Интервю с James LaBrie, Dream Theater

MH18: Hello, Mr. LaBrie, nice to meet you. How are you? I’m very glad to talk to you on behalf of Metal Hangar 18, in regards of your 40th anniversary tour and your shows in Bulgaria. My first question will be in regards with everything that is going on in the last two years with Dream Theater. So, you have this almost year-long tour. You have released your new album, Parasomnia. How do you feel about everything that is going on?
JL: Everything’s been going great. Obviously what you’re referring to in the last two years is that Mike came back into the band, there’s the reunion and then the making of the new album Parasomnia that which has been extremely well received around the world and the fans have embraced it wholeheartedly, the tour has been going fantastic since the first show at the O2 arena in in London. In every show the fans are enthusiastic and we’re having a great time. The production for the live shows is phenomenal with all the imagery on the screens, the lighting design of course the music. We are spanning several decades, so yes, everything is going great. We’re all having a lot of fun and we’re all in a very good place. It’s a healthy unit for sure.

MH18: That was one of my questions, because in the beginning, it was a lot of excitement around the reunion. And one year later, how do you feel about it? Do you still feel that this was the right direction, and this is the future of Dream Theater.
JL: Yeah, you know, it just feels so, so natural. Getting back together with Mike back in the band, I’ve been asked several times, how did it feel going back into the studio? How was the writing and to me personally, it was like we didn’t miss a beat. We kind of just fell right back into the way that things used to be when we were writing albums from Black Cloud & Silver Linings and back, you know, right back to Images and Words or even When Dream and Day Unite. It just felt like it was seamless and effortless and familiar. We knew what it was like to work with Mike in the studio, and it all came back together, and we were kind of laughing about it. It was kind of like, okay, at that point, he had been out of the band, I think about 14, 15 years, but it just felt as if we had all gone on a vacation, came back, went into the studio and started writing another album. Obviously, the focus was on the reunion album. We haven’t been in this form for, like I said, 14, 15 years. So, we knew that the fans were very anxious to hear it, excited and curious. But seriously, we’re all in a good place. I think, you know, as life goes on and you, you hope that you grow, you evolve. And I think because of that maturity in growth, you also start to have a mutual understanding of one another and who each other is in their respective fields. And there’s along with that type of evolution; it creates a very positive and healthy environment. And that’s where we are right now. And we’re having a great ride. We’re having a great run and we’re having a lot of fun. Obviously, it all comes down to being on stage together, putting on a great show, a memorable show. And I think all of that is happening for sure.

MH18: Let’s talk about the new release, because it is an interesting topic for our fans. It’s a bit darker, heavier than your recent releases. It’s some kind of going back to the roots. The way you express yourself feels like going home, but actually never leaving it. It is different but kind of the same Dream Theater we used to know. So, do you believe that this is a new step in a new direction, a new era for Dream Theater or just going back to what you did before? For example, here and there are hints in this new album to your prior releases. Midnight Messiah makes some hints to Images and Words and Metropolis, for example, and even the art hints to those albums.
JL: I think you know the main thing is that we’ve always maintained our identity When you hear Dream Theater you know that it’s Dream Theater just because stylistically, how we write, how we put songs together it’s eclectic, it’s diverse, you know it’s progressive but it’s heavy it’s also has moments of a lot of feel, a lot of emotion, a lot of a very, very profound expression, so all of these levels of who and what we are when we are in our music really kind of cements who and what we are as a band. The way that I look at it is that each album when we approach, our albums are a real true testament of where and who we are at that particular moment in time. I always think that each album is like a time capsule and it kind of emulates and expresses what’s going on with us as a band, how we individually and collectively are living in life, how we’re affected by everything that’s around us socially, politically, and I think that all really kind of resonates through us within us and creates that seed for wanting to come through in music. The way that you’re affected in life creates emotions and those emotions in musicians become our form of expression being able to release whether it’s through lyrics or the actual music we are speaking and creating and expressing those emotions.
With Dream Theater, with this latest album, right away we knew we wanted to do a heavier album and based on the subject matter because it’s thematically, it’s a thematic album if you think about it. Because Parasomnia is dealing with night terrors, nightmares, relentless unraveling within that individual because of these disturbing dreams that might have something to do with what has happened to them, something traumatic. So, when you’re writing about something that’s so dark and foreboding to a certain degree then it also lends itself to music having a similar feel and sound. And so, I think, with this album, it’s definitely, you could say that it compares to the Awake album being very heavy. It also compares because there’s some beautiful moments when you listen to the Shadow Man incident, it’s epic. So there’s touches of Images and Words. There’s a touch of Scenes from a Memory in there because it’s very theatrical. So, I think all these things just reinforce and cement the fact that you’re going along for a ride with Dream Theater once again. You’re really being able to say, you know, this is the band that I’ve been listening to for several years and they’re maintaining who they are, but it’s a different experience. And I think that’s extremely important, if not most important that you feel that we’re offering something that is similar, but different.

MH18: When we are speaking about Parasomnia you actually have written part of the lyrics, and everyone has some touch in that concept. Was it like someone’s idea or was it something coming together to all of you?
JL: Well, the way it happened was John Petrucci had stumbled across this, I guess, this symptom that plagues several people around the world. And he said, hey, guys, have you ever heard of this ailment, so to speak, a psychological illness that affects many people called parasomnia? And he said, you know, I think it could be a very cool platform for us to write the new album like create something that’s thematic but at the same time the songs really do kind of speak for themselves and so with that like when John told us we were like wow that’s a really cool subject that could be very cool to talk about especially seeing that it is something that is worldwide known to affect many several tens of thousands or if not millions of people around the world so yeah it was brought to us by John Petrucci just saying „hey, what do you think of this? I think this is a really cool idea and it’s something that could really lend itself to making the album very exciting, very dynamic“ and we were like, yeah, let’s go for it let’s see where we can go with this.

MH18: Actually, it’s a bit scary to know that your unconscious part is living a separate life.
JL: Yeah. You know, and it’s uncontrollable too. When reading about parasomnia, there are methods of therapy out there, but it’s not always successful. And so, a lot of people are relentlessly plagued by this situation each and every given night, so you think about it when you know you’re coming up to sleep time, you’re completely frightened. You’re horrified with the thought that you’re going into a very dark and evil and tormenting place. Each and every night. So, it plays on the individual. It starts to wear them down. It starts to, you know, create a feeling of hopelessness, helplessness. And it’s just a horrible situation for so many people.

MH18: So, you are actually in the middle of the tour, you had this new release and what is next? Did you have any plans or you are not looking that far in the future right now?
JL: Our focus obviously is on the world tour. We’ll probably be touring until next March on this tour. So, we’re still going to be out for quite some time. We’re going throughout Europe, we’re coming to your beautiful country and that is going to take us to the end of July and then we’re doing another US tour starting in September, going on for two months and then we go to the South Pacific. So, there’s so many places still for us to go. In the new year that starts in 2026 we go to the Pacific throughout Asia and quite possibly Australia and New Zealand. We’re talking about it now, so, by the time we’re doing that in 2026, like I said, it’s probably going to be March before we’re done or it might even be later because there’ll be other things coming up like where we’re told „hey, you guys should go back to South America“. Whatever it might be, I think the main thing is that right now we’re having a great time and this will definitely lend itself do this tour and we’ll be out till next march and then we’ll take a big break and then we’ll continue as this lineup um and we’ll go back into the studio eventually and create another album and do another tour because we’re having a great time we still love to do what we do so at this point we’re still going to be around for a while and we’re having a great time doing it and definitely this isn’t something that’s temporary. I think this is something that’s more than likely permanent and we’re all talking about it, we’re all into it, we all want to do it

MH18: When we are talking about that big tour, it’s probably exhausting for you. So how do you take care of yourself during the tour? Do you have some routine, rituals, something?
JL: You definitely have to have routine. You definitely have to know that you’re like an athlete. You have to stay focused. You have to think about yourself physically, mentally, emotionally. It’s all about staying even keel, like just keeping things in a healthy spot. So, we’re doing like three-hour shows right now. And when we’re going throughout Europe, it’ll be at festivals, it could be anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half. When we’re doing headlining shows over in Europe, it could be anywhere from two hours plus. So, yeah, I have to make sure that I drink plenty of water. I do vitamins. I eat a lot of vegetables and fruit. I’m always eating high-protein foods. I’m, like I said, exercising. I’m keeping the voice. I’m not drinking, or I don’t smoke. I warm up properly and I cool down properly. So, all these things lend themselves to you trying to keep yourself in optimum condition. I mean, you’re still going to get sick. You’re still going to be tired at times. There’re times that I’m going on stage and I’m tired. So, vocally, I won’t be able to do everything at 100%, but maybe I can get to 90% and still put on a great show. But that’s just me. I’m a human being and every singer has to deal with that in a live environment, especially when you’re doing as many shows as we’re doing every week. We’re doing on average when we’re on our own headlining tour, five, six shows a week. That’s a lot. That takes a lot. So, you just have to do everything you can to ensure that you’re going to be at your optimum condition. And, yes, we all feel great. We’re all performing very solid, very strong, and that’s the main goal.

MH18: What music do you listen to on the tour bus.
JL: I don’t, and I think a lot of the other guys are doing the same. I like to read so that’s that kind of keeps my sanity and then maybe watch a movie that has just come out or a show that I might get into, so stuff like that. I’m not saying that I don’t listen to music. I might listen to a band that I think is doing great, like Architects, I think you know them, and Tesseract – those guys are great. I might like to delve into a bit of that Devin Townsend listening to his latest album. He’s an amazing musician and artist. So, there are things that I listen to. I go back to listening to classic Led Zeppelin albums because Zeppelin is one of my favorites if not my favorite band as well as Queen, but it’s here and there that I’ll listen to music and do stuff like that. But when we’re out touring and it’s music, music, music, I like to kind of balance it by doing other things and just keeping it a little bit more diverse.

MH18: That was actually part of my next question, what would you like to do outside Dream Theater? Things like reading books, traveling, or other hobbies you have?
JL: During the winter my wife and I go skiing. I’ve been downhill skiing and Alpine skiing since I was five years old. So, we go skiing at a lot of ski resorts and ski the mountains and I love it. I find that very therapeutic. It keeps me tapped in it. I love the physical aspects of it and I love the scenery. So, I do that. We love to go boating, I love to go hiking. I like to go biking. So, I like to do a lot of outdoor things when I’m not in the Dream Theater land and that keeps me healthy. It keeps me not only healthy physically, but it keeps me healthy mentally and emotionally. And that’s important. It’s a way to just stay well-rounded and focused, and enjoy life for what it’s worth, embracing it.

MH18: What is the last book you read which you would recommend.
JL: Well, I read a series called, it’s the Holly series by Stephen King. So there are seven books. And I read that. I finished that. Right now, I’m reading a book, I was just trying to remember the title. How to Stop Time by Matt Haig. And it’s very interesting. He’s a phenomenal author. His name is Matt Haig, H-A-I-G, I believe. And this book it’s got a very cool concept to it. How to Stop Time. And so that’s what I’m reading right now currently.

MH18: Regarding the upcoming concerts in Plovdiv, I believe you haven’t been there before?
JL: No, I don’t believe so.

MH18: The Ancient Theater is a very interesting place, and it might be a great scenery for your performance. There are ruins, it is an amphitheater and it’s a ‘beautiful place.
JL: Oh, really, nice, so is it in a rural area like or like on the coastline?

MH18: It’s a continental part of Bulgaria. It’s actually in the middle of Bulgaria. It’s between the mountains, but it’s in a plain. It’s an ancient place.
JL: We had two dates almost sold out. So, I know that’s crazy.

MH18: It is. So, what do you think about Bulgarian fans? Did you actually think that you could sale out two dates here?
JL: Well, you know, even the first time we went to Bulgaria it was amazing, it was incredible. We were overwhelmed like oh my god look at all the people here. We’ve had a great relationship with our fans in Bulgaria, and I think it’s it’s really something that we always look forward to because we know that they’re going to be there they’re enthusiastic, they’re screaming out the songs, singing along. It’s an amazing feeling, it’s almost indescribable because you’re up there, you’re doing your thing, but you’re looking out to thousands and thousands of people that are there for the right reasons, celebrating the music and just having a great time. And if we’ve not had to mention it, your country is beautiful, it’s gorgeous, it’s so green everywhere you look green and beautiful like mountains and some of the times we’ve been going around there you’ll see snow-capped mountains depending on the time. We’ve always, always had an amazing relationship with our Bulgarian fans and we’ll continue to do so

MH18: Thank you. So, do you have any surprises for us?
JL: We have an amazing show, but no, I don’t think we have any surprises, but I think the show will definitely be memorable, unforgettable for sure and we’re bringing ourselves and it’s going to be a lot of fun for sure.

MH18: In the last part of the interview, can you, please, say a few words for our Metal Hangar 18 fans?
JL: Hey, everyone. This is James Labrie from Dream Theater, and you are now listening with Metal Hangar 18. We are looking forward to the show. Shows. There’s a couple of shows. So, we’ll see you this summer. Don’t miss out. We’re looking forward to it, and it’s going to be an incredible night. See you then.

MH18: Thank you very much for everything. It was really nice to meet you.
JL: Okay, thank you.