John Petrucci interview

Mateus Ribeiro: Dream Theater is coming to Brazil in May with the Parasomnia tour, where the album is performed in full. What is the biggest challenge of presenting an entire album live?

John Petrucci: I think the biggest challenge is presenting the album the way that we envisioned it, because I think it’s a very unique record. It has some really dark and creepy, surreal themes to it. So we wanted to make it so that when somebody who came to the concert, when they walked into the venue, they were sort of transported to the world of Parasomnia. So we worked really hard with different props and different video elements and with our stage show to really make that happen. That took a lot of advanced work and design and rehearsal. We got it to the point where I think it really does justice to the album. And I think that people that come and see it really enjoy it.

MR: The songs on Parasomnia deal with themes related to sleep. How did this idea come about?

JP: I love the word parasomnia. The name of our band is Dream Theater, so it’s the perfect title. I was talking to my son one day a few years ago, and he brought up that word. I was like, “That’s a great word”. We started talking about what it means. I thought the idea of writing an entire album about sleep disturbances, night terrors, and sleep paralysis and sleepwalking, I think, would make for a very interesting Dream Theater record, so I’m really happy with the way it came out.

Gustavo Maiato: Talking about these sleep themes, the song ‘Dead Asleep’ talks about a famous case involving a sleepwalker who murdered his wife. How did you come upon this particular theme, and what was the composition process for this particular track?

JP: Well, we always write the music first, so the main theme of the record is what starts that track. So I really wanted to come up with a chordal movement that was very dreamy and dark and creepy. So I worked really hard on the chordal beginning of that song. And then Jordan came up with the theme on top of it, and that became like this great marriage of this, again, this creepy, dark, surreal vibe, and the album went in that direction. That particular song, for me as a guitar player, I wanted to try a tuning – a drop B-flat tuning – that I got turned on to when I did some jamming with Zakk Wylde. Zakk came to my guitar camp and played at my guitar camp, and we jammed, and he’s very much into that tuning, so I wanted to try it for a song. So that’s how that happened. And then, when I was doing research on parasomnia events, I came across that story. In fact, several stories of a sleepwalking defense where somebody killed somebody in their sleep and they went to trial and they actually got acquitted based on the fact that they were sleepwalking. They didn’t know what they were doing, which is crazy. I can’t believe that’s a true story. It’s nuts.

MR: Talking about Dream Theater shows in general, is there any song that has never been played live that you would like to include in the setlist?

JP: Well, actually, recently, when we played in New York City at Radio City Music Hall, for the first time, we played the song ‘The Best Of Times,’ which is a song that we’d never played before live. It was a very special moment we did there at Radio City Music Hall. We only did one performance of it, but it was really cool. It was a very emotional performance of it.

GM: You have written many lyrics for Dream Theater, both for concept albums and non-concept albums. Which album did you enjoy writing lyrics for the most? And is there any specific song that is your favorite in terms of lyrics?

JP: I think the biggest lyric project for me was The Astonishing album because, with that album, I had written the story first, and the story had many characters and a developed plot and everything. So when I was writing the lyrics for that album, I had to write basically over two hours’ worth of storytelling. It was like writing a screenplay, basically. In fact, for fans who bought that album, the deluxe set actually came with a screenplay of all of my lyrics and the characters and everything. So that was definitely the most challenging, but also the most rewarding and fun to do for me.

MR: Dream Theater has many ballads, such as ‘Another Day,’ ‘Hollow Years,’ and most recently, ‘Bend The Clock.’ Which one is your favorite?

JP: I don’t know if it’s just because we’ve been playing it – it’s new – but ‘Bend The Clock’ is actually a lot of fun for me to play. I really enjoy it. In Parasomnia, it’s the one song that’s very different from all the other ones. I think when you see it live, when that moment happens, it’s a moment for the audience to relax and breathe. Of course, as a guitar player, I love the ending. It has this really long guitar solo that I get to do, which is a lot of fun to play live as well.

MR: It’s a great song. Dream Theater’s first shows in Brazil took place a long time ago, almost 30 years ago. What memories do you have of those performances?

JP: I remember it was a lot different when we went, because not a lot of bands were playing in South America in general. Not a lot of US bands were playing concerts [there]. I remember the audiences being really incredible. I remember going to Rio and Sao Paulo for the first time and being like, “Oh my God, this is insane! The audiences are amazing.” As an American band, we felt very welcomed. We really did. We felt very loved by our fans. I think it established a great relationship because we’ve been coming back ever since and playing great, great shows there, and it’s been a really long, great relationship with our fans.

GM: Recently, on your Instagram, you did an unboxing of a Killers-era Iron Maiden-themed Cry Baby pedal. What’s your overall opinion on Iron Maiden’s guitars, and is there any song in which you believe they did their best guitar work?

JP: I’m a huge Iron Maiden fan. When John Myung and I were teenagers, when we met, we bonded over Maiden. Every time Maiden came to New York, we’d go see the shows. We learned every song on Killers, Number Of The Beast, Piece Of Mind. We’re hardcore fans. One of my favorite Maiden albums is Piece Of Mind. We played all those songs when we were teenagers. We literally played every single Maiden song. It was crazy. That wah pedal, that’s cool. It’s a very cool pedal.

GM: Talking about records that somehow you enjoy when you listen to, can you name five records that had the greatest impact on your life and why?

JP: I think about the biggest influences for me: Rush, definitely, my favorite band of all time. It’s hard to pick a favorite, but Hemispheres is probably one of those records that really, really had a big influence. I did mention Maiden, and Piece Of Mind was another big one for me. Metallica, Master Of Puppets, that was a big one for me. As a guitar player, when I first heard Steve Morse and the Dregs play, there’s an album called Night Of The Living Dregs by the Dixie Dregs, which had a major, major influence. I think similarly, as a guitar player, when I first heard the album Casino by Al Di Meola, definitely had a huge influence, as well as Yngwie’s Rising Force first album. There’s so many. Ozzy, Blizzard Of Ozz, hearing Randy Rhoads for the first time. So many of them.

MR: Which Dream Theater song has your favorite guitar solo?

JP: Again, lately, ‘Bend The Clock’ has been a lot of fun. That’s one of my favorite ones. I know it’s new, but it’s fun. Also ‘The Spirit Carries On’, that’s another one that’s very enjoyable to play. Very similar, I like the guitar solos where there’s sort of this kind of free, melodic, ballad-y kind of thing. It’s a really good opportunity to stretch out as a guitar player.

GM: Dream Theater has many, many records in your catalog. Can you name one that you think has got less recognition than it should, maybe people didn’t talk about?

JP: It’s probably the obvious ones. You know, when fans talk about Dream Theater records, it’s usually certain ones that they really enjoy, like Images And Words and Scenes From A Memory and stuff like that. And there’s a couple of records that maybe were more divisive. But Systematic Chaos is one that’s really enjoyable for me. There’s something about that record that I think is really special, the whole sound of it and everything.

MR: You worked with hitmaker Desmond Child on ‘You Not Me’. What memories do you have of that song?

JP: Well, I remember that we wrote the song. This was the first and the only time this ever happened, but the label had this idea where they wanted to try to have more of a commercial song from us and suggested that we work with him. It was something new; it was something that we never did before. I do remember flying out to his place and getting together and working. It was a lot of fun going to his studio. But again, it’s not something that we continued to do. It was the only time that we did that. Again, it was a fun experience meeting him and working on the song together and developing it. It was just something different.

GM: Dream Theater has many decades of history, and the band’s lineup has changed very little over the years, something that also happened, for example, with Metallica. What do you attribute the solidity in the band’s lineup to?

JP: I think part of it is we’re all friends. We met when we were pretty young, and we developed something together that we really value, that we’re very proud of. And we were able to develop a career in music, which is not easy to do. It’s something that I think keeps us humble. And we have fans all over the world who enjoy our music. We’re able to play in so many different countries for the past 40 years. It’s something that I think we all value very much. We don’t take it lightly. We don’t take it for granted. We value our fans, we value each other, and we love making music. It’s been really great. It’s been an incredible career.

GM: Do you have any particular opinion or thoughts about Brazilian music, maybe any guitarist that caught your attention in the last few years?

JP: I do a guitar camp that’s called John Petrucci’s Guitar Universe, and two camps ago, I had Kiko Loureiro and Mateus Asato as my guest instructors, and they were both incredible. They were both amazing musicians, incredible guitar players. I remember when we would jam together and some of the stuff that Kiko was doing, bringing in the Brazilian flavors and rhythms and stuff, was just mind-blowing. I didn’t realize he was so versed in all that stuff. He’s really on top of it. And then Mateus, just his approach to the guitar is just so brilliant and beautiful. So that was a great exposure to two tremendous Brazilian guitar players. And then we also had Lari Basilio at the previous camp that I did, and she was wonderful as well. So lots of talent coming from your country in the world of guitar.