Liquid Tension Experiment

The prog-metal supergroup Liquid Tension Experiment was masterminded by drummer Mike Portnoy, the onetime drummer in Dream Theater. Determined to put together a formidable group of bandmates, he recruited his former Dream Theater bandmate John Petrucci to play guitar. Keyboardist Jordan Rudess joined on, as did the revered bassist for King Crimson, Tony Levin. They first came together in 1997 in New York City and in 1998 issued their self-titled debut LP. A melodic fusion of prog rock and metal, the album was successful enough that they issued Liquid Tension Experiment 2 the next year. The group entered a long hiatus during which Rudess joined a revived Dream Theater. Almost a decade later, Liquid Tension Experiment reformed for a series of live dates in 2008 that led to a live concert released on home video. Though they would briefly join each other in various configurations on stage throughout the next decade, they did not reform fully until 2020 for the recording of Liquid Tension Experiment 3, which was released in April of 2021.