A great overture for the album and bombastic. Then we get two singles back to back and the flow of the tracks and overall heavyness is welcomed.

Dead Asleep is a really heavy track dealing with a sleep walking murder so for sure a bit grim but the music pushes it along with a great pace. What a great track.

Midnight Messiah is a banger and the chorus is catchy and thrashy. All the Portnoy lyric callbacks are cool.

Are We dreaming is a segue and I love the sound effects on the voices.

Bend the Clock starts off so chill and tenderly and James sounds amazing here. I really like this mostly ballad of a track and the heavy guitar classic rock riffing is welcomed. Really strong song with great melodies.

The epic long track The Shadow Man Incident is chock full of DT instrumentals at their best and the story's it shares are all about a really terrifying entity. Really makes me think back to being a kid who was scared of the dark. The ending carries on the narrative from the start of the album. Wake Up!!!!

I will conclude with my final thought.

Is it the best thing they have done? No. Since their discography is jam packed with gold thats hard to top. But what this album brings is a renewed spirit for the band and Portnoy's return is heard and felt all over the album. What you get is superb musicianship as always, an amazing final mix/master, imaginative lyrics and a strong sense of purpose with the subject matter. All the little nuances and sound effects/sampled word passages only add to the overall effect of this album.

Going to go with 4.5 stars. The only thing holding me back from a higher rating is I've always wanted DT to try something out of the comfort zone and really experiment! All in all a fantastic release that only gets better with each listen. Rock on!

The "debut" album to Portnoy's return. Over the last decade and a half, Dream Theater has released several albums with Mangini. A Dramatic Turn of Events was a refreshing album, departing from the Avenged Sevenfold-esque directions of Systematic Chaotic and Black Clouds and Silver Linings. Still, the subsequent albums resulted in bland consistency to outright cringy and I dropped off listening to the band I had obsessed over in High School. When they announced the return of Portnoy, my interests peaked, especially when they said the style would be along the veins of the Scenes from a Memory to Black Clouds and Silver Linings. I was hopeful to get something similar to Six Degrees or Scenes, but the the album art released as a dark paranormal theme and I knew we were getting content more towards Portnoy's predeparture. I anticipated something good, but likely not to my personal tastes.

Therefore, I say this with regret, the album came as a disappointment to me. It contained the generic, bland compositions of the Mangini era splashed with Portnoy's drumming and gothic themes. This made the songs hollow and infused with cheesy lyrics. They heavier style does displace the last decade or so, but each song contains the same tone and pacing. The compositions still hold quality, so each song is distinguishable but they don't feel like they have their own identity. Night Terror through Midnight Messiah are more or less the same making the album feel like a slog, redeemed only by this band's incredible musicianship. In fact, the album was difficult to focus on until the last two songs, Bend the Clock and The Shadow Man Incident. Up until those songs I was ready to give this a 2-star rating and toss it in with the last four album releases. They are the only songs I enjoyed on the album. Bend the Clock had good emotion and musicianship that caught me from start to finish. Shadow Man Incident, though silly in lyrics, has playful compositions and fun progression only marred by some jarring synthesizer choices Rudess made in the first half; and yet, it still surpassed Count of Tuscany and In the Presence of Enemies.

The two songs saved the album for me, to a degree, but whenever I start it I get through the first song, sometimes halfway through the second, and move on to something else. If I listen to the album again in the future, I may skip to the final two songs, enjoy those, then call it good. I was hoping Portnoy would rejuvenate the blandness I felt from Dream Theater over the past decade and a half, but unfortunately, the album felt formulaic and emotionless. It's a decent addition to their discography, so hopefully with Portnoy back in the mix they will compose fresh, emotional, and creative content moving forward. I loved how from Scenes from a Memory through Octavarium each album had a theme, personality, and emotion making that my favorite era. Personally, I hope they move away from the gothic, occult, and paranormal content exhibited in Systematic Chaos, Dark Clouds and Silver Linings, and now this Parasomnia. Until then, Dream Theater is good enough to give a listen and find enjoyable, but if you pass over this album, I'd understand.

This is one I have been looking forward to doing since last October, when the song "Night Terror," was released: Dream Theater's "Parasomnia." The album was released less than a week ago as I type this (One week exactly when it is posted) , and this will be my first listen, other than "Night Terror." Of course, this album marks the return of original drummer and co-founder Mike Portnoy to the band after his departure in 2010. His return was announced in late 2023, along with the departure of Mike Mangini, who had taken over the drum throne in the ensuing years. Portnoy's last appearance on a DT studio album prior to this one was 2009's "Black Clouds and Silver Linings." DT released 5 studio albums with Mangini. The rest of the line-up includes original members John Petrucci on guitar and John Myoung on bass, as well as long-time members James LaBrie on vocals, and Jordan Rudess on keyboards. For a more comprehensive look at DT's history, see my #scottsspotlight issue on the band, which I will link below the review. The songs on "Parasomnia," are based around the title, which refers to a broad range of sleep disorders.

Let's dig in!

Track 1 - In the Arms of Morpheus

The track fades in with wind sound effects and the sounds of a city. A door closes behind someone walking into (presumably) their home, and shortly thereafter, we get the impression that they are going to sleep. By around 50 seconds an eerie keyboard part begins. It is replaced by what sounds like a string section playing a spooky pizzicato (plucked) melody. There are some cool panned sounds that lead up to the band fully clicking in, just before the 2 minute point. A sinister riff is accompanied by spectacular Mike Portnoy drum fills. By 2:40, Petrucci starts playing a metal riff by himself then the band kicks into the new groove. Not to take anything away from the incredibly talented Mike Mangini, but NO ONE plays drums like Mike Portnoy, and he has brought his heart and soul back into Dream Theater with passion. A wonderful bass fill from Myoung leads us to a synth solo by Rudess at 3:30. Just after the 4 minute mark, the band goes into a slower, more melodic section. I am beginning to feel that this is an overture for the album, introducing themes that we will hear again. DT has used this technique on earlier albums, so I think it is likely to be the case. Petrucci proves to be one of the greatest modern guitar soloists again and again on this track. Rudess' piano accompaniment is beautiful underneath, and Portnoy and Myoung lay down a solid foundation. Great track that ends on an unresolved chord that leads to?

Track 2 - Night Terror

Eerie synth sounds carry over from the final chord of track 1. There is a brief, quiet, clean guitar part, then heavy power chords take over. More fabulous Portnoy drum fills happen during the intro. The band locks into a groove at around the one-minute mark. Then there is a short yet incredible drum break that leads us to another great guitar riff, which the rest of the band soon locks into. LaBrie's first vocals on the album come in at around 2:15, which is nearly 8 minutes into the album as a whole. A tight riff accompanies him. Harmony vocals come in at around 3 minutes. Shortly after, a keyboard break leads to the chorus. The main riff of this song is absolutely insane! They slow it down and make a variation of it at around 3:50. We go into a shifting set of odd meters here. I love the vocal harmonies in this segment. The music is heavy but not harsh. Another odd-metered riff enters at around 5:30, then Rudess joins with a countermelody. An organ solo follows. We are in prog-heaven here during the instrumental breaks. Holy crap!! The guitar part just before 7 minutes is absolutely unbelievable! This band is so freaking tight! The chorus returns around 8:45. The main riff returns to close out the song. Amazing! An instant DT classic!

Track 3 - A Broken Man

This one starts suddenly with a fast chaotic riff. They lock into a different groove by 45 seconds into the track, with what sounds like radio transmissions in the mix. The underlying groove changes to a more moderate tempo and by 1:30, the music is simply glorious. It turns heavier again to lead the vocals in. There is a contrasting section that follows that is mellower and more melodic. The playing all around is nothing short of spectacular, as one would expect. The "radio transmission" voices return between verses. The sections cycle through again, then at 4:50 there is a keyboard solo. There are lots of little time shifts and short pauses from the band that underline just how tightly they play together. Just before the 6 minute mark there is a slightly funkier jazzy riff that hits out of the blue; unpredictable as always. Petrucci's solo is on this riff which soon double-times for some truly jaw-dropping displays of guitar skill. By 6:35, we get heavier again. I love Portnoy's use of roto-toms leading into the next vocal section. A syncopated riff with insane drum fills leads us to the end of the track. Incredible song!!

Track 4 - Dead Asleep

This one fades in with the sound of several voices softly talking all at once and a synth chord sustaining with a clean electric arpeggio on top of it. A (synth) violin melody emerges over the top of the tune. Another melody then takes over and becomes the main riff as the band kicks in with a heavy riff. The riff has a number of rhythmic twists and turns. Portnoy makes nice use of a flanger effect. Next up, there is a slower melodic section with Petrucci playing lead. The heavier riff returns afterwards, and Portnoy and Rudess lock in on a double-bass-drum beat. The vocals begin at around 3:15. It's a heavy groove, but still melodic. Fantastic vocal harmonies hit around 3:45. The song seems to be about someone who murders someone while sleepwalking. The verse and chorus cycle around again then there is a bridge. Following the bridge Petrucci takes a guitar solo and a keyboard solo follows. Petrucci and Rudess are the prog metal equivalent of Howe and Wakeman, IMHO; simply impeccable players. I like the gothic keyboard tones around 9:15. The groove is slammin' towards the end. This album is shaping up to be one of DTs finest! Amazing track!

Track 5 - Midnight Messiah Mellow synth and clean guitar arpeggios begin this one. A snare roll brings the rhythm section in. Spoken word dialogue joins in part of which says "?I mean I want to wake up for real?" A slow 6-8 riff takes over with ghost-like vocals. The music then builds up then the tempo increases. They lock into a heavy riff by 1:50, before LaBrie starts singing. The chorus is fast and heavy, with an almost Anthrax-like feel to it. There is a cool odd-meter section just before the 4 minute mark. The bridge at 4:50 eases off the heaviness a bit and Rudess' piano becomes prominent. A Petrucci guitar solo follows. There is a great duet between Rudess & Petrucci that begins at around 5:50. I like the riff as the song nears its conclusion. It's a good track, with a few cool parts, but I don't like it as much as the first 4.

Track 6 - Are We Dreaming

This is by far the shortest track at just under a minute and a half. It begins with eerie sounds and church bells in the distance. A somber organ takes over. I can barely hear some whispering voices, but can't tell what they are saying. I believe this just serves as a connector between tracks.

Track 7 - Bend the Clock

Petrucci kicks this one off with a mostly clean (slightly crunchy) electric guitar that sounds like Hendrix's ballad style (aka "Little Wing," or "The Wind Cries Mary"). LaBrie joins in by the 45 second mark. Rudess joins on keys, and then Portnoy plays a cymbal roll and acoustic guitar begins strumming. A distorted riff starts around 1:30. Then the band locks in on it with some odd-meter fun. This song is more ballad-like, but DT ballad. Petrucci plays a nice melodic solo prior to the bridge. The sound just after 4:00 is beautiful. I love the layers of sound. Great harmonies at 4:35. Petrucci takes another less-melodic solo at around 5 minutes. The solos in this song remind me of how Gilmour did the solos in "Comfortably Numb," with the first being melodic and the second being more improvisational. The song fades-out to a close during the second solo. Great track!

Track 8 - The Shadow Man Incident

Here is that hallmark of many great prog albums?the closing epic. This one is 19 and a half minutes long. Let's buckle-up and check it out! Night sounds fade in, and a music-box gets wound up and plays an unsettling tune. A heavy, almost Sabbath style riff comes in very abruptly. Portnoy joins with a double bass-drum groove along with the rest of the band. By 2-minutes, there's a Morse code style riff with sustained keyboard parts on top of it. Myoung slides a note down the bass and a new riff that reminds me more of Iron Maiden comes in. The tempo shifts at around 3:35 to a slower tempo and a more melodic feel. Petrucci sustains a note to usher in the verse section with a phasey clean electric arpeggio pattern setting the stage for LaBrie to enter just before the 5 minute mark. His voice has an effect on it as though it is breaking through from a different plane of existence. A few jazzy chords transition us at around 5:10 to the next part of the verse. A deeper voice (apparently Portnoy) doubles LaBrie before sounding alone saying "Embrace the Shadow." The guitars get heavier and LaBrie goes to a higher register, with every other line doubled by Portnoy's lower voice. Just after 7 minutes a fast riff takes over, and Portnoy says some creepy things before letting loose a maniacal laugh. At around 7:30 Rudess has a short keyboard break. Another one follows between vocal phrases a bit later. At around 8:13 the feel changes slightly and becomes more hopeful sounding. Portnoy's deep voice returns a bit after the 9 minute point. At the 10 minute mark, the groove changes again. There are harmonized guitar lines with a subtle gallop rhythm below. The drums get more prominent with a tom-tom pattern underneath. Then everything drops out momentarily except sustained harmonized guitars at around 11-minutes. A fast odd-metered riff takes over. Then the tempo slows by 11:30 Rudess is featured in all his glory. This is a classic DT instrumental section with more meter and tempo changes than you can shake a stick at. There are some rapid fire unison runs that start at around 12:45 and really become mind blowing by 13-minutes. Holy crap this is amazing. Another fantastic Rudess piano solo follows over a syncopated rhythm bed. Petrucci takes over with some whammy bar madness and finger tapping after the 14 minute point. Seriously good shredding in this solo?meaning that not only are the notes played quickly, but the note selection is interesting and musical. They bring the tempo back down after the 15 minute point with some amazing Portnoy drum fills. LaBrie's vocals return at around 15:45. Petrucci takes back over at 16:50. There is an amazing guitar run at 17:45 or so. The tempo slows even more just before the 18 minute point. A terrific drum fill takes us to sustained synth effects that fade out with about 45 seconds remaining. Wind fades back in shortly afterward along with other sound effects. A voice then whispers "wake-up," then an alarm clock rings. Wow, what an incredible track!!

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:

While DT never really went anywhere, Portnoy's return seems to have energized the band. The music is very heavy on much of the album, but never harsh or growling; it's very prog though. This album only has one track (discounting the short transitional piece) that isn't quite as strong as the others IMHO, and even it isn't terrible; it just seemed a little more forced in it's composition. Otherwise, this album stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the likes of "Images and Words," "Awake," and "Metropolis Part 2?Scenes From a Memory." The only member that isn't featured enough is Myoung, who is one of the world's greatest bassists, I'd like to see him stand out more. But Portnoy, Petrucci and Rudess are in top form, and LaBrie's vocals are amazing. I'll give it a 4.75 out of 5?it's not quite perfect, but it's damn close!

Clicked 5 even though it isn't quite there, it's close enough.

One would think after forty years of constant motion (pun intended), Dream Theater would be ready to settle down and make a predictable album. After all, with the return of founding member and drummer Mike Portnoy (everybody drink!), they could have churned out anything and it would sell. But not Dream Theater.

With the "classic" 1999-2009 lineup reuniting, the five members decided to go for broke with a loose concept album (a "thematic" album, as it is being promoted as) about sleeping disorders, featuring their heaviest music since Train of Thought. The album opens with "In the Arms of Morpheus", effectively the "Parasomnia overture"; various themes from throughout the album are introduced and guitarist John Petrucci brings out, for the first and only time on Parasomnia, an eight-string guitar (all other guitars are six or seven-stringed). This segues into the first single from the album, "Night Terror", a straight-ahead rocker of sorts with great riffs, a catchy chorus, and great dual-lead lines from Petrucci and keyboardist Jordan Rudess.

Side two (or "Dream Two", as it is billed) opens with "A Broken Man", perhaps the proggiest of the first seven tracks. The breakdown section features amazing organ and synth solos from Rudess and a fantastic, Steve Morse-esque guitar solo from Petrucci. Just as you think this album can't get any heavier, "Dead Asleep" shows up, with its menacing riff, and a killer synth solo; overall, one of the best songs on the album.

"Midnight Messiah", a track reminiscent of "As I Am" and "The Root of All Evil", is the only track with lyrics by Portnoy (everybody drink!), who throws in plenty of references to prior Dream Theater songs. This is the most "traditional metal" of any track on the album. "Bend the Clock", the only ballad on the album, features an amazing guitar tone from Petrucci, who delivers one of his best solos during the last two minutes of the track. The album closes with "The Shadow Man Incident", clocking in at 19 minutes and 32 seconds. From the musical box at the beginning to the alarm clock sound effect at the end, this song is an absolute masterclass of an epic. The highlight of the album is the solo section in the middle of the piece, with Rudess and Petrucci delivering great Return to Forever-style solos. The album culminates in a bombastic ending, fading out with a final drum fill before a voice is heard?"wake up!"?and an alarm clock rings the album to its end.

This album is becoming my favorite Dream Theater album, and it lived up to its hype. A must-own album.

Parasomnia: A Dreamlike Resurrection of Progressive Mastery

Having been a devoted Dream Theater fan for over 20 years, listening to Parasomnia feels like a return to those electrifying teenage chills; a resurgence of the magic that first captivated my soul. With the triumphant return of Mike Portnoy, the album immediately delivers on the high expectations set by decades of Dream Theater lore.

From the very first notes of "In the Arms of Morpheus", Portnoy's thunderous drum opening, reminiscent of his pre-Mangini 12 Steps Suite work, sets a transcendent tone that seamlessly melds classic DT intensity with fresh, previously unexplored sound textures. The record deftly integrates the band's signature style from Scenes from a Memory through Black Clouds & Silver Linings, capturing that era's essence while expanding into uncharted sonic territory. Parasomnia is more than an album; it's an experience meticulously crafted to embody the very concept behind the band's name. From hypnotic rhythmic patterns to eerie, otherworldly harmonies, it pulls listeners into a dreamlike soundscape where the familiar and the surreal collide.

A standout moment for me comes with "Bend the Clock." In its epic simplicity (for typical speed-technical fan standards), the song opens with a beautifully crafted guitar intro and an impressively understated riff/strum transition; a subtle yet profound contrast to the album's rich musical density. This purity of expression is a rare gift for true Dream Theater aficionados, a reminder that sometimes less is infinitely more. My personal favorite guitar solo in the entire album, by the way. The fade-out decision also is questionable, but very likely that epic solo was improvised, and that's exactly why it should be forgiven.

Equally enthralling is the album's grand finale: a nearly 20-minute epic that feels unapologetically theatrical. Here, Dream Theater channels the very essence of its name, painting a vivid sonic picture through rapid tempo changes, dynamic speed shifts, and the masterful use of the Phrygian Dominant scale that infuses the track with tantalizing Latin vibes. This mesmerizing instrumental odyssey stands as a testament to their continual evolution and uncompromising vision.

While many of their past releases, like The Astonishing, were misunderstood masterpieces, Parasomnia binds its sprawling tracks into a unified, dreamlike concept that resonates deeply with the band's storied identity. Portnoy's return is not merely a nostalgic nod: it revitalizes Dream Theater's creative spirit and underscores their commitment to both experimentation and tradition.

If there is one minor quibble, it lies with the album cover, which seems designed more for commercial appeal than as a fitting visual representation of the music's profound artistry. A more evocative image?perhaps featuring theatrical red curtains to symbolize the stage of dreams? would have done greater justice to the album's epic narrative. Unless the cover makes some reference to Images and Words and BC&SL.

In every note and nuance, Parasomnia is a 5-star triumph; a masterful blend of past and present that reaffirms Dream Theater's enduring legacy and immerses listeners in a lucid, cinematic dreamscape like never before.

Three-and-a-half years is a relatively long gap between Dream Theater albums. In fact, this is the longest it's ever taken them to put out a new album. However, this record also saw some rare churn (or maybe un-churn) in the band's lineup. Mike Portnoy is back behind the drums after a 15-year absence.

For my money, though, I don't notice much of a difference. I wasn't nuts about a lot of Dream Theater's work with Mike Mangini, but Portnoy has his share of spotty records with the band, too. The music here is pretty typical of the band. They write big, majestic melodies, and they also engage in astounding amounts of instrumental wankery. C'mon. It's a Dream Theater album. If you're reading this, you probably know what you're getting into.

"In the Arms of Morpheus" takes its time getting going, but after about two minutes of introductory sound effects, it blasts into some lurching riffage. Portnoy wastes no time in announcing his return, with tom fills out the wazoo. Parts of this song almost sound like Pantera riffs run through a prog filter. It's kind of interesting. But it also features a lot of typical DT cheese. I like DT cheese, but I do have my limits. If it's coming on this thick in the first track, that isn't necessarily a good sign for the rest of the album.

"Night Terror" has a long introduction, too, but instead of it being ambient noises like the first track, it's a pretty fun instrumental passage. Petrucci's riffs are impactful and engaging, and there's minimal showing off for the sake of it. When LaBrie's voice enters, it's strong. His performances over the last decade or so have been a bit uneven, but he sounds great. I really like how the band plays with uneven meters, too.

This song isn't all good news, though. The instrumental passages in the song's second half drag on for longer than they need to. I can certainly respect Portnoy, Petrucci, Rudess, and Myung for their chops. What they play is very complicated, and I'm really excited to see them do it live later this month. But in a studio context, all this soloing can come off as sterile and pointless. In other words, this is pretty typical latter-era Dream Theater. There is exciting songwriting alongside endless guitar and synth show-off sessions.

The above two paragraphs can be repeated for most of the album, so I'm not going to go over every song in excruciating detail. I will cover various highlights and lowlights, though.

"A Broken Man" channels Tool at a few points, and that's a nice change of pace. It's also less bloated-feeling than "Night Terror", but I wouldn't exactly call it concise. The instrumentals in the second half remind me more of Liquid Tension Experiment than Dream Theater with their jazzy and bluesy tones.

The galloping intro of "Dead Asleep" is solid, and this is a pretty standard DT track. Despite being the longest song so far, it's also the most focused.

Cliched narration kicks off "Midnight Messiah". That's another trope this band loves to trot out. This is not LaBrie's strongest performance, but I do like that Rudess is relatively restrained for a lot of it. The chorus isn't their strongest work, and this song grows repetitious by its end.

"Bend the Clock" is the obligatory ballad. Skip it.

Parasomnia ends on "The Nightman Cometh" "The Shadow Man Incident", a 19-minute opus. Its opening passage is fun and interesting, but it does suffer from a bit of the unnecessary-overture-itis I diagnosed in their last big epic. The first real part of it, though, is sluggish and kind of dull.When they pick up the tempo it gets good again, but Dream Theater isn't doing anything new here. In isolation, stripped of context, it's a great piece of prog metal that balances heaviness and melodicism. However, when looking at this band's past output, it's de rigueur.

Parasomnia, Dream Theater's 16th full-length release, is alright. It's not dreck like their self-titled or garbage like The Astonishing, but it holds a similar place in my mind as the last two Mangini Theater albums, Distance over Time and A View from the Top of the World. It's enjoyable, but it doesn't do much to stand out within their oeuvre. It is one of the Dream Theater albums of all time.

Review originally published here: theeliteextremophile.com/2025/02/17/album-review-dream-theater-parasomnia/

I've been avoiding to many potential "sure-fire" metal albums to get my yearly top 100's more diversified, but this is a new year, and there are some bands I will make that exception for. Dream Theater was the band that got me into prog metal, and although they're not my favorite anymore, if they've got an album the fans like then I will check it out on the day of its release. And this is an event to look forward to for fans everywhere, and why? Simple...

Portnoy's back.

Since Dream Theater mastered the standard style early in their career, we must already deal with some sense of familiarity. So all that's left is how far they drive it. And they're driving it all the way from NY to CA. Some of these bits here are straight-up thrash metal with a strong edge backed up by some of their most clever riffs since Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, and especially Portnoy's drumming. This is the album where he blew the mercury out of the meter. He outperforms everybody here without even thinking. Anything familiar or maybe even only decent about the songwriting is empowered by him. This is easily some of the best metal drumming I've ever heard, IMO.

As for the rest of it, the short story is that this is yet another "cool" entry into their catalog. Instead of choosing more meta concepts like the "octave," or telling another rock opera, they went right into a more conventional type of concept. Much like Metallica's Ride the Lightning covered various forms and themes concerning death, this album's all in the title. This is probably the perfect theme for Dream Theater of all people to tackle. I mean, if the band name didn't say it all, albums like Scenes from a Memory should tell you. Lyrically, they're doing everything they can to bring out the fear factor in each song, almost like we're hearing horror stories but we're supposed to pity the subjects rather than be scared for them. Instrumentally, even though their riffs aren't always the most original, they're effortlessly heavy and easier to get behind. Although, once again, Portnoy's masterful performance helps.

Parasomnia seems like a creative splurge for the band, but it doesn't get in the way of the style they developed for a single second. In fact, I could even say it makes the same mistake as Paramainomeni in the sense that all tracks are following the same goal, but every song shows them doing everything they can at that point to recall the classic era with something a little new. They never really stopped being relevant, but this feels kind of like a comeback album in a sense. Dream Theater, ever since Metropolis Pt. 2, has been the kind of prog metal band you need to immerse yourself in, much like a good old ambient album. And this is the album where they got that back. No overdoing metal themes like Octavarium, no 2112 knockoffs, just Dream Theater being dreamy and heavy.

Rounded: 9/10

I can't tell if I was feeling some Dream Theater's fatigue with the last albums since the departure of Mike Portnoy on drums or if the band was starting to run out of ideas with some predictable prog metal that they give us over the years. Sometimes using the same recipe can be too much for listeners expecting some fresh music. With Portnoy's return, many were excited or curious to see if the band would return to the glory days or give us something different. The first single was something that surprised me with the dark and heavy intro Black Sabbath style. The concept of the album about different experiences of sleep disorder can justify the dark atmosphere of the album. The heaviness is nothing new if we think of Six Degrees or Train of Thought. There are some groundbreaking parts throughout the album as the less exciting parts are rare. John Petrucci delivers some impressive guitar parts including many solos. After 3 strong tracks, "Dead Asleep" keeps the momentum with a nice interplay between John and Jordan. "Midnight Messiah" has a strong Metallica influence with the progressive rock complexity of the band. "Are We Dreaming"? is a cool ambient interlude as the next track has some acoustic guitar before Labrie vocals. We have here the beginning of a ballad with the piano. But then the tempo picks up with every member playing together. We are in a familiar territory here with 2 guitar solos from John. The last 19 minutes track reach another level like all of the epic songs of the band. The intro is an inspiration from the classic song "Mars, Bringer of War". Then the guitar takes us back to the greatness of "Scene from a Memory". James's singing brings the first break with the pace slowing down. There is some great vocal performance here. Mike is delivering his powerful drum parts and Jordan showcases his skill with the keys. The second break displays some impressive drum parts in this instrumental section with many twists which is the trademark of the band. Jordan's heroic keyboard parts and John doing his thing with another fast and furious guitar solo. Then the classical arrangement of another break brings things down before the vocals come back

This is a great album with a solid return to some of the best Dream Theater period. I can see that what Portnoy has brought up to the band is more of an inspiration on the songwriting side than on the technical side. 4.5 stars for sure

DREAM THEATER 16th album and the return of drummer Mike. A word for the title and this distressing perception of abandoning oneself in the arms of Morpheus with elegiac and hypnagogic images.

"In the Arms of Morpheus" with the cinematic, atmospheric intro that kills; drops of water in the distance, a synth behind that surprises, the invasive guitar, hard nauseating enjoyable, the typical drums of Mike. In short, the mechanics of the dream theater has awakened; John and his 8 strings already in the firmament accompanying the other John; symphonic air with the cello keyboard flirting on 'A Scene', 'Overture 1928', divine memory. "Night Terror" follows, intro of two explosive minutes with a powerful sound, even stronger as if to pass to the nightmare state of the hero in spite of himself; the complex instrumentation, between triplets and dry pads that change from the heavy fire of Mike the old; John assures by machine-gunning while Jordan covers with muffled notes; James assures his voice without going too high. The progressive development on LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT with a crazy dreamlike and wacky flamenco guitar; in short we wanted to know, I want to continue the dream. "A Broken Man" bursts forth on a monster tempo, aggressive, inquisitive, spatial with this metallic pad and its voiceovers of military veterans. A musical wall symbolizing the lack of sleep, the trying side with James singing like a God, more phrasing in fact and unfolding the story. The piano break à la Jerry LEE then the organ of a DEEP PURPLE then DREAM THEATER. A fruity bluesy break, illuminating before the return of the heavy artillery symbolized by the riff, the 10 fingers of the two Johns and the pad. Long but effective, trying like the state of this 'man'. "Dead Asleep" begins sleepwalking on tiptoe with these delicate strings; the metallic riff like 'Paralysed' or 'Awaken The Master' choose, setting the song and the atmosphere on fire. It is about murder anyway and this guitar-pad hammering indicates the passage reality and parasomnia. James comes after a marshmallow solo, understand fruity and melting. Brutality of the song coupled with the electric bluesy solo worthy of guitar heroes, energetic cover with a note reminiscent of the SAXONS at their best. Jordan throws his notes at full speed before starting again on the thunderous chorus, 40 seconds of outro on the evanescent piano cleaning our ears, close the door and sleep now.

"Midnight Messiah" with the sampled voice, the riff on a Gregorian choir then the rogue wave, it's fashionable in my notes at the moment. I nod like the two idiots in 'Wayne's World'. James signs the radio edit to the supercharged MUSE, the energetic piece bringing back to METALLICA, not the first time. A continuous fire of sounds with many samples. Let's note phrasing references from their albums of yesteryear, 'Home', 'Déja Vu' and the loop is made. The machine-gunning with James who pushes his strings, proving to his detractors that he can impose. Well the violent piece on the edge of thrash for grandpas is not bad at all, a long piece with the instrumental as a bonus. "Are We Dreaming?" arrives, a little atmospheric escapade, chimes, stereo muffled voices, solemn passage inside a cathedral and divine Jordan on the organ yes I assume; interlude to remain suspended, launching "Bend the Clock" bluesy from the start, a note of ANGEL is to say and not to laugh. James is sparkling on this sumptuous ballad putting him in the spotlight; heavy vintage hard US riff, a beautiful unfolding with John also brilliant, the chorus looks at 'Hollow Years' which I had trouble before conceiving that DREAM THEATER could make beautiful ballads. A Gilmourian solo comes along, enjoyable, orgasmic, over- excited, listened to in the car at full blast with one of my sons, time had stopped, I digress. James and John are having a blast, enjoying themselves, the final melancholic solo, enjoyable in fade out, it's done on purpose my son; I become a believer and hope that the hero will go back in time.

"The Shadow Man Incident" with the little dancer in the bottle, between dream, memory and reality. After the intro with proven reminiscence of 'A View from the Top of the World' and the sounds of the departure the ship takes off; five minutes to have a languid James with phrasing narrating the character of the cover; we have DREAM THEATER on the facade without a hitch, lacking a bit of madness. Halfway through the chorus is obvious, calm and the war machine starts up on the part 'Endless Nights'; struck pad at the gallop, Mike shows his talent; Jordan arrives, doing the same; John with his 12 fingers on bass, the same. The flight is a faultless course to demonstrate the talent of the musicians. A dark, tenacious riff accompanied by a South American keyboard, electric samba or bossa nova for the catch-all progression that drives you crazy: where do they get that from? It shreds, it machine-guns for a while before returning in fits and starts to the original sound that we had forgotten, James raising his voice, easily going into the studio. Pad in front, guitar that imposes itself in order to finally wake us up from this debilitating parasomnia. A last drum roll, silence is felt, a door, a car, a drop of water, it is indeed the awakening, wake up.

DREAM THEATER tells a journey into the meanders of our brain in the grip of sleep! 15 years after his departure, Hugh SYME's cover makes a nice nod to the revival of the group, go see 'Images and Words'. This sound of DREAM THEATER offers a nice melting pot of their discography, making this album a magnificent but not exceptional opus. (4.75) Originelly on Profilprog.

Review Nº 873

As we all know, Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band that was founded in Boston in 1985 by John Myung, Mike Portnoy and John Petrucci while they were studying music at Berklee University. They became as one the pioneers of this style of prog with other bands like Fates Warning. Dream Theater is a very successful and charismatic band with fans all over the world. They released sixteen studio albums till now, including this new one, "Parasomnia".

Before begin to talk about this new DT album I need to say something. In a very short time two of my favourite and most important prog bands released two new studio albums. I'm talking about "The Last Will And Testament" from Opeth released in the end of 2024 and this one "Parasomnia" of Dream Theater released this year. By itself, it's a noteworthy event for me. But there are two things that made of this an even most important event. In the case of Opeth we had the return of growls of Mikael Akerfeldt, a very much unexpected thing for many of their fans. In the case of Dream Theater we had the return of Mike Portnoy, a thing that many of us considered unlikely or even impossible after so many years.

So, with the return of the legendary drummer Mike Portnoy, the band released "Parasomnia", a conceptual album that reaffirms their status and shows that, despite the years, creativity and energy remain intact. The impact of this return is evident from the first seconds of the work. With its eight tracks, if there's one thing "Parasomnia" does well, it's finding a balance between instrumental sophistication and the ability to captivate listeners less accustomed to more complex structures. But the album is not limited to technical displays. There's room for different atmospheres full of contagious energy. With a very well balanced work and a band in a perfect shape with landscapes with a jazzy groove and others with a rock melancholy, Dream Theater, with its classic formation, proves, once again, why it's the leader of the genre.

"In The Arms Of Morpheus" is an instrumental track that sets the general tone of the album. This opener sets the dark atmospheric tone of the album with its instrumental prowess foreshadowing the themes and motifs to come. It's clear this is Dream Theater at their most grandiose. It's a powerful warm-up track for a concert opening. "Night Terror" is a classic progressive track, dark, eerie and heavy and where LaBrie's vocals are clear. It dives into the nightmarish theme with aggressive riffs and a memorable chorus, showcasing the chemistry between the band's members and where each member gets a moment to shine. "A Broken Man" has an astonishing energy and an emotional depth, a real descent into pain where Portnoy kill on the drums. The track balances between intense metal sections and more introspective moments, echoing the storytelling prowess of their past epics. It's one of the heaviest tracks of Dream Theater. "Dead Asleep" is one of the two lengthiest tracks on the all album. This is a pretty standard solid track with the classic Dream Theater's sound. It's one of the most focused tracks on the album, ominous, eerie and slightly oppressive. This track is an evolution of the band's ability to weave complex narratives with music. This is a masterclass dark prog metal track. "Midnight Messiah" is a concentrate of technique and power. Those who love "Train of Thought" will love it. The tempo changes and accelerations in particular, take the sound to another level, making us go wild. The interplay between the instruments shows the unchanged chemistry of the band's members. "Are We Dreaming?" is a very short interlude with atmospheric sounds and layered vocals, a moment of reflection with its minimalist approach. "Bend The Clock" is the most accessible track on the album, a beautiful power ballad. It showcases LaBrie's vocal range and the band's ability to craft emotional and melodic tunes. Despite LaBrie is a fine singer, are in these type of songs with a greater harmonic emphasis were he truly excels. "The Shadow Man Incident" is a 20-minute sprawling epic that encapsulates the album's themes and showcases the band's technical and compositional excellence. It has epic solos, hard riffs, quiet melodic sections, blazing fast keyboard work, great guitar solos and LaBrie singing in top form. The track moves through various moods and styles encapsulating everything Dream Theater does best a reminiscent of their long form classics.

Conclusion: "Parasomnia" marks a moment of renewal of Dream Theater. It's well known that the announcement of Portnoy's departure in 2010 marked one of the most dramatic moments in the band's history. With Mangini, the band released five great technical studio works but what lacked a certain creativity and innovation. Mike's return brought a new energy to the band and this is reflected in the way each song overflows with vitality and creativity. I agree with my colleague reviewer rdtprog when he says that what Portnoy has brought up to the band is more of an inspiration on the songwriting side than on the technical side. Besides, he is the real soul of Dream Theater. For me, "Parasomnia" is the best work of the band since "Black Clouds & Silver Linings". With each listen, the album grows on me, revealing new layers and intricacies. With this album, the band reinforces their position as one of the greats of the prog metal scene.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

It seemed that Mike Portnoy's departure from Dream Theater was a closed chapter in 2010, but surprisingly the prodigal drummer returned to the band to take his place fifteen years later, after which his determination and energy at the helm of the percussions and his compositional talent came to bring a revitalising breath of fresh air to "Parasomnia" (2025), the sixteenth album by the New Yorkers, wrapped since 2011 in a self-referential web that produced five very good albums technically, but with a somewhat dull creative spark.

With a conceptual theme centred on sleep disorders and their various manifestations, "Parasomnia" flows between charged hypnotic and sombre atmospheres, sustained by a rocky rhythmic base built by Portnoy's drums and John Miyung's always diligent bass. From the powerful and disturbing instrumental "In the Arms of Morfeus", a myriad of sonic constructions and deconstructions intertwine in tracks of great forcefulness such as the dark classic prog metal of the nightmarish "Night Terror" and John Petrucci's irrepressible haemorrhage of riffs, the tormented and muscular "A Broken Man" including a brief and inspired jazz moment, the oppressive and murky "Dead Asleep" that contrasts a great guitar solo by Petrucci with the synthesized dalliances of Jordan Rudess, and the raw and powerful "Midnight Messiah" and the virtuoso overlapping play of guitars and keyboards once again.

And preceded by the whispering and brief ambient interlude "Are We Dreaming?" and by the splendorous power ballad "Bend the Clock" with a convincing voice of James LaBrie (of very good performance on the album by the way), the extensive suite "The Shadow Man Incident" unfolds stupendously, alternating emotive peaceful valleys and peaks of instrumental grandeur drawn from the most genuine progressive metal, on a par with other huge tracks like "A Change of Seasons" or "The Count of Tuscany" and with some subtle nods to the magnificent "Metropolis Pt.2 : Scenes from a Memory". An unbeatable closing of what is probably Dream Theater's best work since 2002's "Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence".

Very good

4/4.5 stars

Talk about your dramatic turns of events! With Mike Portnoy returning to Dream Theater out of the blue and Mike Mangini bowing out with good grace (so far as we can tell), expectations where high for this album. It's not that the Mangini era of the band is outright bad, so much as it's rather mixed; A Dramatic Turn of Events was pretty solid, but their self-titled album was less celebrated and The Astonishing met with a serious backlash.

Notably, with the latter they abandoned their usual full-band collaborative approach to songwriting, Petrucci and Rudess handling all the music themselves and Petrucci writing the lyrics solo, further contributing to the sense that the well-honed Dream Theater creative engine wasn't quite working as it should. Then again, Distance Over Time and A View From the Top of the World seemed to find the band back on an upward swing - the question was, would the return of Portnoy reinvigorate the band or disrupt them just as their creative process was recovering from the weird experiment of The Astonishing?

Before you even get to the music here, you're confronted with cover art that seems designed specifically to build high expectations. Sure, it's a spookier, gloomier image than we've become used to from Dream Theater (though not so much that it feels completely uncharacteristic), but what really jumps out about it is that it's a big riff on the Images and Words cover; we've got an older girl stood next to her bed, and whilst the surreal features of the Images and Words cover suggested the colourful imagery of dream, here we're stepping more into the realm of nightmare.

So not only is this Portnoy's big comeback, but it's being set up as this big thematic sequel to the band's breakthrough album - if Images and Words was Songs of Innocence, this is Songs of Experience. Lyrically and thematically, this continues right into the album itself; "Parasomnia" is a term for a particular category of sleep disorders, and the songs here are all about sleep paralysis, nightmares, and other things of that nature. It's not a narrative concept album so far as I can tell, but it's definitely a thematic one, with the band taking us all on a thrilling trip through the realm of nightmare.

If the album's cover and lyrics showcase thematic unity, the credits suggest the return of the fivefold creative partnership responsible for the success of this lineup's successful run from Metropolis Part II to Black Clouds & Silver Linings. To the extent that Mangini got credits for songwriting, he did because Dream Theater typically share the credit for all of their musical compositions and generally only go for individual credits when it comes to song lyrics - which Mangini notably contributed much less of than Portnoy had. Portnoy's back on the lyrics again here, and one can only assume that he's settled back into making contributions to the musical compositions too, since all five men in this lineup had become well-used to workshopping ideas with each other.

All of this show of unity and co-operation would come to nothing if the music didn't hold together of course, and I'm happy to report that this is a decidedly strong Dream Theater album. It's not on the level of albums I'd personally put on the absolute tippy-top tier of the band's output - Images & Words, Metropolis Part II, and Octavarium - but it's a decidedly solid effort which refreshes their customary style with the combination of a well-defined and tightly targeted atmosphere and mood on the one hand, and on the other an injection of a few more gleeful retro-prog influences into the mix than we've heard on recent albums from the group.

One suspects Portnoy may have had a hand in that, given that he'd spent much of his time away from the group working with Neal Morse (both on Morse's own projects as bandleader and in more collaborative contexts like Transatlantics), and anyone who's that keen to keep contributing to Neal's prog projects probably has a healthy appetite for old-school prog stuff, but at the same time this isn't so much of a divergence from A View From the Top of the World as to represent an outright repudiation of that album, or the Mangini era as a whole.

Really, my biggest criticism of it is the needless Images and Words nod on the front cover - I think it's silly of the band to implicitly invite such comparisons when this isn't really a throwback to that era. The group aren't rewinding the clock here or pretending the last few albums didn't happen - they aren't hopping back to a pre-Mangini period, it's more like Mangini tagging out and Portnoy tagging in back in, the group carrying the lessons learned forward. It remains to be seen whether this new era of the band will have the staying power of the last time this particular lineup was all together - like I said, the Mangini era did start strong before it got into the weeds a little - but whilst this isn't a revolution in the band's sound, it's still a promising start.

Alright. Let's imagine an alternate universe where Dream Theater didn't create this. Instead, a promising new prog band - let's call them Shmaken, Shmeam Theater, whatever - releases their debut album, Shmarasomnia. It sounds exactly like this album, the only difference being that it's by an unknown band. Or, more piercingly, the difference is that it's by a band that isn't buried under the weight of decades of expectation by fans and critics alike. How would we rate this?

Seriously, if a totally unknown band released Parasomnia, I strain to see how it wouldn't create shockwaves in the prog metal community. This is an excellent record, not just Dream Theater spinning their wheels. Petrucci's performance especially blew me away; the guitars here are no less memorable than those of classic Thrash albums (think Master of Puppets-era) and it's clear that, had this been released in a different era by a different band, it would earn far more enthusiastic reception. It's okay to admit that Dream Theater made a good album, even if it's not literally the 2nd coming of Scenes from a Memory.

Some minor criticism: while Parasomnia works well qua album - that is, you can listen to it start to finish without feeling the urge to skip anything - it doesn't feel like there's a standout track. If pressed, my vote would go to the instrumental intro "In the Arms of Morpheus", which is a pretty telling choice - but damn, what a nice intro! Just such a creative musical interpretation of slipping into a dream (if you didn't know, Morpheus was the Greek god of dreams, not just a Laurence Fishburne character). Other bands have done their own interpretation of this (consider Gazpacho's "Night"), so it was interesting to compare.

Further, I don't think this was the best use of James LaBrie's vocal talents. I phrase that deliberately to imply that LaBrie has vocal talent, since that seems to be a matter of contention among weirdo critics. Where LaBrie usually shines is his creative melodies and wide range of vocal styles, yet on this album he feels a bit constrained. I consider Dead Asleep an exception, and Midnight Messiah was a bit more adventurous, though I wasn't fond of the execution. There are probably others I'll warm up to on my 4th or 5th listens. Not a bad performance by any stretch, just below his standard, and I wish his sections were catchier.

An easy 4/5.

The first studio reunion of the classic DT lineup since 2008! 1. "In the Arms of Morpheus" (5:22) the spacious time-bent opening 90 seconds of this sounds and feels like a soundtrack to one of those child-slasher horror movies. It's very well done--and very effective in conveying disorientation from "real world" reality--even when the full band starts its power chord march through to the 2:45 mark. The chugging motif that follows is impressive for the technical prowess on display from each and every musician. The "mountaintop" motif that opens up at 4:05 is a bit clichéd but definitely reminds us of the "glory days" of all that was 1990s DT. And no vocals! It's totally instrumental. (9.125/10)

2. "Night Terror" (9:55) a slowly-building wall of auspicious gloom turns, after 90 seconds, into a fast-paced run through the dark forest. When the band wants to open up for James LaBrie's singing of the verses they step into a syncopated stop-and-go kind of motif--very effective--but then revert to the smooth-racing run for the choruses. Four minutes in and I find myself totally surprised at the like of pyrotechnics or fireworks: everybody seems to be completely synchronized and attuned to the whole-band wall(s) of sound they're creating. When there is space opened up for instrumental solos, the guitar and keyboard solos are, unfortunately, almost embarrassingly cliché-filled. (Those guitar overdrive harmonics were so 80s!) Still, it is really nice to hear that RUSH-like unity in the eighth minute--and this is the motif in which John Petrucci reminds us of why he was one of the kings of technical metal guitar playing. Great solo highs in the ninth minute! The chorus, which is really maxed-out in the final minutes, is a little too anchored, stylistically and melodically, in 1980s "hair band" sound. (17.875/20)

3. "A Broken Man" (8:30) a song that I enjoy for its steadfast forward motion, even when Mike decreases the number of beats per minute he deploys with his drums; this is an impressive song! While Mike Portnoy is putting on a show for the first two minutes Jordan Rudess's keyboard prowess is in full effect with his "calming"/balancing synth wash chord progressions. James La Brie steps into the fold in the third minute to divulge the story line, he's good--very theatric and committed--but it's John Myung's bass play that now has all my attention--especially when there are any spaces afforded the instrumentalists between James' vocal lines. The metal motif in the instrumental sixth minute is cool with lots of tempo and chord-progression changes as Jordan and John Petrucci take turns proffering their pristine solos (even courting totally different stylistic motifs with each solo stint). Even the bridges are really fun to hear/follow--especially with the various fills each instrumentalist might "sneak" into them. The vocal is good but not nearly as breath-taking as the work of the instrumentalists. (18.75/20)

4. "Dead Asleep" (11:06) John Petrucci really gets some great guitar sounds on this one--which may feed into his inspired-sounding lead solos. The creative interplay between John-John and Mike is so exciting that I find myself pretty much tuning out/oblivious to James' vocal performance--until, that is, the muted effect is applied (briefly) in the fifth minute. The subject matter is quite obviously inspired by both Edgar Allen Poe and Blue Öyster Cult's albums of the mid-1970s (Agents of Fortune and Spectres). Jordan has some decent time in the instrumental mid-section to solo--and he is quite impressive. (I often have trouble appreciating much less "feeling" the emotional keyboard artists are trying to convey with their instruments.) Smooth multi-voice choruses also remind me of BÖC's iconic songs (as well as those of Def Leppard). From a perspective of instrumental virtuosity, this may be the album's most impressive. The song ends with some on-the-water creaking wood noises beneath a piano playing the melody of a famous Nineteenth Century classical piece. (18.5/20)

5. "Midnight Messiah" (7:58) DEF LEPPARD-like musical motif opens this within which a recorded voice is relaying his concerns about how to "really wake up." Syncopated Tech Heavy Metal ensues with John Petrucci and John Myung chugging masterfully along, Mike and Jordan riding along beneath, each adding their own subtle rhythmic and harmonic accents. It has quite a bit of Metallica's "Enter the Sandman" feel to it--though not during the choruses, there it sounds more like Uriah Heep, Iron Maiden, Megadeth or that ilk. This song is one that feels as if the band is kind of "dialing in" a mélange of their most comfortable riffs and styles. Not my favorite style or song. (13.125/15)

6. "Are We Dreaming?" (1:29) gongs, church organ, and tubular bells set up another voice-under of whispered vocals--this time from two actors. (4.425/5)

7. "Bend the Clock" (7:25) opening with some awesome-sounding distorted guitar chords and arpeggi brings me back to times long begone (the late 1960s and early 1970s). When James enters, using a breathy-delicate voice, immersed within piano and strumming acoustic guitars, it is equally awesome/nostalgic. Then they really get going: reviving a sound palette that is so familiar, so comfortable from the AOR Classic Rock bands of the mid- to late 1970s (Styx, Alice Cooper, Journey, or even Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, or Bryan Adams). This is my favorite James LaBrie vocal of the album! And my favorite John Petrucci guitar solo (despite the fact that it is totally old-school pre-80s Metal). Great if "classic" song! Just great! (14.5/15)

8. "The Shadow Man Incident" (19:32) a long intro that definitely highlights the band's unity and discipline--two elements that I consider marks of maturity and effort--the song really kicks into forward motion at the three-minute mark and then really around the four-minute mark when they're finally ready to launch some solos (with John Petrucci's rock guitar starting things off). At 4:50 things are brought down a couple notches--especially in tempo--allowing the tender (though portentous) side of James LaBrie's voice to go on full display. There is an awesome Freddy Mercury-like control and focus that James is putting into each and every syllable/vowel that is very impressive. At 7:50 the guitar and bass suddenly take off: speeding along like a dog suddenly seeing a squirrel. Mike, Jordan, and James follow suit (without missing a beat, of course). The unity is really quite remarkable--as is James' pronunciation of each and every syllable. The melodies are fairly good--especially the "night ? endless nights" ones: catchy and memorable. The instrumental passage begun at the ten-minute mark owes a lot to the twin guitars of bands like THIN LIZZY as well as the sounds of Brian May. In the twelfth minute the band shifts into "catch me if you can" mode with many short ever-shifting motifs and time signatures--the two Johns again shining while Jordan and Mike reinforce, embellish and accent. In the fourteenth minute Jordan surprises us with some classical music themes slipping out of his piano (as the rest of the band holds fast to their hard-driving metal motif beneath!) Petrucci goes off on one of his inimitable series of Lightning Flash flurries in the 15th minute but then the band melts into a bombastic theme for James to re-emerge singing in a crescendo/dénouement during the sixteenth and seventeenth minutes. Petrucci soars and dives in the eighteenth while Mike punctuates every second of the song beneath him and then, with over a minute left remaining on the clock, its over! We're left with eerie water-in-the-underground sewers, echoing shadow man laughs that turn to dripping in the bathroom sink followed by the ringing of a mechanical alarm clock and a "wake up" voice being whispered loudly into your ear. Classic, high-quality DT with very tight formation, classic Petrucci guitar solos, and a wonderful if limited (in terms of minutes) performance from James LaBrie. It's really hard to find fault with this other than it not being my true kind of preferred music to listen to for pure enjoyment. Still, there is no doubt that this is a brilliant product! (38/40)

Total Time 71:17

Though Dream Theater music has always been impressive, it has rarely resonated with my specific musical tastes. (So far, Awake is the one exception: there is something about that album that drew me in from the first time I heard it.) A long break from collaborating with one another as well as maturity may have served James, John, Jordan, John, and Mike well because the music on Parasomnia, while still being as impressive as ever, is both interesting and enjoyable! It may not end up being one of my favorites of the year but it certainly earns high marks for skill and power. (I'm actually a bit embarrassed to see that my favorite song on the album is the one that ticks off the most "retro" marks on the nostalgia scale.) I'm also incredibly impressed how little filler there is with "over the top" bombast and show: this is a band that is showing their maturity by being content with impressing as a whole band more than as a gathering of virtuosic individuals.

A/five stars; a masterpiece of prog metal from one of America's iconic bands reunited one more time.

In my humble opinion Parasomnia is Dream Theater's best effort since Black clouds and silver linings. The drumming of comebacker Mike Portnoy and the tight production of his drums alone make me smile. And most of the songs are real good, interesting and entertaining stuff. So, no complaints from my side. Great return for the S-Tier Prog Metal drummer, Mike Portnoy

Overall this is pretty solid, The album features a recurring melodic motif throughout, which is something they haven't done in a long time. The last two tracks are probably the highlight of the album, with The Shadow Man Incident finishing on a Petrucci solo that reminds me strongly of the finale to Octavarium. Probably their best ~20 minute Opus since that one, actually. Some of the rest of it is pretty forgettable. In general, they overuse the recurring melody (when doing this approach I think it's better to define 3-5 distinct melodies that can be reshaped in various ways rather than just one). There's also a bit with halting notes over an overlapping rhythm that sounds like the first part of The Dance of Eternity.

Yes, thankfully, The Child is Father of the Man. Number One, the Chief salutes you.

Is history cyclical? Perhaps, but consideration of "Parasomnia" brings me back to the ending above of my 2/22/2009 review of "Octavarium."

Number One is my oldest son, now a successful, multi-store retail, district manager who recently had the good fortune to see Dream Theater on their fortieth anniversary tour. Finally, on Sunday, 3/23/25, we spoke regarding "Parasomnia,"agreeing that it is Dream Theater's best effort since 2002's "Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence."

In the autumn of 2024 when the band gave us the preview of "Night Terror" from "Parasomnia," I joked with Number One that, depending on the 11/5/24 outcome of a major event in the "body politic" of the United States, I, too, might have "Night Terror . . . ." This outcome has, subsequently, also led to "Day Terror."

On a far more auspicious note, we have "Parasomnia." As we enter the album through "In The Arms of Morpheus," we are whisked away into a fitfully trancelike state that is relentless. "Night Terror" descends into "A Broken Man," which constricts into "Dead Asleep." The listener is on a "mechanical bull" of the Imagination that charges through "Midnight Messiah" to the alarm clock conclusion of "The Shadow Man Incident."

As a "concept album," "Parasomnia is not only a latter day "Metropolis Pt. 2?Scenes from a Memory," but also an "incarnation" of "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway." Although "Parasomnia" does not possess a relatively linear "quest romance motif" like that of "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway," it presents eight bewildering nighttime scenarios with a cumulative effect tantamount to the quest of Rael . . . .

Instrumentally, the album is superb. Throughout, there is the continuous dialogue between John Petrucci and Jordan Rudess. James La Brie is most authoritative. In his return to the band, Mike Portnoy parallels the career of NFL great, Fran Tarkenton, who, beginning his career with the Minnesota Vikings and serving an intermediate tenure with the New York Giants, returned to the Vikings to complete his legendary status as quarterback.

And, then, there is John Myung: "L'Angelo Misterioso" of "Parasomnia." In response to the legendary lead guitar work Eric Clapton provided on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," George Harrison co-wrote and performed rhythm guitar on Cream's, "Badge," under the pseudonym, "L'Angelo Misterioso."

Myung's presence initially became noteworthy to me during Rudess and Petrucci's "dialogue"during "Night Terror" and Rudess' piano solo during the latter stages of "The Shadow Man Incident." With each listening, I have found Myung's bass to be fairly "high" in the mix, largely assuming the function of rhythm guitar. And, why not? With a drummer like Mike Portnoy, the music of "Parasomnia" opens up the full, rhythmic possibilities for Myung's six string bass. As a parallel, I would like to make reference to Greg Lake's eight string Alembic bass on "Fanfare for the Common Man."

There are, of course, other remarkable instrumental elements throughout this album. I would like to point out Petrucci's solo during "A Broken Man" in which he revisits the "Kansas-like" sound of "A Rite of Passage" from "Black Clouds and Silver Linings."Rudess delivers singular piano work during the remaining third or so of "The Shadow Man Incident,"supported by Myung's bass.

In mentioning Fran Tarkenton earlier, I must similarly say, in "Parasomnia," Dream Theater has sent "the ball" out of Wrigley Field and/or over the Green Monster in Fenway Park.

And, who among us would not want to "Bend the Clock?"

OK, I'm not a big fan of Dream Theater or Prog-Metal in general, so maybe it's not surprising that I was not very impressed with this new album, their first since drummer extraordinaire Mike Portnoy re-joined the band. There is no denying the excellent musicianship on display here and the sound is great, but there is just too much metal and not enough prog influences present here to work well for me. I think many were hoping that there would be more of a return to the old Dream Theater with Portnoy's return, but this sounds just like their last few albums, which I have tried to get into, but it just doesn't click for me. Not bad, just not that great. Rating 3.0

Unanimously seen as a reunion album for Dream Theater (despite the band never really going away), 2025's 'Parasomnia' marks the surprising and exciting return of original drummer and founding member Mike Portnoy, restoring the lineup that had been responsible for all of the fantastic albums released between 1999 and 2009. This new album by the kings of progressive metal is the sixteenth overall in their studio catalogue, expanding upon the material released in the last fifteen years, with the band loading up on their darker riff-heavy compositions that encapsulate both the melodic and the more technical aspects of their sound. Not a concept album, but a thematically cohesive work centered around the consequences and impacts of sleep disruption, intertwining this thread into their diverse and intriguing stories, as told on 'Parasomnia', this album generally seems to have something stylistically in common with both the self-titled album from 2013 and 'Train of Thought', both darker and heavier albums from the past.

Of course, the return of Mike Portnoy does not necessarily imply a return to the band's state prior to the 2010s, since the inventive and eccentric drummer did not redeem any of his production duties (handled exclusively by Petrucci) and it is not directly discernible how involved he has been with the songwriting process here, the direction of the music, or the conceptual side of it all (credited with writing the lyrics of just one of the six non-instrumental songs), which have more recently been dominated by the ideas and vision of John Petrucci and Jordan Rudess. With this in mind, 'Parasomnia' seems to be a direct continuation of the rather fine thread of albums released by Dream Theater between 2011 and 2021, and the similarities are quite tangible. This new work introduces nothing unheard of before - the cathartic and sophisticated songwriting dominates most of the songs on 'Parasomnia', which are quite effective and exhibit some really excellent riffs, mind-boggling guitar solos as well as well-written and memorable melodies, many of which can in reality be traced back to past works. The intricacy is here, the depth and the texture of the music are here, together with the signature dramatic delivery of James LaBrie. With the sole exceptions of 'Bend the Clock' and the big closing epic, 'Parasomnia' is incredibly consistent, enjoyable and generally uplifting, there is a sense of rejuvenation brought along by Portnoy's return, even if the album closely follows the well-known DT template, making it a fine listen and a more guitar-driven offering that probably lacks some of that characteristic flair, ever so poignant on some of the classic albums from the 2000s era of the band.