Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 under the name Majesty by John Petrucci, John Myung and Mike Portnoy while they attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. They subsequently dropped out of their studies to concentrate further on the band that would eventually become Dream Theater. Though a number of lineup changes followed, the three original members remained together until September 8, 2010, when Portnoy left the band and he was replaced several months later by Mike Mangini. James LaBrie has been the lead singer of Dream Theater since 1991, replacing Charlie Dominici who had left the band two years earlier. Dream Theater's first keyboardist, Kevin Moore, left the band after three albums and was replaced by Derek Sherinian in 1995 after a period of touring. After one album with Sherinian, the band replaced him with current keyboardist Jordan Rudess in 1999.
Paul Brandon Gilbert is an American hard rock and heavy metal guitarist. He is best known for being the co-founder of the band Mr. Big. He was also a member of Racer X, with whom he released several albums. In 1996, Gilbert launched a solo career, for which he has released numerous solo albums, and featured in numerous collaborations and guest appearances on other musicians' albums.
Symphony X is an American progressive metal band from Middletown, New Jersey. Founded in 1994, the band consists of guitarist Michael Romeo, keyboardist Michael Pinnella, drummer Jason Rullo, lead vocalist Russell Allen and bassist Michael Lepond.
William Sheehan is an American musician known for his work with Talas, Steve Vai, David Lee Roth, Mr. Big, Niacin, and The Winery Dogs. He is known for his "lead bass" playing style, including the use of chording, two-handed tapping, "three-finger picking" technique and controlled feedback. Sheehan has been voted "Best Rock Bass Player" five times in Guitar Player readers' polls.
Michael Stephen Portnoy is an American musician and songwriter who is primarily known as the former drummer, backing vocalist, and a co-founder of the progressive metal band Dream Theater. In September 2010, Portnoy announced his departure from Dream Theater after 25 years, with Mike Mangini taking his place as drummer of the band. Since his departure Portnoy has remained active, with a variety of bands and projects, including Adrenaline Mob, Transatlantic, Yellow Matter Custard, Flying Colors, The Winery Dogs, Liquid Tension Experiment, Metal Allegiance, Sons of Apollo, the Neal Morse Band and BPMD.
John Peter Petrucci is an American guitarist, composer and producer. He is best known as a founding member of the progressive metal band Dream Theater. He produced or co-produced all of Dream Theater's albums from Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory (1999) to A View from the Top of the World (2021), and has been the sole producer of the band's albums released since A Dramatic Turn of Events (2011). Petrucci has also released two solo albums: Suspended Animation (2005) and Terminal Velocity (2020).
Timo Tapio Tolkki is a Finnish musician best known as the former guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer of the power metal band Stratovarius. With his tenure lasting for more than twenty years, he was the longest standing member of the band before his departure in 2008. After leaving Stratovarius he formed two supergroups named Revolution Renaissance and Symfonia, both of which have since disbanded. In a 2011 article by Guitar World magazine, Tolkki was included in the all-time top 50 list of the world's fastest guitarists.
Derek Sherinian is an American keyboardist who has toured and recorded for Alice Cooper, Billy Idol, and Joe Bonamassa, among others. He was also a member of Dream Theater from 1994 to 1999, is the founder of Planet X and also one of the founding members of Black Country Communion and Sons of Apollo. He has released eight solo albums that have featured a variety of prominent guest musicians, including guitarists Slash, Yngwie Malmsteen, Allan Holdsworth, Steve Lukather, Joe Bonamassa, Billy Sheehan, Zakk Wylde and Al Di Meola.
Symphony X is the first studio album by progressive metal band Symphony X, originally released in 1994 through Zero Corporation in Japan, and reissued in 1996 through Inside Out Music in Europe; a remastered edition was reissued on January 13, 2004 through Inside Out Music. The album's release came about as a result of band guitarist Michael Romeo's 1994 solo album, The Dark Chapter, achieving success in Japan. It is the only Symphony X album to feature singer Rod Tyler, who would be replaced by Russell Allen on all subsequent works.
The Damnation Game is the second studio album by progressive metal band Symphony X, released in 1995 through Zero Corporation (Japan) and Inside Out Music (Europe); a remastered edition was reissued on September 13, 2004 through Inside Out. The album is the band's first to feature current singer Russell Allen, who replaced Rod Tyler after the release of their 1994 self-titled debut album.
Michael James Romeo is an American guitarist and a founding member of the progressive metal group Symphony X. He is one of two members to appear on every Symphony X release.
Russell Allen is an American singer and lyricist best known as the vocalist of American progressive metal band Symphony X. He has also worked with supergroups Star One, Allen-Lande, Level 10, and as one of fourteen vocalists in the progressive symphonic metal band Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Since 2011, he has also served as the frontman of the heavy metal band Adrenaline Mob.
Michael Anthony LePond III is an American musician, best known as the bass guitarist of the progressive metal band Symphony X. He is also the bass guitarist of the New York-based metal, band Dead on Arrival. The group issued an album, Alive and Kickin, on the independent Polo label in 1996. He can be heard on all Symphony X releases since the 2000 album V: The New Mythology Suite. He was formerly a member of the New Jersey band Rattlebone, which opened for many national acts and released a six-song album in 1997.
John "JD" DeServio is an American musician who is the current bassist of Black Label Society, joining after the departure of James Lomenzo in 2005. He was also a member of Pride & Glory, a Southern rock trio, for a short time in December 1994, and was Black Label Society's original bassist, playing on the tour supporting their debut album, Sonic Brew. DeServio also performed on Michael Romeo's solo albums War of the Worlds, Pt. 1 (2018) and War of the Worlds, Pt. 2 (2022).
Paradise Lost is the seventh studio album by progressive metal band Symphony X, released on June 26, 2007 through Inside Out Music. It is a concept album loosely inspired by John Milton's 1667 epic poem Paradise Lost. The album was the band's first to chart on the U.S. Billboard 200, reaching No. 123 and remaining on that chart for a week, as well as reaching No. 1 on Billboard's Heatseekers and the top 100 in five other countries.
Michael George Orlando is an American guitarist. He was a top ten finalist for Guitar Player magazine's Guitar Superstar of the Year in 2008 and has worked with musicians like Zakk Wylde and Bumblefoot. His first solo album, Sonic Stomp, was released in 2006 and the follow-up, Sonic Stomp II, was released in 2010.
Iconoclast is the eighth studio album by the progressive metal band Symphony X, released in June 2011.
The Winery Dogs are an American rock supergroup formed in New York City in 2012 by Richie Kotzen, Billy Sheehan and Mike Portnoy.
Sons of Apollo is an American progressive metal supergroup formed in 2017 and composed of drummer Mike Portnoy, bassist Billy Sheehan, keyboardist Derek Sherinian, vocalist Jeff Scott Soto, and guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal.
War of the Worlds, Pt. 2 is the third solo album by Symphony X guitarist Michael Romeo, released on 25 March 2022 via Inside Out Music. It is a sequel to his previous album released in 2018, War of the Worlds, Pt. 1. It was originally scheduled for a February 4, 2022 release.
