Review DREAM THEATER “Parasomnia”

It was in October 2023 when Dream Theater announced that drummer Mike Portnoy would be returning to the iconic progressive metal band. It was a big moment for fans of the band, as the three guys from Berklee College who founded the band were back together. John Petrucci, John Myung and Mike Portnoy are the trio that formed Dream Theater in 1985, and news of the drummer’s reunion with Dream Theater spread quickly.

With “Parasomnia” the first album of this new/old partnership hits the shelves these days and of course vocalist James LaBrie and keyboardist Jordan Rudess complete the line-up.

The professors of progressive metal recorded eight songs, of which the lead single “Night Terror” already shows the greatness we can expect from this release. Filigree solo parts, excellent keyboard passages and a rhythm section that adds much more to the song than just the heartbeat contribute to the versatility of “Night Terror” as well as every other track on “Parasomnia”. It was the first song the band wrote together for the new album and it is a great ambassador for the new album, as you can feel the excitement the band had when working on the song.

The second track unveiled before the release date is “A Broken Man”. The song starts with Portonoy’s hard drum playing and a Petrucci riff before turning into a typical Dream Theater song with a dark and cinematic vibe.

The album starts with a song called “In the Arms of Morpheus” and it is the first brave moment on the album as we listen to a five minute instrumental. This is rather untypical, but fits perfectly with Dream Theater’s musical approach. The band uses the song as an introduction to the main themes of the album and sets the stage for the dark embrace of “Parasomnia”, which by the way is a sleep disorder that involves abnormal movements and behaviors.

“Parasomnia” isn’t really a concept album, but the eight songs are connected both lyrically and musically. This includes “Dead Asleep,” which is dark and based on a true story. It’s about a sleepwalker who mistakenly kills his wife while in his dream he’s being attacked by robbers. Dream Theater not only tells the story perfectly from a lyrical perspective, but also create a mood that allows the listener to dive deep into the story.

Each of these songs on the album is like a chapter in a book. With each track you get deeper into the overarching theme of the album. The heavily pounding “Midnight Messiah” has a hypnotic effect. It’s like being caught in a spider web of dreams, and it’s the chorus that marks a shining moment of this dark prog metal anthem. Pace changes and keyboards are the great contributors to the chorus, giving the song a completely different twist and leading to pure excitement.

“Are We Dreaming” is an interlude that sets the stage for “Bend the Clock”. The latter begins with a soft keyboard passage and LaBrie’s balladic vocals, both of which remain key elements throughout the song. “Bend the Clock” is moderately paced and not the heaviest track on the album. It is a rather uplifting song from a musical perspective, and it is the contrast to the bittersweet lyrics that question whether life would be better without the traumatic nightmares.

A work of art is what the band puts on the last spot of the track listing. “The Shadow Man Incident” is an epic conclusion to the album, and it was planned that way. Dream Theater use all of their songwriting skills, endless creativity and musical talent in this 20-minute finale. Although the song is that long by design, the band still used enough freedom and space for improvisation. There is a jamming factor included, just thinking about the stunning keyboard part in the middle of the song, and what “The Shadow Man Incident” shows is the extra class of this five piece band from NYC.

Dream Theater in 2025, that is a class of its own. The progressive metal powerhouse shows once again why they are the North Star of progressive metal and when it comes to “Parasomnia” I would go as far as to say that it is one of the top 5 albums the band has ever released as it combines the unleashed energy of the early release with the accumulated skills of everyone . It is one of the most complete releases the guys have added to an already impressive discography.