What Drives DREAM THEATER's JOHN PETRUCCI To Keep Making Music?

In a new interview with United Rock Nations, DREAM THEATER guitarist John Petrucci was asked what keeps him motivated to write music and perform live after all these years. He responded (see video below): "I think the thing that drives me the most is that I enjoy it so much. I think that I've always been a creative person. Even when I was younger and I didn't play guitar, I was into drawing and painting. It's just something that is part of what I am, what I do.

"I love playing guitar," he continued. "The whole process of creating music on the instrument and then going into a place and building it into something, I always find it very inspiring and just a lot of fun and engaging. And then the performance side is a whole different thing. Some people really enjoy performing; some musicians don't. It depends. I know people that don't. But for me, I just love getting onstage and playing guitar — with my friends, with my bandmembers or with other guitar players, with [the] 'G3' [tour].

"The whole thing about guitar specifically and all the gear that's associated with that — getting into tones and sounds and effects, and developing things, like guitars and amplifiers, like I've done, it's just really cool," John added. "I guess that's what keeps me driven — is that I really enjoy doing it. I like the challenge of it. I like the creative and artistic satisfaction of it, and I like the joy of playing music. Music is such a big part of who I am."

Petrucci released his second solo album, "Terminal Velocity", on August 28 via Sound Mind Music/The Orchard. The follow-up to 2005's "Suspended Animation" features guest musicians Mike Portnoy (SONS OF APOLLO, ex-DREAM THEATER) on drums and Dave LaRue (DIXIE DREGS) on bass. The effort marks the first time Petrucci and Portnoy recorded together in over a decade, as well as their first time playing together since Portnoy departed DREAM THEATER.