The Story Behind Dream Theater Images And Words

Virtuoso musicians who wove metal with prog when everyone else was going grunge, Dream Theater may just be one of metal’s most unlikely success stories. Dave Ling unravels their magnum opus.

The story so far... Back in 1992, the words ‘progressive’ and ‘metal’ were rarely used together, and the idea of attaining mainstream success by cross-pollinating the two genres would have been laughed out of town. In America, Fates Warning had been among the first to bring a metallic attack to the avant garde experimentation of such 70s bands as Yes, Pink Floyd and King Crimson. But signed to a small independent label they had little chance of breaking out of the underground with albums like Night on Bröcken and The Spectre Within (1984 and 1985 respectively). Equally appreciative of Iron Maiden and Metallica, Seattle’s Queensrÿche had a major label deal and three years later set new standards of excellence with Operation: Mindcrime, a Grammy-nominated concept album that’s gone on to sell a cool three million copies.

But there was a band that introduced new levels of musicianship, combining them with grander, uncompromising visions and even heavier slabs of metal. Like Fates Warning, Dream Theater hailed from America’s East Coast, though later hired a Canadian vocalist. In a matter of years they would go on to eclipse Queensrÿche’s status as the world’s leading progressive metal band. And the former champions don’t like it at all. “We’re very different animals,” ‘Rÿche singer Geoff Tate responded testily to my suggestion that the apprentices had overtaken their masters earlier this year. “We’re about writing songs and Dream Theater are about playing a lot of notes. What I believe that music is about is anathema to them.”

“That’s because they can’t play as many notes as us,” responds drummer Mike Portnoy in a forthcoming Dream Theater book, Lifting Shadows. “And it’s ironic to hear that from Geoff, who hasn’t written a good song in 10 years.” You’d have got extremely long odds on such a role reversal when Dream Theater began piecing together their magnum opus, Images And Words. The Seattle explosion was on the horizon and aside from Iron Maiden, Metallica and Guns N’ Roses, the biggest bands of 1992 were Bon Jovi, Def Leppard and Extreme.

Following the commercial failure of their 1989 debut, When Dream And Day Unite, and after firing Charlie Dominici, Dream Theater existed penniless and without a singer in the rehearsal room for almost two years. A chink of daylight arrived when Atlantic Records offshoot Atco began to express an interest, but having auditioned 200 replacements to find Kevin LaBrie (who switched to his middle name of James to avoid confusion with keyboard player Kevin Moore), they were gutted to learn that Atco wanted them to hire a different frontman. Looking back now, it’s almost a miracle that Images And Words was even made.

“It was a trying time,” agrees Mike. “And for a while we thought our first taste of the music industry might’ve been our one and only shot. But we stuck to it because we’d written the songs that ended up on that album, most of which went on to become classics to our fans in later years.”

Incredibly, there was worse to come. When Atco did agree to sign Dream Theater – and begrudgingly allow La Brie to stay – they insisted the band should make their major label debut with David Prater, an eccentric individual who’d produced soft-rock bands like Firehouse and Diving For Pearls. As a former musician, ex-Santana drummer Prater was able to talk to Dream Theater – whose ranks included several students of the Berklee School Of Music – in a language they understood, though things often became competitive. Prater was also a complete lunatic, mixing the song that became Dream Theater’s biggest hit completely naked and with the studio lights turned off!

Alongside the band’s virtuoso levels of musicianship, and the seriousness of the songs they’d written, such clownish behaviour was misplaced. ‘Pull Me Under’, the album’s riff-tastic opening cut, had been inspired by Shakespeare’s Hamlet; while ‘Metropolis – Part 1 (The Miracle And The Sleeper)’ was based on Romulus, founder of the city of Rome. ‘Learning To Live’ had an AIDS-related theme, and with its lyrics of “tough breaks” and “fighting the weight of the world”, ‘Take The Time’ voiced the frustration that had welled up until that point. But even higher levels of schism awaited Dream Theater at Bear Tracks Studio in New York.

“Making Images And Words with David Prater was a complete fucking nightmare,” Mike sums up. “Dealing with this asshole was torturous. We were incredibly thrilled to finally have a singer and record deal and be back in the studio again, but little did we know that another rollercoaster ride was ahead of us.”

Mike and Prater butted heads right from the off, the band accusing him of diluting their complexity with his “pop-metal mentality”. Almost 15 years later, Portnoy is able to momentarily put aside the feuding, step back and reluctantly acknowledge the producer’s role.

“We were writing music that sounded like Metallica jamming with Yes or Rush, so somebody had to provide that push towards the mainstream or it might’ve disappeared into oblivion,” he admits. “As much as David Prater is one of my least favourite human beings on the planet, I have to give him credit for that.”

Another huge bone of contention now viewed with hindsight was Atco Records’ unswayable vetoing of what Dream Theater felt was their strongest song, the epic prog-opera ‘A Change Of Seasons.’ The 22-minute, seven-part masterpiece meant more to Portnoy than anyone else as its lyrics were inspired by the grief of his mother’s death.

“We got the phone call about that song being canned on our very first day in the studio and it was a hard pill to swallow,” Mike sighs at the memory. “It was a sour way to start the session. But once again, maybe it turned out to be the right decision because had it been included it would’ve made the album 70 minutes long, and although it’s now commonplace, few bands did that back in 1992. It might’ve been a little too much for people to digest.”

Yet as the recording continued, behind the band’s backs and with the silent approval of their manager at the time, Atco made a doomed attempt to bring a new singer called Robert Mason into the band.

“Their idea of replacing James was something we only found out years later,” Mike laments. “The management, the label – everyone was trying to dip their hands into the pie. That’s the kind of conniving shit that breaks bands up, and it’s something that would never, ever happen to us now.”

As the rift between group and producer and label deepened, Prater outdid himself by accusing Kevin Moore of playing the keyboard parts wrongly with the intention of making him look stupid and musically naive. These ridiculous claims and Prater’s insistence upon wiping the tapes and recording all of Moore’s parts again very nearly led to a punch-up.

“You have to understand that anything David Prater says has to be taken with a pinch of salt,” shrugs the drummer. “His memory is unreliable and he’s been known to twist things to make himself look good. He’s an impossible individual.”

Impossible or not, the Images And Words album was finally completed , hitting the racks in the summer of 1992. Timing-wise, the band couldn’t have picked a worse moment to unveil an album full of flamboyant musicianship, intelligent arrangements and soaring, triumphant vocal melodies.

Setting a trend that continues to this day, reviewers in Britain either loved the album or loathed it. One critic claimed to “appreciate the expertise but deplore the end result”, with another predicting it would “do for progressive rock what Nirvana have done for smelly cardigans.”

Helping to re-popularise prog is something that Portnoy is especially proud of. “It had become a dirty word,” he volunteers. “Before Images And Words, prog-metal or whatever you want to call it had reached a breaking point. Bands like Metallica, Queensrÿche and Maiden had alluded to progressive rock influences, but never fully tapped into them. Others like Fates Warning and Watchtower had done so but couldn’t quite make the breakthrough. We were the first band to truly marry metal and prog and take it to the mainstream. We really blew the doors off, and nobody’s looked back since.”

But then as now, Dream Theater were mauled by the press for allowing each instrumentalist an extended solo spot onstage, and showing off their hard-earned musical chops wherever possible.

“We’re often accused of being indulgent,” Mike says breezily. “But we’re about solos and epic songs – all the things that the critics hate about us are what makes our fans love us.” Guitarist John Petrucci laughs in agreement: “It’s almost like we’re so preposterously uncool that somehow we became cool.”

Two strokes of incredible fortune made this possible. Firstly, radio picked up on the eight-minute track ‘Pull Me Under’, and then Iron Maiden offered of some support shows on the Fear Of The Dark tour.

“We didn’t write ‘Pull Me Under’ as a single and never in a million years did we think it would make an impression like that, which is maybe why it succeeded,” chuckles Mike. “Opening for Maiden was a dream come true, they were one of our biggest influences and it was really exciting. Back then we signed our fair share of girls’ tits, but it was their boyfriends that really paid attention to us,” he tells of Dream Theater’s initial brush with fame. “And after shaking off a very short spell of MTV attention, our audience again became made up of computer nerds, musicians and prog fans. But they’ve stayed with us for the long haul.”

Soon ‘Images And Words’ had sold half a million copies – almost unthinkable back then given its complexity and heaviness – setting up a blossoming career that’s lasted for two decades. These days the band produce themselves and, knowing the sales figures involved, are left well alone by their label to do pretty much whatever the fuck they choose. Now onto their eighth full-length studio release- the cleverly titled Octavarium – and able to sell out multiple nights at London’s Hammersmith Apollo, Dream Theater have achieved their unlikely goal of becoming a mainstream hard rock act. Images And Words was not only the starting point for most of the band’s fans, but remains their biggest seller and most popular work so far.

“The album’s songs are timeless, but of course I have issues with the production,” Mike concludes through gritted teeth. “Overall though, Images And Words was important for us and many others. Bands ranging from Opeth to Avenged Sevenfold have cited it as being an influence on them, opening the floodgates for Mastodon, Porcupine Tree, Tool and The Mars Volta. It was really the start of something big.”

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What Happened Next

Against all the odds given the friction making Images And Words, producer David Prater was re-booked three years later to record the song ‘A Change Of Seasons.’ In 1997, the label forced Dream Theater to collaborate with Bon Jovi and Aerosmith hitmaker Desmond Child on their Falling Into Infinity album which almost tore them apart. Something had to change.

Problems with alcohol almost forced him to leave the troubled band, but drummer Mike Portnoy dried out as “clean-the-slate” crisis talks with the record company finally handed Dream Theater full creative control. Portnoy and John Petrucci began overseeing almost everything the band did, with no compromise.

With albums like Metropolis Pt 2: Scenes From A Memory (1999), Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence (2002), the super-heavy Train Of Thought (2003) and the recent Octavarium (2005), the quintet have consistently challenged their ever-growing audience. They’ve also covered Metallica’s Master Of Puppets album, Pink Floyd’s Dark Side Of The Moon and The Number Of The Beast by Iron Maiden – in their entirety!

Earlier this year, Dream Theater celebrated their 20th anniversary with a gig at New York’s Radio City Music Hall, documented on a live DVD and album called ‘Score: The show was so emotional, Portnoy was moved to tears.

“Radio City Music Hall is a venue that’s reserved for the elite – metal bands rarely play there,” he explains. “I’ve only ever seen Maiden, Kiss and The Who there, so it was a very special experience. Having an orchestra onstage with us, too, there were many spine-tingling moments.”

Dream Theater are currently working on a new studio album and plan on returning to Europe for more live dates next summer.

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Somewhere In Time: Where Dream Theater Stand In The Chain Of Inspiration

Rush – 2112 [Mercury, 1976]

It’s the year 2112 and music is strictly forbidden until an anonymous citizen discovers a guitar and teaches himself how to play it. Having banned all forms of art years earlier, the priests that rule the Earth are pissed off. This album by Canadian trio Rush is simply a must-own.

Fates Warning – Awaken The Guardian [Metal Blade, 1986]

Re-released as a three-CD 20th anniversary set with sleeve notes from Mike Portnoy, Awaken The Guardian emerged the same year Dream Theater precursors Majesty began making demos and playing live.

Queensrÿche – Operation: Mindcrime [EMI Manhattan, 1988]

Seattle quintet Queensrÿche’s third album was a complex fictional tale that involved brainwashing and the murder of a nun as metaphor to challenge perceived corruption of the United States. Fortunately, if the concept sounded coma inducing then the songs were quite magnificent.

Dream Theater – Images And Words [Atco, 1992]

After a false start with singer Charlie Dominici on When Dream And Day Unite. Dream Theater finally brought their blueprint to life. The songs on Images And Words are thoughtfully arranged and beautifully executed. Newcomer James LaBrie’s operatically-influenced vocals hold their own among drop-dead levels of musicianship.

Transatlantic – SMPTe [Inside Out, 2000]

SMPTe was the stunning debut album from a supergroup uniting Mike Portnoy with members of Marillion, Spock’s Beard and the Flower Kings. Among the genre’s most overblown albums of all time, its almost 80 minutes of playing time boasted just five tracks, including the half-hour ‘All Of The Above.’

Porcupine Tree – In Absentia [Lava, 2002]

Probably better known to Hammer readers as the producer of Opeth, Porcupine Tree leader Steven Wilson is among the most prolific and creative artists in modern progressive metal. In Absentia was the first Porcupine Tree to introduce more extreme rock sounds, and is probably their strongest work.

Iron Maiden – A Matter Of Life And Death [EMI, 2006]

Maiden surprised everyone with the heaviness, intensity and versatility of their 14th studio album. With several songs going over nine minutes, this is their most prog-orientated work since Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son almost 20 years earlier.