BraveWords Preview: Guitarist JOHN PETRUCCI On LIQUID TENSION EXPERIMENT Reuniting After 22 Years - "Things Just Fell Into Place; TONY LEVIN Even Brought His Espresso Machine Again"
March 23, 2021, 3 years ago
Liquid Tension Experiment, the legendary supergroup comprised of Mike Portnoy (Transatlantic, Sons Of Apollo), John Petrucci (Dream Theater), Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater), and Tony Levin (King Crimson, Peter Gabriel), return with a new album, LTE3, out April 16th via InsideOutMusic, twenty-two years after the bands’ last studio album.
Petrucci spoke with BraveWords about the album, and in the excerpt from the forthcoming story he talks about getting back together to record a new album following their 22 year break.
Petrucci: "Things just fell into place. We've all said this in all our little blurbs and things, but it's all true: Tony even brought in his espresso machine again, like he did for the other two albums (laughs). Basically, the way it works is myself and Jordan bring in a whole bunch of ideas that we've collected. Whether we use them or not doesn't matter - it's nice to be prepared - but before we even touch that stuff we just jam. We did four extended jams, all a half-hour or more each, and that loosened us up. Ideas developed during those jams, and that's where one guy might latch on to something and then somebody else hears it. Things start off a little blurry and then slowly come into focus. We'll just sit there and listen to it all, we take note of the cool moments and maybe turn them into something. It's super creative, and the cool thing is when I listen to this new album I can hear everybody's compositional personality. You might not know from the outside as to who wrote what, but I can hear Tony's section, I can hear Jordan's progression, that's one of my riffs, that's a section that Mike arranged... it's so collective. And with a project like this, that's instrumental because you really get to hear everybody's musical personalities in a very cohesive way."
Watch for the complete story, coming soon.
The band recently released the video for the album’s second single, “Beating The Odds”, and have now released a new album trailer, in which the guys discuss the single. Watch below:
The official video for "Beating The Odds", created by Christian Rios, can be seen below:
The new album will be available in the following formats:
• Limited deluxe hot pink 3LP+2CD+Blu-ray Box Set (incl. a poster and 4 artcards, Blu-ray includes a 5.1 surround mix with visuals, and full band interview from the studio)
• Limited 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook
• Limited 2CD Digipak
• Gatefold black 2LP+CD
• Digital album (2CD)
Pre-order here.
Tracklisting:
"Hypersonic"
"Beating The Odds"
"Liquid Evolution"
"The Passage Of Time"
"Chris & Kevin’s Amazing Odyssey"
"Rhapsody In Blue"
"Shades Of Hope"
"Key To The Imagination"
Bonus Disc: Includes almost an hour of improvised jams.
“The Passage Of Time” video:
Teaser:
In 1997, Mike Portnoy, John Petrucci, Jordan Rudess, and Tony Levin, joined forces to create Liquid Tension Experiment. The foursome would release their iconic, self-titled debut album in 1998 and the dazzling follow-up, LTE2 in 1999, creating a dynamic, frantic, and inventive sound all their own. The incredible creativity between the collective would prompt Petrucci and Portnoy to invite Rudess to join Dream Theater, effectively marking the end of this side project. However, since that time, there have been few reunions more in demand. Now, with the world in lockdown and calendars unexpectedly aligned, the inconceivable has finally happened… a new Liquid Tension Experiment album.
(Photo - Tony Levin)