In a new interview with Troy Culpan of Australia’s May The Rock Be With You, Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy opened up about what it has been like to be back on the road with the progressive metal giants after a 13-year absence.
Dream Theater played their first show with Portnoy in 14 years on October 20, 2024, at London’s O2 Arena, marking a major milestone for the band and its fans. A founding member, Portnoy originally played on 10 Dream Theater albums between 1989’s When Dream And Day Unite and 2009’s Black Clouds & Silver Linings, before departing the group in 2010. He officially returned in October 2023, replacing Mike Mangini, who held the drum throne for five albums and multiple world tours.
Asked how his return affected the band’s creative process during the making of 2025’s Parasomnia, Portnoy said the chemistry was instantly reignited: “We were definitely inspired writing together. We hadn’t written and recorded an album together since Black Clouds & Silver Linings, which came out in 2009, but we made it in 2008.
So it had been 15 years since we had written and recorded an album together. We were very inspired being together again and having that chemistry — that artistic and creative chemistry that we always had. And it was immediately there once we started working on the new album.”
With Parasomnia now out and the band deep into an extensive global tour, Portnoy made it clear that fans shouldn’t expect new music right away: “We have to wait, ’cause it’s been a long tour. We’ve been out for a year now. We started in October of 2024, and by the time we get down to Australia [in February 2026] and wrap up the tour cycle a few months after that, it’ll have been a year and a half on the road.”
According to Portnoy, the plan after the tour is to finally slow things down before diving back into writing: “Once the tour cycle wraps and concludes by next spring or so, we’ll probably take the summer off, ’cause it’s been a long road, and then start thinking about a new album after that.”
While you’re waiting for a new Dream Theater album, they’ve got the following tour dates lined up for 2026. Get your tickets here.
1/27 Dubai, United Arab Emirates Coca-Cola Arena
1/30 Bengaluru, India Phoenix Marketcity Back Area
2/1 Kolkata, India Aquatic Ground
2/3 Singapore, Singapore The Star Theatre
2/4 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Zepp
2/7 Jakarta, Indonesia Stadion Madya
2/10 Adelaide, Australia Hindley Street Music Hall
2/12 Melbourne, Australia Margaret Court Arena
2/14 Sydney, Australia ICC Sydney Theatre
2/15 Brisbane, Australia Fortitude Music Hall
2/18 Bangkok, Thailand Idea Live
2/20 Seoul, South Korea Sol Travel Hall
2/21 Seoul, South Korea Sol Travel Hall
2/22 Seoul, South Korea Sol Travel Hall
2/25 Tokyo, Japan Nippon Budokan
2/28 Toyohashi, Japan Aiplaza Toyohashi
3/2 Osaka, Japan Festival Hall
3/3 Okayama, Japan Okayama Performing Arts Theatre
4/8 Monterrey, Mexico Arena Monterrey
4/10 Mexico City, Mexico Arena CDMX
4/12 San Juan, Puerto Rico Coliseo de Puerto Rico
4/16 San José, Costa Rica Venue TBC
4/18 Bogotá, Colombia Movistar Arena
4/20 Lima, Peru Costa 21
4/24 Buenos Aires, Argentina Movistar Arena
4/26 Córdoba, Argentina Plaza de la Música
5/3 Porto Alegre, Brazil Auditório Araújo Vianna
5/5 Curitiba, Brazil Live Curitiba
5/7 BrasÃlia, Brazil Dois Ipês
5/9 São Paulo, Brazil Vibra
5/10 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Vivo Rio
5/12 Belo Horizonte, Brazil Befly Hall
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