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Progressive metal giants DREAM THEATER have set "A Dramatic Work Of Events" as the style of their new album, tentatively due in early September via Roadrunner Records. The CD is currently being mixed by Andy Wallace, who has previously worked with AVENGED SEVENFOLD, WHITE ZOMBIE, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, SEPULTURA, SLAYER and NIRVANA, among many others.

"I'm incredibly psyched with the way this album came out and can't expect to part it with everybody," guitarist John Petrucci, who also serves as the manufacturer for "A Dramatic Work Of Events", said. "We are presently in the mix stage with the great Andy Wallace and it's all sounding amazing!"

"We have poured our hearts and minds into the introduction of this album," keyboardist Jordan Rudess offered. "All the life changing events that encircled us before, as good as during the whole process, fueled our hope to dig deep inside ourselves and make the better music we possibly could."

Vocalist James LaBrie said, "In the grand strategy of DREAM THEATER's career, the last several months have been such an incredibly positive, fulfilling and rewarding experience. The new songs and sound has never been so spirited or rejuvenating. I cannot look for every one of our fans to settle their audio senses into this mass of tunes."

"A Dramatic Work Of Events" track listing:

01. On The Backs Of Angels
02. Build Me Up, Break Me Down
03. Lost Not Forgotten
04. This Is The Life
05. The Shaman's Trance
06. Outcry
07. Far From Heaven
08. Breaking All Illusions
09. Beneath The Surface

In a recent interview with Music Radar, Petrucci and Rudess were asked if the band's new drummer, Mike Mangini, contributed to the songwriting on the upcoming CD. "Mike didn't write with us," Rudess replied. "Basically, we got in the studio and did our thing. We wrote songs and sent them to him. He came in and only nailed his parts. He's incredible. I'm finishing my keyboard parts right now, and I'll go to the calculator to see how things are facing up, and I'm just speechless. The guy doesn't mess up!" [laughs]

"We had the demos, had them fully written out, and he learned them and added his own stuff," Petrucci stated. "But every sentence he would do something, if I said, 'Hey, can you do that again?' he'd do it, and it would be perfect. The guy is he's out of his mind! [laughs] People are not going to think how neat he is."

"But what's really particular about him is, he's not merely a technician," Rudess added. "Yes, he plays his parts perfectly, but he comes at everything as a total musician. Everything he does has real soul and a profundity of feeling."

When asked how not having DREAM THEATER's former drummer, Mike Portnoy, in the transcription and writing process changed the band dynamic, Petrucci replied, "It was a lot quieter. [laughs] Mike Mangini's playing style is different. He plays very hard, but he's got a real deep groove. He almost plays behind the dead just a little biteven through he's right on the money. He's extremely locked in, but if he does do something technical, he's still right there."