Cover art by Hugh Syme
A Dramatic Turn of Events is the eleventh studio album by Dream Theater, released on September 13, 2011. It is the first one to feature Mike Mangini on the drums after former drummer Mike Portnoy's departure just over a year prior to the album's release. The first single, On the Backs of Angels, was released on June 29, 2011. In August, Dream Theater began releasing minute-long snippets of songs from the album, beginning with "Bridges in the Sky" on August 11th and continuing periodically until the album's release. Dream Theater toured Europe in support of the album from July 4th to August 4th and will tour Canada and the United States from September 24th to October 27th.
Personnel
- John Petrucci - Guitars, backing vocals, producer
- John Myung - Bass
- James LaBrie - Vocals
- Jordan Rudess - Keyboards, continuum
- Mike Mangini - Drums, percussion
Track Listing
- On the Backs of Angels (Petrucci) 8:46
- Build Me Up, Break Me Down (Petrucci) 6:59
- Lost Not Forgotten (Petrucci) 10:11
- This is the Life (Petrucci) 6:57
- Bridges in the Sky (Petrucci) 11:01
- Outcry (Petrucci) 11:24
- Far from Heaven (LaBrie) 3:56
- Breaking All Illusions (Myung, Petrucci) 12:25
- Beneath the Surface (Petrucci) 5:26
Notes
- "Bridges in the Sky" was originally titled "The Shaman's Trance". According to James LaBrie, the new name is derived from the song's lyrics.
- The album times at 77:05, making it Dream Theater's fifth-longest album, trailing Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence, Systematic Chaos, Falling Into Infinity, and (by one second) Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From a Memory.
- John Petrucci wrote the lyrics to seven songs on the album, the most any individual member has written for a single album in the band's history.
- "Breaking All Illusions" is the first track with lyrics from John Myung since "Fatal Tragedy" from Scenes from a Memory.