Interview: John Petrucci

This interview was literally done after John walked off stage during his Sydney G3 concert. As we started to talk Steve Vai and his band went on stage and ripped into their set – so I had to turn up the volume a tad! A big thank you to John for making the time to see me.

Jon Van Daal: How does it feel to be on tour in Australia (finally)?

John Petrucci: Yeah it feels nice it’s very nice. It’s always interesting playing a place you’ve never played before. You don’t know what to expect, you don’t know how the audience is are they more reserved or conservative. Are there a lot of fans here or is it something that you are breaking into.

JVD: There seemed to be a lot of hands waving out there.

JP: Yeah it looked good – the reception was really good.

JVD: What’s the reception been like/how did the Brisbane show go from your perspective?

JP: From my perspective it was great. That was the first show of the Australian tour – it couldn’t have gone better. I thought it was really smooth and the audience seemed like they were enjoying it. At the end they all stood up. We’d just come from South America where they are loud and energetic. (JVD: Queensland has a very relaxed lifestyle a “she’ll be right” attitude.) No it was good though.

JVD: On the subject of South American shows – did you miss Steve Vai?

JP: Yeah – I love touring with Steve, he is a great person, I love hearing him play – watching him play – but on the other hand it was also great to finally meet Eric Johnson. To watch him play and play with him and have really cool jams – it was something different. We did more bluesy stuff, so that was a great experience.

JVD: How did it feel to be number two on the bill?

JP: That was nice too, you know because on G3 each guy has the same length, so it’s not like you have a shorter or longer set. While it was good being in the middle going first has its advantages too. So after you sound check everything stays that way so you don’t have to worry.

JVD: How much input did you have into the jam choices?

JP: Most of the songs they use in the jams have been there for a long time now. Every time we start a new tour Joe will ask has anyone got any ideas for the jam. He likes Hendrix a lot so they gravitate to that. It’s more like a classic jam – rock and roll songs.

JVD: On the subject of classic rock I purchased a Robin Trower DVD the other day. When I was young there really only was Hendrix and him and while I really liked hearing all those old classic albums again his new material still sounded like the old songs. OK he is sixty years old but with Dream Theater each album changes – so you go to the dark, heavy side with “Train of Thought” and you go to the really progressive side with “Six Degrees” – over the course of 20 years you have varied your albums amazingly.

JP: Yeah, we take that approach with our music. One of my favourite bands is Rush and when I think about them and their career over thirty years now – their albums are very different from one to the next and I like that. There are bands that stay with a certain style so you know what to expect but with Dream Theater we like to change. Not to the point that we are a polka band or something – it always sounds like us.

We try and come up with a new and creative approach so each album has an identity and when you put them all together you have the whole story. That’s important to us.

JVD: When you look at the entire story of G3 there have only been about 10 players all up but when I researched G3 on Joe’s site it says that he was particularly blown out that you wrote an entire set for your first tour with them. Obviously that then became the basis for your solo album – what influences did you draw for that album?

JP: What were the influences? Well the influences really didn’t change, as a guitar player they didn’t change but I think you can hear my style that developed with Dream Theater in the songs. When you hear songs on “Suspended Animation”, like “Glasgow Kiss” and “Jaws of Life” that’s got Dream Theater riffs. The difference is though that it is all instrumental – there are no vocals and no keyboards – it’s all guitar carrying everything. So I like albums of that sort, say Steve Morse.

JVD: Any future G3 plans beyond Australia at the moment (When is G3 coming to the UK)?

JP: Right now there are no plans to go to the UK but it is something that is always evolving and continuing.

JVD: Are there any potential plans for a G3 Down Under DVD?

JP: Well I would say no. So on this tour there is no shooting schedule so no plans for a DVD.

JVD: What about the recent South American tour?

JP: No – Japan was the last one. No, we would know well in advance.

JVD: You recently suffered an injury – what happened?

JP: Which one? (laughs)

JVD: Did it affect your preparation for G3 or delay some of the work in the studio on the new DT album?

JP : I did something to my wrist. It wasn’t that big of a deal – I was working out and hurt my left wrist but it healed. It was sore for some time but its better now. It wasn’t hard for this but in the studio, right when we were writing, it was hard to hold it like this (shows his wrist bent into a writing position) – it hurt but I put a brace on it and stopped exercising for a while.

JVD: Actually I asked Mike what he thought about taking a break from the studio to take the time go to South America and come here and he thought he would get some fresh ideas and help with the writing process. Do you feel the same?

JP: Yeah, yeah. I think so far it has been very smooth. Taking into account that we have taken a break twice already, it’s been very productive and I think that the music that we are writing is great – I am really happy with it, sounds real good. I think the only thing that it is doing is prolonging the process.

JVD: You obviously have the time though with a new record deal coming together.

JP: Right – it’s not like we are in a rush.

JVD: Has the current G3 outing inspired you to write any more instrumental so lo music?

JP: I am quite inspired to write some more solo music but right now we are concentrating on the new Dream Theater record, but yeah, I am ready to write some more good music, absolutely.

JVD: What are your feelings about the new DT album and how is it going?

JP: Well my feelings are that I think it is coming out really great. I am very excited about it and as I said we are going really well. When we all get together we are very productive and ideas float really easily. We have Paul Northfield engineering this with us for the first time and he has been working really great. We are recording it in New York City and I am really excited about it. I think people will like it.

JVD: I think you did that with Tony (Levin) on Liquid Tension Experiment didn’t you?

JP: Yeah, Liquid Tension Experiment inspired that process because after that we did the same thing for “Scenes from a Memory” and “Six Degrees” and “Octavarium”. ‘‘Train of Thought” was the only one in recent time that we wrote ahead of time in rehearsal and then recorded.

JVD: Is there anything that you have been listening to lately that has given you new ideas or made you think of new approaches that might influence work on the new album (for example, Muse influenced guitar work on Octavarium in places)?

JP: Not really! (laughs)

JVD: Obviously with Mike he draws influences from Opeth to Muse to whatever:

JP: Yeah. You mentioned Muse, I got turned on to them a couple of years ago. If anything it was a style that was refreshing to me. Actually Mike a long time ago turned me on to a lot of different stuff – he would make me tapes to listen to.

JVD: Guitar work on the new album – anything too new to share?

JP: Anything interesting – well we’ve recorded some stuff but it is still in the building process. As far as guitars are concerned, I have a new model of my guitar that I have that I am excited about – it is an improvement it sounds good, sounds different. (The new variation on the Music Man signature model – Ed).

JVD: It has been noted on the photos recently posted on your website that the Mesa Boogie Rectifiers/Road Kings were conspicuously absent. Are you using them or are you back to experimenting with old favourites like the Mark IIC+?

JP: Actually I haven’t used the Road King or the Rectifier on this album. I don’t think I am going to. I fell in love with the Mark IV actually – so far on this album I have been using the Mark IIC+ and the Mark IV. Live here on G3 tonight I was playing the Mark IV – it sounds really sweet, a great amp.

JVD: What about your pedals, has there been any experimentation there?

JP: Yeah. Recently I started a relationship with Robert Keeley. He makes his own pedals but he is famous for modifying lots of pedals. He started to send me different things and that’s fun. In the past that was something that I really wasn’t into but over the past two years I really started to get into.

JVD: In closing, is there anything that you want to say that we might not have covered here?

JP: A couple of things. I am really excited to finally come to Australia. We’ve talked about it, heard about it forever and it’s fun. It’s a new and different experience for me. I am happy to come down here with G3 and I am glad that Joe asked me to do it. I am just having a really good time.

And I am also excited about the new album. It should be out in the spring hopefully and we have a new record deal that we are about to sign so it’s kind of like the next chapter.