INTERVIEW WITH DREAM THEATER FRONTMAN JAMES LABRIE

DREAM THEATER frontman JAMES LaBRIE is touring to support his solo disc, 'Elements Of Persuasion' before getting back with his DT bandmates. This interview was conducted just prior to LaBrie's show at the Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, New Jersey, and will also appear in the April 2005 issue of Paragon Music Magazine. Most of the questions were fairly serious, but when Steve C's questions came up, he wasn't quite sure how to react. Here's how it went...

Paragon Rob: For years, you’ve been renowned as one of the best vocalists in the rock genre. At what point in your life did you realize that you have such a powerful voice, and when did you decide to pursue a career in music?

James LaBrie: Well, thanks for the compliments. Holy smokes. ::laughs:: But I’ll tell you what, I realized from the age of 5 that this is what I wanted to do. I grew up in a very musical family. My mother grew up in a very musical family, my father did, so I was always around music. Whether the piano was going, or my sister was playing guitar, or the stereo was on or the radio was on. And I remember just walking around and constantly singing to songs, no matter who it was, ::laughs:: at the time. I just knew from that age that this is something I was really into. And then in school, in elementary school, I had a music teacher that worked with me, and she could tell that I was really into it, so she started bringing me around that province, because I’m from Canada, in singing contests. So I was in singing contests when I was 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. So it was from a really early age. And my father was in barber shop quartet singing, and he brought me into that from when I was about 10 until I was about 12, like off and on. I’d go with him and sing some songs, and that really kind of made me really appreciate the voice as just an instrument on its own. I was playing drums too, from the age of 5 until I was about 17. Then when I was around 16, 17, I started realizing there were too damn many good drummers out there, and I knew that I wanted to be a singer and there’s only so many PHILL COLLINS’s or DON HENLEY’s and I knew that I’d do better with just my voice. So 13, 14 years old, I was in bands, and I was the drummer and the lead vocalist until I was about 17, and I then I started just being the lead vocalist.

Paragon Lisa: After reading the lyrics for the song “Smashed,” it seems that it may have been written about 9/11. Am I right?

James LaBrie: No, I wrote it about societies that are living under government oppression, so people that are stripped of their dignities, stripped of the freedom to live the way they want, living under someone else’s rules and being oppressed and suppressed with their free feelings. You don’t have to look too far to see just how many governments operate that way around the world and just how many people are not living in the amazing situation that we have, that we take for granted, and we still feel we’re getting the dirty end of the stick, which is beyond me. Places like Chechnya and Rwanda, I mean, it’s a travesty what these people are living under. And they’re never able to really voice their concerns. They’re snuffed if they do.

Paragon Rob: Have you ever sat down to write lyrics and decided to go back and change some words to make them sound more sophisticated, or have you ever done the opposite and used simpler words in place of those that may seem more complex, maybe to come across a certain way?

James LaBrie: No, because I think that [with] some of the best lyricists out there, like STING, or Don Henley is a great lyricist, or Freddy Mercury [QUEEN], who I love, I think the biggest challenge is to be able to convey the message simply put. I think it’s easy to come out with 3, 4-syllable words and sound like, “Oh, he is of the intellect.” But to me, you come off sounding very pompous and pretentious. And really, are you staying, within what the field of the song is? Music isn’t supposed to be a grammar lesson. Music is supposed to be the appreciation of the message on its own. So the message should be as poignant as it can be, but at the same time, it should be simply taken in and interpreted, for each person to mean something different. But I don’t like that, when I read lyrics that are full of all these grandiose words. I find that’s so contrived and that’s the opposite of what music should be. I’m not saying it shouldn’t be thought provoking, but at the same time, music is just something that is magically something you feel, and a lot of it comes from spontaneity, the moment what you’re feeling. That’s my take on it. Someone else might tell you something completely different.

Paragon Lisa: Could you share with us the concept behind the album’s artwork, especially the cover images?

James LaBrie: Elements of Persuasion is dealing with a lot of the lyrics I wrote. Basically, that’s why you see the baby, then the middle-aged man, then the old man, and it’s depicted on one person’s life, but it’s all of us, really. From the time we’re born, we are exposed to elements, and those elements might be our microcosm, which is our home that we grow up in, and our parents, and those influences. And they already start to shape and mold the person that we become, growing up into an adult. And then as an adult we have other priorities and other influences that guide us and shape us into the person that we are, and so then you have that person in middle age. And the priorities change. As a young person, your god and your savior is what happens around your home. As a middle-aged person, materialistic things become very evident and clear, substances become clear, relationships. And then as an older man, we all struggle constantly with mortality, and time, faith, and our existence and our consciousness. So all these things kind of flow into some of the lyrical concepts.


That's not dog poo I just stepped in, is it? Oh lord, I think it IS.

Paragon Lisa: Elements of Persuasion is an album that can easily be considered a collection of songs that display all of your diverse musical talents and influences. What was the primary motivator in creating a solo disc? Was it so that you would have the freedom to expose these different song styles to your audience in ways that you may not have been able to with DREAM THEATER?

James LaBrie: Well, yeah, [Keyboardist] Matt Guillory and myself, when we sit down and we’re writing this stuff, it wouldn’t make any sense for me to entertain the thought of doing something solo if it’s not going to be something that’s showing a different side of me musically. I may as well just sit at home and chill out with my family and spend more time. So when I’m doing something like this, definitely, I want people to see what other types of music influence me, what other types of music I find very interesting or inspiring. So that’s how I go about this. I definitely want other people to hear other sides of me musically. And that’s what the band is all about.

Paragon Lisa: There’s also a bit of LINKIN PARK influence in there too, right?

James LaBrie: Definitely. When Matt and I sat down to really get our heads wrapped around where we wanted to take this album, our influences at the time were MUDVAYNE, MESHUGGAH, LINKIN PARK, SEVENDUST, and then we’d go right to the other extreme and we’d be listening to PETER GARBRIEL's latest album, which I thought was phenomenal, and it wasn’t what I expected from him, but that’s great because it’s a great album. And Seal. So all these artists have something that we felt was very unique and distinctive. They created their own sound, which is really hard to do in today’s world because a lot of people sound the same, ::laughs:: as far as I’m concerned. The market’s completely saturated, unfortunately. But let’s not go into that rant. ::laughs:: So yea, definitely, you’re touching on some of the albums that definitely we wanted to look into, and the techno vibe is there. We really wanted to insert and really make these things a part of the songs if only we felt that they made sense. They need to compliment the music. Why are you doing it, just to be different or to be cute ::laughs:: and just say, “Hey, isn’t it cool we did that?” So we really made sure it was something we felt was really embellishing, and we wanted to incorporate it for the reason that would be something different coming from us, an experiment.

Paragon Lisa: Do you plan on releasing more solo albums in the future?

James LaBrie: Yeah, definitely. Obviously, right now, this is the focus. And then Dream Theater will start a world tour in June. Matt and I and Marco were talking about it today, you know, about getting back together and starting to think about the next album.

Paragon Rob: There’s another person that usually has a hand in writing these questions with us, and he wasn’t able to make it. He likes to ask some different stuff, some goofy things, couple hypothetical situations.

James LaBrie: So he’s not here, so I can’t hit him. ::laughs:: (What's James weigh? Probably a buck seventy? I really wish I went along for this one now - SC)

Paragon Rob: Yeah, basically.

Steve C: Let's say, for argument's sake, you're offered a one million dollar contract to re-record a song by BRITNEY SPEARS. Obviously, you can put your own spin on it, but it's going to be promoted and put out to rock radio and the video outlets...which one would you choose?

James LaBrie: He is really lucky he’s not here. There’s no way, there’s no way! Definitely, the money would be nice. For someone to say you’re going to record a track for a million bucks, first of all that guy needs to get his head examined, and especially the fact that it’s Britney Spears. No, wouldn’t do it. Wouldn’t even consider it. Well, maybe some of these other guys would [referring to other band members]. Would you guys? You guys would do it, wouldn’t you, for a million bucks? (you know, I'm sorry I don't get to go along with Rob and Lisa for some of these interviews; my schedule just won't allow it. I would gladly ask Mr. Sensitive these to his face. Relax, Chester. - SC)

Matt Guillory:[Keyboards] I wouldn’t think twice! (See? That's honesty.)

James LaBrie: ::Laughs:: See that? There you go, that’s what makes a band!


Hit me baby, one more time! ... cuz I look like Smeagol.

Paragon Rob: How much of a hand did you have in writing the actual music for each song? Did you write most of the parts for every instrument, or did your band have equal input for their respective instruments?

James LaBrie: No, obviously a lot of the ideas come from Matt. Matt Guillory comes in with a lot of the ideas, and then we brought in another guy who came in with a lot of great ideas, Brian Wherry, and he worked with us on five songs. But this was a 2-year process of songs, and we just slowly developed the ideas into the songs that they’ve become. You’re constantly, slowly, shaping the songs into where you think they have to go. And in this particular case, it took a while because I was busy doing the Dream Theater thing and then I recorded a FRAMESHIFT album. And then we were slowly able to bring it together and work on the melodies together. And Matt wrote some lyrics.

Paragon Rob: If you were forced to pick one album that is your favorite out of everything you’ve ever released, what would it be?

James LaBrie: That’s too hard for me to do. I would say Images because it’s very sentimental to me because that was the kick-start to the career with Dream Theater and it’s a really cool album, I think. And then Scenes from a Memory I really liked doing. This latest Dream Theater album is really going to blow people away, Octavarium. And this album. I don’t know, it’s too hard for me to pick one.

Paragon Lisa: You only have a few dates set up for your tour promoting Elements of Persuasion. In addition, you’re touring relatively small, intimate venues. Are you enjoying performing at these types of venues, being that you’re used to performing large arenas with Dream Theater?

James LaBrie: Put it this way, I can’t see this playing anywhere else. These venues might even be too big, to be honest with you, because it’s just us really coming out. We’re with a new label now, InsideOut, it’s a new beginning, a new chapter. So we’re really just getting this out there to make it aware to people that we’re also going to support the songs with a tour. At this stage, I can’t see that we’d want to play anything bigger than the venues that we are playing. You gotta start somewhere. But with Dream Theater, we’ve been doing it for 13 years, so it’s a completely different monster. In the States we’ll play anywhere from a 2,000-seater up to 10,000, depending on where we are and what it is that we’re doing, what kind of a tour it is. I think that this is comfortable, I definitely wouldn’t want to be anywhere else with this tour. I want to keep it intimate. It’s different though. It’s cool.

Paragon Rob: Is there any particular reason why you only have very few dates for your solo project?

James LaBrie:

Paragon Rob: When you’re out on long tours, keeping up with your laundry must be a pain. How hard is it to make sure you’re wearing fresh, clean clothes when you go on stage or in between shows?

James LaBrie: ::Laughs:: I don’t have to worry too much about laundry. I just kinda have a laundry bag that goes out once or twice a week, clothes come back and they’re nice and clean. I don’t run out, I don’t have to flip my underwear around, ::laughs:: to get a little more mileage out of it! ::laughs:: (wow...that's actually something I had no idea about...laundry service. Nifty)

Steve C: You have done a fair amount of touring in different countries. How many languages have you tried to/been forced to pick up as a result?

James LaBrie: Japanese, French, Italian, a little bit of Spanish, that’s it. Mexican. But don’t ask me to say any of them right now. Because what I do is that when I go into those countries, someone will say it and I’ll remember it, that’s it. I have Marco with me this time so in Italy, he can do all of the speaking. ::Laughs:: [Speaking to Marco] Looking forward to that, aren’t you?

Paragon Rob: Is there any particular country where the local cuisine could send you running to the bathroom faster than a bat out of hell?

James LaBrie: Yeah, there was actually. Taiwan. Yeah, it was scary. In the city, it was cool, but when we went to the venue, the catering that they had there, we were all looking at the food going, “What is that? I can’t eat that!” ::laughs:: So we waited until we were done with the show, and then we went back to the hotel and it was fine because we ordered in, so it was great there. When you go into countries, the world pretty much now is you have the chains that are pretty much throughout the world, that if you’re in a situation where you really don’t trust the indigenous cuisine, then you can go to the restaurant that you’re familiar with.

Steve C: Even though you're not exactly catering to the SAME audience, does the untimely death of Dimebag Darrell affect the way you're handling security issues out on the road?

James LaBrie: We were in the studio recording Octavarium, the latest Dream Theater, when that happened. And we all sat down, the guys, and we all said the same thing, “What does this mean? That people have to go on stage with bullet-proof vests?” It’s insane that that happened. That’s crossing a line that should never be considered. The fact that that happened is absolutely tragic. But at the time that it happened, you start thinking, God how many times have you been on stage in front of thousands of people and all it takes is one psycho to go [makes gun noise] and you’re helpless, you’re so easy for a target. It makes you think. It’s really unfortunate that that’s how easy it is for people to get into venues with weapons of such.

Steve C: Describe, if you would, your most favorite sandwich.

James LaBrie: Oh boy. I don’t know, depends on the mood that I’m in. It depends on my mood. Reuben’s always good. I like a Reuben sandwich. I like a tuna sandwich. Sometimes I like pastrami sandwich with tomato, lettuce. (Yes! A genuine sandwich enthusiast! He's officially redeemed himself in my eyes. - SC)


I look like Fabio and I enjoy a tasty sandwich every now and then.

Paragon Lisa: Any plugs for our readers?

James LaBrie: To all the readers of Paragon that are picking up this issue, hope you enjoyed it, and enjoy the album and we’ll see you on tour at some point. Thanks.

Visit James Labrie's Official website at www.jameslabrie.com

Then head on over to DreamTheater.net for all your Dream Theater needs (what those 'needs' might be, we have no idea... that's your bidness)

This interview will also be showcased in the April 2005 issue of Paragon Music Magazine