Dream Theater has begun work on a new album, drummer Mike Portnoy said in comments shared via The 500 with Josh Adam Meyers. The band has just wrapped up an extensive tour for their latest record, Parasomnia.
Portnoy was asked about his feelings on the new record and the tour schedule that had kept Dream Theater on the road for over a year. The drummer explained that the band had been touring almost non-stop during that time.
Question: “How are you feeling about the new record, Parasomnia? Like I mean that’s so exciting and I mean I saw the tour you guys have been on. You guys feel like you guys are touring almost non-stop sometimes, right?”
“We just finished a year and a half. Yeah, it was crazy,” Portnoy said. “Went around the world a few times. It was really insane.”
“But all good, all great. And just literally starting work on the new album today. Today was the first day in the studio.”
The remarks came during an interview shortly after Dream Theater concluded their extensive world tour supporting Parasomnia. The new album will be the band’s seventeenth record.
Parasomnia marked the return of Portnoy to Dream Theater after 13 years away. The album was released on February 7, 2025, and reunited the classic lineup of vocalist James LaBrie, guitarist John Petrucci, bassist John Myung, keyboardist Jordan Rudess, and Portnoy on drums for the first time since 2009’s Black Clouds & Silver Linings. Over his 25-year tenure with the band before his initial departure, Portnoy played on some of Dream Theater’s most iconic albums, including Images and Words and Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory.
The 40th Anniversary Tour began on October 20, 2024 at the O2 Arena in London, England, marking the first time in 14 years that the prog-metal legends toured with Portnoy. The tour initially ran from October 20, 2024 through July 29, 2025, with additional dates across Asia and Australia scheduled from January 27, 2026 to March 3, 2026. Portnoy’s comments suggest that work on the new material has started even as some tour dates remain on the schedule.
The band’s focus on new music comes after an intensive touring cycle that Portnoy described as non-stop travel around the world. With the tour supporting Parasomnia now largely complete, Dream Theater is ready to channel that energy into the creative process for their next record.
