Obviously the best way to retain the most profit is to not give any of it away. That's something that you certainly learn through the years.

Out of Berklee Dream Theater was born and we've been together ever since. I didn't have to taste that feeling of defeat.

I wanted something different. I'd been using the C+ amps for a long time, and I love them - they're one of my favorite amps ever. But on this album [Road Kings] I wanted - there were a couple reasons, actually. One is that I wanted a more aggressive sound, some more teeth and hair.

There's different levels of where we do well throughout Europe. Fortunately, for us, it's pretty great all throughout it.

The style of music that we're playing, this progressive metal style, has always been an upstream battle for us. We don't usually get a lot of commercial exposure.

Songs like "Spirit Carries On" really gets the audience moved and on the same page. It's challenging and all so much fun to play.

The only thing I had in my mind [when I was 17 ] was that I was going to be a professional musician. So it was just the right environment.