Drummer Mike Portnoy (ADRENALINE MOB, ex-DREAM THEATER, AVENGED SEVENFOLD) has released a new DVD, Drumming Colors, available via his website.

A trailer for the DVD, featuring drum-cam footage from the recording sessions for FLYING COLORS' self-titled debut album, can be seen below:

Flying Colors, , the new virtuoso prog/pop/rock band, featuring Mike Portnoy and guitarist Steve Morse (DEEP PURPLE), will release their eponymous debut album in the UK on Monday, March 26th, followed by a North American release on Tuesday, March 27th. Morse recently spoke with Classic Rock Revisited founder Jeb Wright about the release; an excerpt from the interview is available below:

Jeb: Flying Colors is a great band. Bill Evans, who is a music industry vet, put this together. How did it all come about?

Steve: "Bill had been asking me if I would like to do a project with Neal Morse. We both fit into that genre of symphonic, instrumental rock. I said that I thought that would be awesome but, the usual thing with Deep Purple was that I didn’t know when I could get away. We finally got together and it went very well."

Jeb: You didn’t have a whole lot of time to write or record this album.

Steve: "Neal and I spent about a day and a half together and we had nine days with the band. We had the album done at that point. It was just a matter of having people do their overdubs and the mixing after those nine days. It went really quickly because there was so much energy in the room. We almost had too many ideas. Here is a good anecdote for you that will describe how it went: Neal was working on a song with us in the studio. There was something about the chorus that wasn’t working for us and we wanted to change it but he was arguing because he wanted to keep it the way it was. He got up to get a drink and by the time he came back, Casey (McPherson) and I had changed the chorus. He came back and we played the song and he said, 'What happened to my chorus?' I said, 'Get a drink; lose a chorus!'"

Jeb: It really is rare to have that much talent together at once.

Steve: "What made it work is that we all had a lot of respect for each other. Every member of the band is used to having their own band and being the one who has total control. We all did a great job of being able to disagree with each other on certain decisions, but, we were allowed to make our case, and most times, even though we disagreed, we were able to go along with the majority for the betterment of the project. We had very, very lively discussions going on during every idea, for every song. I think that is why we were able to write the album so fast; everyone had an opinion, instantly."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

Released by Music Theories Recordings, the debut album includes the talents of Mike Portnoy (drums, vocals), Dave LaRue (bass), Neal Morse (keyboards, vocals), Casey McPherson (lead vocals, guitar), and Steve Morse (lead guitar). The self-titled record was produced by Peter Collins (RUSH, QUEENSRŸCHE)

Flying Colors tracklisting:

'Blue Ocean' (7:05)

'Shoulda Coulda Woulda' (4:32)

'Kayla' (5:20)

'The Storm' (4:53)

'Forever in a Daze' (3:56)

'Love is What I’m Waiting For' (3:36)

'Everything Changes' (6:55)

'Better Than Walking Away' (4:57)

'All Falls Down' (3:22)

'Fool in My Heart' (3:48)

'Infinite Fire' (12:02)

"The album has bits and pieces of what you'd expect from each of us,” says Portnoy. “The sum of all its parts led to brand new, unchartered territory for everyone involved."

The formation of Flying Colors began with a simple idea: virtuoso musicians and a pop singer joining together to make new-fashioned music the old fashioned way. Refreshing, classic, old and new, the recordings are saturated with the many styles, tones and hues of the players who, in becoming a band, have delivered a unique fusion of vintage craftsmanship and contemporary music.

Mike Portnoy was the co-founding member and drummer for one of the world’s biggest prog metal bands, Dream Theater. Neal Morse is the co-founding member of the prog rock band SPOCK'S BEARD and is currently the prog rock supergroup TRANSATLANTIC. David LaRue plays bass for the DIXIE DREGS and has also worked with JOE SATRIANI and STEVE VAI. Steve Morse has been playing lead guitar for Deep Purple for the last 16 years. Founder and leader of ALPHA REV, Casey McPherson, has enjoyed major success in the US with multiple hits including the song 'New Morning'.

"It was quite an experience,” recalls Dave LaRue. “The band moved at a fast pace, ideas flying around the room at all times. Sections of tunes were arranged, and then re-arranged. Ideas were tried every which way until we made them work, or, in some cases, discarded them altogether. Just keeping track of everything was a challenge!" The album is filled with trial and triumph. It's been an inspiring challenge melding folk, prog, pop, and metal all into one big recording."

Check out "making of" footage for Flying Colors' debut album below: