James LaBrie interview (excerpt)

Dream Theater singer James LaBrie, who recently said that it was “great” to be back on good terms with the band’s original drummer Mike Portnoy, discussed his relationship with his former bandmate in a new interview with Ibagenscast. He said (as transcribed by blabbermouth.net): “There comes a point in everyone’s lives that you have to really consider what it is that you’re… that monkey on your back, and you have to come to terms with it, you have to confront it, and you have to transcend negativity. So if you’re carrying around something that just eats away at you, what good is it? And I think for Mike and I to come to terms with all that garbage that went on for years and years, I think it just got to the point that, ‘Let’s put this behind us. Let’s move on to a more positive place and be the better for it.’ And I think that’s basically what it came down to.

“Mike and I, we stay in touch once in a while by texting, ‘Hey, what’s up?’ and all this stuff, and it’s cool. And the fact that he’s going out with John on his solo tour, they’re gonna have a lot of fun. Yeah, the fans are pretty excited about it.

“Life moves on. It took a while, and I think if you talk to a lot of people in life, you realize that there have been these contentious moments that it seems to linger for far too long. And fortunately, we were able to come to terms with it and move past it and move beyond it. So it’s all good.”

Portnoy attended Dream Theater’s concert on March 4 at Beacon Theatre in New York City. It was the first time he witnessed his former bandmates perform live since his exit from the iconic progressive metal outfit more than 11 years ago.

According to Dream Theater fans who attended the show, LaBrie gave Portnoy a shoutout from the stage and Mike waved. Several fans also took pictures of Portnoy at the venue, with Mike and his wife reportedly watching the performance from near the Beacon Theatre soundboard.

The next day, Portnoy shared a few backstage photos from the concert and he included the following message: “After 36 years, I finally got to see my 1st Dream Theater show last night! It was a wonderful evening and it was such a pleasure to spend time with my old friends again”.