If there's such a thing as poetry in motion behind a drum kit, Mike Portnoy more than fits the bill.

Showcasing his talent in a skillful and jaw-dropping way for 25-plus years, Portnoy will be pounding the skins Saturday night when Dream Theater opens for Iron Maiden at the AT&T Center, displaying the chops that has resulted in 24 Modern Drummer Magazine Reader's Poll Awards. Those include a 2004 Hall of Fame Inductee, 12 straight years of being named Best Progressive Rock Drummer, a two-time Best Clinician honoree and six-time Best Recorded Performance of the Year.

Portnoy is also in a few side projects including supergroup HAIL, which features vocalist Tim "Ripper" Owens and Megadeth bassist David Ellefson (read my recent interview with Ellefson here). Somehow, he also finds time to be in bands such as Cygnus & the Sea Monsters, a Rush tribute that includes Dangerous Toys singer Jason McMaster, who plays Scout Bar tonight with one of his other bands Broken Teeth as an opening act for Great White (visit the various links below the photo).

Black Clouds and Silver Linings, released last year, is Dream Theater's 10th studio album. Since forming in 1985, the New York quintet of Portnoy, singer James LaBrie, guitarist John Petrucci, bassist John Myung and keyboardist Jordan Rudess has written a slew of songs lasting more than 10, sometimes 20-plus minutes -- hardly making them MTV or radio station favorites.

But here they are 25 years later. And here's Portnoy, spearheading Dream Theater's decisions while marking 10 years of sobriety.

Portnoy also recently finished recording Avenged Sevenfold's new album Nightmare, which will be released July 27. He filled in for Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan, who died last Dec. 28 at age 28. Portnoy will be touring with Avenged Sevenfold on the inaugural Rockstar Energy Uproar Festival that visits Corpus Christi on Sept. 11.

And speaking of 9/11 -- Dream Theater had the dubious distinction of releasing a live album that day with a cover that depicted their home city of New York in flames.

Iron Maiden and Dream Theater kicked off their tour Wednesday in Dallas. Saturday night's show will be the third but first, Portnoy, 43, will be signing autographs Saturday at Sam Ash Music Store at 4 p.m. (more info below). Moments before taking the stage in Houston tonight, he took the time to answer a phone call:

Q: When this tour was announced, you said Maiden was one of only three bands Dream Theater would consider opening for. I'm guessing the others are Rush and Metallica?

A: You got it.

Q: Why does Maiden mean so much to you?
A: They are definitely the blueprint for the sound that Dream Theater was modeled after. When me and John Petrucci put together this band 25 years ago, it was Maiden and Rush as far as what we were styled after. They were just one of those bands that was a huge, huge part of it.

Q: When was the last time you guys were an opening act and for whom?
A: We've only been an opening act twice before. The first time was for Deep Purple in 1998 and Yes in 2004. We've done opening slots at one-off festivals with a bunch of other bands, but really, this is only the third time we've been a proper opening band for a long tour.

Q: How challenging is it to condense the set as an opening act, especially since many of your songs are more than 10 minutes?
A: Yeah, it is a challenge. We're used to playing much, much longer shows, so doing a 50-minute set is a nice breath of fresh air and a change of pace. But it is a challenge when I have to put together the setlist. When I put together a list for our audience, I go deep into our catalog. But when we're an opening act, I tailor it mainly to the main band's audience, so I'm putting this one together with Maiden's audience in mind. I write it mainly for the hits. Not that we've had hits, but you know, some of the main songs and videos that we've made.

Q: So you put together the setlist all the time, and the rest of the guys trust your judgment, or does everyone have their input?
A: No, it's all me. They trust my judgment not only with the setlist but with about 95 percent of the things that get done in this band (chuckles).

Q: Dream Theater is the poster child of anti-radio and anti-video friendly bands considering the complexity and length of your songs. So how have you guys been able to go so strong for nearly 25 years?
A: Our fans. We have amazing fans that are diehard and dedicated. A Dream Theater fan is not a casual fan. They're devoted. They appreciate us because we've always been against the grain. We've never been a radio-friendly band. We're probably one of the biggest cult bands out there, and our fans feel they're part of this exclusive club that the other kids on the block are not a part of.

Q: With all the awards you've won, and being one of the most renowned drummers in the industry, what's the most challenging aspect of drumming for you?
A: To be honest with you, I think the most challenging is living up to my reputation. I've won awards and received acknowledgment in the industry. To me, it's a great honor, but it's a big thing I have to live up to every time. You know, I didn't ask for any of this. All I want to do is play drums, but I know I have expectations to live up to. Sometimes, that's intimidating.

Q: Since you had a day off last night, were you able to check yourself out in the Rush documentary that was screened nationwide, and what did you think of the film?
A: No, I haven't seen it. I'm dying to. I think somebody's getting a copy for me.

Q: When you got the call from M. Shadows and Avenged Sevenfold asking you to record and eventually tour, what was that initial conversation like for you, then leading into the recording process?
A: Well, my contact with them began before Jimmy passed away. I had been in touch with Jimmy. He had been sending me e-mails because he'd been a big fan of mine. Then I became friends with M. Shadows. As soon as Jimmy passed, I called M. Shadows and expressed my thoughts and told him I'd do anything I could. I was supportive of what I could do on a personal level. After the funeral, I got a call from their manager, then M. Shadows, and they asked me if I would finish the album. I was completely honored, and luckily, my schedule was open. We met in L.A. and went to dinner and hung out, and those guys were deep in the grieving process. It was a very heavy, heavy process. It's a big family. But I went in and did the album, and we had an amazing time musically and personally, and they welcomed me into the family.

Q: How challenging is it to balance an attempt to do Jimmy justice on the album while still putting your own stamp on the project?
A: I didn't even want to put my own stamp on the project. That was not my objective. I was called in to bring Jimmy's parts to life, not bring Mike Portnoy into Avenged Sevenfold. That being said, that's what my job entailed. I spent a tremendous amount of time taking direction from the band. I'm not used to being produced. Normally, when I go into sessions, I go in and do my own thing, but in this case, I took direction. Every once in awhile, though, they would say, "Hey, do your own thing."

Q: And you didn't take long to get a tattoo of the Avenged logo, right?
A: After spending 10 days in the studio -- you know, they have a family spirit. It's their crew members, girlfriends and wives, and toward the end of the session, I knew I had to get a death bat to commemorate being a part of the family. It was not just a recording session. It was an emotional experience for me.

Q: Where did you put it?
A: It's on the inside of my left arm. Me and (rhythm guitarist) Zacky (Vengeance) got matching ones. His is on his right arm.

Q: I had the pleasure of interviewing your friend Chris Jericho during Wrestlemania week in April, and I asked him about guest starring on the song "Repentance." Who else confessed their sins on that song, and which one did you find the most interesting?
A: I've been writing songs based on the 12 steps of recovery, which has been a big part of my life. When I got to "Repentance," I had gotten to steps 8 and 9. And rather than continuing to write about my life, I had this idea of extending invitations. There's Mikael Akerfeldt from Opeth, Jon Anderson (formerly) from Yes, David Ellefson from Megadeth, Corey Taylor from Slipknot (and Stone Sour). There's about 11 people that I'm friends with on there. Chris is one of my best friends. They all sent me really cool samples.

Q: Being a New York band, can you describe the emotions of having released Live Scenes From New York on 9/11?
A: The fact that we put out an album on Sept. 11, 2001, and the cover had the city in flames -- in music history, that's probably the ultimate in coincidences. It was a shocking day and shocking that that coincidence happened for us, and we immediately wanted to change the cover. There were probably 10,000 of the original covers that shipped out. Being a New York band, that was a memorable moment, and another was putting out Score. And we're going to have another one when we play Madison Square Garden next month.

Q: I was going to ask about Score. After experimenting with orchestras on Octavarium (in 2005), was it a natural progression to put out Score as a live performance?
A: Yeah, absolutely. It was one of the things left on our checkist of what we hadn't done before. We dabbled in it when we made the Octavarium album as far as bringing an orchestra into the studio. It all culminated with the Radio City Music Hall show, which was the last show of our 20th anniversary tour. Everything about that night was so special.

Q: You're also celebrating 10 years of sobriety. Can you describe your most meaningful tattoo to mark the occasion or the inspiration behind the Serenity Prayer ink?
A: As far as my tattoos go and marking sobriety, I only have two. I have the AA symbol on my right hand that I got at five years of sobriety, and The Serenity Prayer. Now that I've hit the 10-year mark, I'm considering getting something else. It's a huge part of my life and a huge reason that I'm still here. I was at the point where I no longer controlled the drink, it was controlling me. I looked at drummers like John Bonham and Keith Moon, you know, some of my heroes that were gone from this disease. And you look at "The Rev" and Paul Gray from Slipknot that we lost a few weeks ago. When you have this disease, as I do, you have two choices. You either continue to party, or you get straightened out. You gotta clean up, or you'll only be going to one other place from that point.

Q: Will you be doing more shows after the Avenged tour either with HAIL or any of the tribute bands?
A: Well, I had plans to do other stuff this year, but once Avenged asked me to tour with them, that pretty much pre-empted everything. I did have some other ideas, but we'll have to wait and see.

Q: I look forward to seeing you and introducing myself at the in-store tomorrow. Is there anything else you'd like to say to the San Antonio fans before the show?
A: Oh, cool. Yeah, we're looking forward to it. We don't play Texas nearly enough with all the touring we do. It's not an everytime thing for us for whatever reason. We wish we could make it every time, so when we do make it, it's really special for us.
 

• WHO: Iron Maiden with Dream Theater
• WHEN: 7:30 p.m., Saturday
• WHERE: AT&T Center
• TICKETS: $27.50-$73 plus service charge at ticketmaster.com.
• IN-STORE INFO: Portnoy will be appearing at 4 p.m. Saturday at Sam Ash Music Store (25 NE Loop 410 at McCullough). Call (210) 530-9777 for more info.

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