DREAM THEATER & OPETH Set to Crusade Through America

New York, NY: Two of progressive metal’s finest bands – Dream Theater and Opeth- have joined forces for the inaugural Progressive Nation Tour. The tour kicks off on May 2 in Los Angeles, and is certain to pack houses and put smiles on the faces of metal fans who’ve been clamoring for the two bands to tour together.

This tour serves as the concluding leg of Dream Theater’s “Chaos In Motion” world tour in support of their
Roadrunner debut, 2007’s powerhouse, Systematic Chaos. It also marks the return of Sweden’s almighty Opeth to US shores in support of their forthcoming opus, Watershed, due out in stores on June 3, 2008.

Dream Theater will headline the tour, with Opeth providing main support. The bill is rounded out by Between The Buried and Me and Three, making for a diverse, eclectic evening of forward-thinking, mind-bending music. The tour has been a long time in the making and is the brainchild of Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy,
who said, “I’ve been wanting to assemble a package tour like this for many years now. With all of the festivals
and package tours that go through America, I’ve been talking with our manager and agent for over 10 years
now about doing something that focuses on the more progressive, musician-oriented side of hard rock and metal.
I decided it was time to stop talking the talk, lace up and finally walk the walk.”

Opeth guitarist/vocalist Mikael Ǻkerfeldt shares Portnoy’s passion for the tour’s maiden voyage, saying,“We’re very excited about this upcoming tour with Dream Theater. It will be the first tour that we’re doing in support of our upcoming record Watershed and also somewhat of a dream come true personally, as I’ve been a fan of theirs for a long time. It’s quite intimidating to be on the bill with such amazing musicians but obviously we’ll try and give them a run for their money and pull out a few nice licks of our own. I guess we'll need to practice a little bit for this!”

Dream Theater and Opeth are universally recognized as the elite of musician’s metal bands and are revered for their ability to fuse brains and brawn in the metal world.

Head over to the Tour Dates section for a list of dates and venues.