In 2016, The Neal Morse Band's drummer Mike Portnoy and bandleader Neal Morse had their biggest ever falling-out while making the album The Similitude Of A Dream, a double-length concept record inspired by John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress. Morse was determined to tell the full story across two discs, but Portnoy resisted extending the project once the first disc was finished, pushing the pair to what they later described as an impasse where both effectively walked away. The clash matters because it nearly derailed a record that both musicians and fans came to regard as one of their finest achievements.

The dispute centred on creative direction and scope, with Morse's prolific songwriting drive (he reportedly wakes at 5am full of musical ideas) clashing with Portnoy's reluctance to commit to a longer, more ambitious project. Despite both men "kind of quitting" at the height of the disagreement, they ultimately resolved their differences and completed the double album, which was released as the band's second record and went on to be celebrated as a high point in their catalogue.