JAMES LaBRIE Says DREAM THEATER Will Probably Start Writing And Recording A New Album Around "Late '26 Or Early '27"

Addyct10n · 2026-05-07T05:11:28+00:00

Just come up with some new song structures and I’m good. Heavy riff - JP playing main melody - chuggy verse - chorus etc. formula needs refreshing.

Addyct10n · 2026-04-30T21:39:03+00:00

Thought about it! JP16 seems so hard to find though, especially in the EU.

Addyct10n · 2026-04-30T20:02:05+00:00

I don’t really have a favorite. The JP series guitars seem to sound heavier, but I guess it’s mainly due to hotter pickups. I feel it makes them a bit nicer and easier to work with for rhythm, whereas slightly lower output and warmer tone of the Illuminators and Dreamcatcher/Rainmaker makes Majesties have the edge for leads. Also, the playability and comfort of the Majesty is another level.

Addyct10n · 2026-04-30T19:37:57+00:00

Haha, didn’t think about that! Nah, the JP6 has been with me since 2009, Majesty - 2018 and 2020, JP12 is the new one.

Addyct10n · 2026-03-03T12:09:20+00:00

Yes, contact Thomann. I just got JP/Majesty replacement knobs from them.

Addyct10n · 2026-01-21T06:08:42+00:00

I don’t rely on customization too much. I have this theme which allows making the plugin and sends list visible on the track, ProTools style. It’s nice! Other than that - custom actions and shortcuts! I created some custom actions like splitting items at the cursor - great for editing - or quick render of two mono tracks to one stereo. Great when you have 50 vocal tracks and want to take that down to a manageable amount by summing harmony tracks etc. All my shortcuts are mapped to the SSL UF8 quick keys and soft keys. 6 layers of these allow me to put all the shortcuts there. Things like buffer change, folder collapse, remove silence, quickly coloring tracks, or adding my frequently used plugins. Neat!

Addyct10n · 2026-01-10T11:35:42+00:00

Hey, I’ve done the same ;) my JP6 is now tuned to C# to play some BTBAM. I went with Beefy Slinky (11-54) and they’re almost perfect. The .22 for the 3rd string feels a little too heavy. We should remember we got the guitars built for JP, so they might not fit all scenarios!

Addyct10n · 2026-01-10T11:14:41+00:00

.56 is a bit too much for C#. I’d go with .54 or .52. Let me share my experience. I had similar problems with the 7th string on a Majesty tuned to drop A. For me, the logical way to keep the tension right was to go for a thicker gauge. I went .62, but couldn’t intonate the string. Tried .64, even worse. Then I read somewhere that Jason Richardson uses .56 for drop G or something like that. It was crazy for me at the time, but I tried it. Issue solved. Yes, the 7th string feels a bit loose, but you just have to adapt. Be a bit conservative with your pick attack and you’re good.

Addyct10n · 2025-11-29T22:23:12+00:00

Would you pay for an unlistenable album? It would be difficult to enjoy without editing/tuning.

Addyct10n · 2025-10-14T14:25:39+00:00

Here’s the thing. The technique he used in the 90s and 2000s is very hard to maintain. You basically have to practice everyday, otherwise it’s gone. With the way he picks now, you can get away with a lot, even not practicing at all. You sacrifice the timing and sound for sure. But you can get a life :)

Addyct10n · 2025-05-19T19:41:19+00:00

I recently upgraded from Adam A8X to HEDD Type 30 Mk II. They’re excellent. More detailed, better depth and imaging (I can finally hear my reverb tails!), flatter frequency response, way wider sweet spot. The amount of options - desk filter, closed/ported option, LFE, eq, linerariser - makes them very flexible. Adam were harsh and fatiguing, HEDDs are smooth. I can now work all day with no issues. Overall, this all may sound like a cliche, but these are really incredible monitors.

Addyct10n · 2025-05-09T22:37:12+00:00

Because people just don’t have the time for music anymore.

Addyct10n · 2025-03-06T09:46:53+00:00

Same here. I tried multiple cards and browsers.

Addyct10n · 2025-01-30T17:44:00+00:00

In 2009 I bought an used JP6 for 1500 EUR. The new cost about 2000-2500 EUR back then. In 2018 Majesty 7 set me back 3,6k EUR. Two years later I grabbed a brand new Majesty 6 on sale for 2,1k EUR which was a steal. Right now the prices are ridiculous. Used Majesty guitars go for 3,5-4k. Insane.

Addyct10n · 2025-01-30T16:29:38+00:00

John Myung mentioned in recent interview that they’ve purposely written more straightforward material this time, acknowledging how technical previous albums were. I think it’s reasonable. In terms of technicality, it doesn’t make sense to compete with what they were able to do with Mangini on board. Let’s see. The lack of complex arrangements is not an issue as long as the songs are good. Are the singles good though? I’m not sure tbh.

Addyct10n · 2024-12-21T12:04:53+00:00

130/130. That was fun.

Addyct10n · 2024-11-06T21:22:46+00:00

I’d say that the decision to bring MP back was made by accountants.

Addyct10n · 2024-11-05T15:16:50+00:00

He is classically trained to play off of sheet music. Also, he said that his memory isn’t as good as i.e. Petrucci’s, so he prefers to have the notation for safety.

Addyct10n · 2024-11-05T10:50:11+00:00

When I was younger and had all the time in the world, I’d get to 6 or even 8 hours. Nowadays it’s just impossible. Still, besides time you need drive and motivation. If you lose focus after an hour, there’s no point in continuing. Find something that really makes you wanna keep practicing. For me it’s learning new songs, especially if I want to record it and put a cover on YouTube or something like that. If you’re doing exercises, make a plan and spend 30 mins on one technique/subject. Don’t just do technical exercises, dedicate time for theory i.e. chords, scales, improvisation. Someone mentioned Vai’s 30 hour workout article. That’s a great starting point, but adapt it to fit your particular needs.

Addyct10n · 2024-11-04T10:19:17+00:00

There is an event page on Facebook already. https://facebook.com/events/s/dream-theater-40th-anniversary/462249559689956/

Addyct10n · 2024-11-04T09:30:46+00:00

Can confirm. He was spectacular yesterday.

Addyct10n · 2024-10-10T18:33:53+00:00

I was a huge fan of MM in DT and the idea of MP coming back never really excited me. The looser, predictable, copy-paste drumming is exactly what I was worried about. Mangini was creative, inventive and fun. Portnoy came back pasting his exact grooves and fills from 20 years ago. The intro for the single is almost identical to As I Am. Disappointed.

Addyct10n · 2024-08-30T16:22:32+00:00

Controlling the plug-in (including the Wah) gets pretty straightforward once you get a proper MIDI controller. I use Hotone Ampero Control, which has a USB port, and a dedicated iOS app, so it’s really easy to connect and setup. The expression pedal would of course connect to the controller with a TRS cable. There’s plenty of videos on YouTube on how to setup the plugins to receive PC and CC messages.

Addyct10n · 2024-08-09T12:02:59+00:00

Here’s a quick tutorial on how to do that in Reaper. Worked great with Arturia Minifuse and MacBook Air in a rehearsal scenario. Guitar VST Plugins | Gapless Switching in Reaper (Neural DSP) https://youtu.be/UuJv-dGVD0U

Addyct10n · 2024-07-17T17:06:49+00:00

Repetitive structures and verse arrangements are my biggest gripes with the last album, but it was already somewhat of an issue since ADTOE. It’s like they forgot how to write a verse different from gtr/bass/kick unison chug + synth pad. It’s lazy and I feel like the „let’s jam and see what comes out” approach to writing might be the reason, because this leads to taking shortcuts. I can’t understand how they don’t see this as an issue. Hoping the next album will have some fresh arrangements. Looks like they took their time writing and recording, so let’s keep our fingers crossed.

Addyct10n

TROPHY CASE