“Most is more than familiar… but there’s a sense of excitement in having this chemistry back in place”: Dream Theater’s Parasomnia largely lives up to the hype

Dream Theater – Parasomnia.

Poor old Mike Mangini. The supremely gifted drummer provided the engine in the Dream Theater chassis for 13 years, powering through a string of never less-than-interesting albums and one Grammy award.

Yet all it took was the announcement in 2023 that Mike Portnoy was returning to the fold for the fanbase to lose their collective mind – and Mangini found himself bundled hastily out the door. For his part, he’s said all the right things, his departure free of public rancour. It seems that even he knows some bands have a definitive line-up that every fan wants to see; and for Dream Theater this is it.