It's the second record to feature Mike Mangini on drums after Mike Portnoy's shock departure in 2010 � but it's the first time Mangini's had the opportunity to contribute as a writer, since the material for 2011 album A Dramatic Turn Of Events had been completed before he joined the band.

Guitarist John Petrucci recently said of the work: "I see every new album as an opportunity to start over � to either build or improve upon a direction that has been evolving over time, or to completely break new ground.