Each Ayreon album tells a different story, but all, with the exceptions of Actual Fantasy, The Theory of Everything, and Transitus, take place in the same fictional, science fiction universe; additionally, Lucassen's solo album Lost in the New Real is also set in the Ayreon universe. Ayreon's music is characterized by the use of traditional instruments in rock music (guitars, bass guitar, drums, analogue synthesizers, electric organs) mixed with instruments more native to folk and classical music (e.g. mandolins, violins, violas, celli, flutes, sitars and didgeridoos). Lucassen writes the music and the lyrics, sings and plays most of the instruments on all of the Ayreon albums, alongside many guest musicians. His most regular collaborator is drummer Ed Warby.
Due to the project's particular nature, Ayreon live performances are rare, and no official Ayreon live show took place until 2017. Several Ayreon songs were first included in two live albums by other Lucassen bands: Live on Earth by Star One (2003) and Live in the Real World by Stream of Passion (2006).
Origins: The Final Experiment and Actual Fantasy (1995–1998)
The first Ayreon CD, released in 1995, is The Final Experiment, which has a mixture of science fiction and medieval themes. The album features thirteen singers and seven instrumentalists, most of them Dutch. The Final Experiment is often mentioned as one of the first metal operas. The album was originally titled Ayreon: The Final Experiment, with the artist listed as Arjen Lucassen, but upon re-release, the title was changed to The Final Experiment, and the artist was changed to Ayreon.
Actual Fantasy from 1996 is the only Ayreon album without a continuous story. With its individual fantasy stories, it can still be considered a concept album, though. There are only three singers and three instrumentalists on Actual Fantasy. Themes inspired by songs on this album can be found on later Ayreon releases, particularly the two Universal Migrator albums. The album did not sell as well as its predecessor.
Continuation of the Ayreon storyline (1998–2008)
The double album Into the Electric Castle followed in 1998, continuing the Ayreon storyline from The Final Experiment. The album features eight singers, each playing a role of a single character, and eleven instrumentalists. Arjen has stated that he wanted this particular album to be a more flight-and-fancy-free record, or "pure escapism" than the previous albums' more serious tones, and portrayed his characters in more of a B movie light. The album was a huge success and is widely regarded as one of Ayreon's best albums.
The twin Universal Migrator albums were released in 2000. The first album, The Dream Sequencer consists of soft, atmospheric progressive rock, whereas the second album, Flight of the Migrator, consists of a more heavy-metal theme. Both of the albums feature around ten singers supported by many instrumentalists. One of the more notable guests was Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden, who made an appearance on the Flight of the Migrator album.
Shortly following Universal Migrator came Ayreonauts Only, an album generally meant to be only for diehard fans of Ayreon. The album itself was the second to not follow a specific storyline; it instead contained alternate versions (With different vocalists or instrumentalists) of existing songs, or the original demos used when recording them. In addition, it contained a preview of Arjen's then-upcoming project, Ambeon. It is the only Ayreon album not to see re-release on InsideOut.
In 2004 came The Human Equation. As on Into the Electric Castle, there are several singers, each playing their own role. With The Human Equation, Ayreon turned away from the usual science fiction and fantasy themes with a seemingly semi-normal psychological theme.
Starting in 2004, after changing from Transmission Records to InsideOut, Arjen began rereleasing his Ayreon catalog on the new label, with enhancements ranging from basic (The Universal Migrator, issued as a two-disc set instead of two separate albums) to drastic (Actual Fantasy, "Revisited" with completely re-recorded drums, bass, synth and flute). In 2005, to coincide with the 10th anniversary of Ayreon, The Final Experiment was reissued with a bonus semi-acoustic disc.
At the end of September 2006, when Arjen's new studio was finished, he began making a new album entitled 01011001, which was released on 23 January 2008. This album was noticeably darker than previous Ayreon releases, Lucassen attributes this to a depression and his divorce in the preceding year.
On 25 April 2008, Arjen released a new Ayreon EP named Elected. The EP features two tracks from 01011001, one from The Human Equation and an Alice Cooper cover (Elected), with vocals by Arjen and Tobias Sammet.
On 16 September 2008, Arjen announced in his official website the release of Timeline, his second compilation album, that will reunite selected songs from all Ayreon albums and an unreleased one in three CDs and a DVD. The album was released on 7 November 2008 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and all of the EU on 17 November 2008. It was released in America on 13 January 2009.
Hiatus (2008–2012)
Arjen took a break from Ayreon and completed a new side project, Guilt Machine, in 2009. He also went on to release a second Star One album in 2010, and then a solo album under his own name in 2012.
The Theory of Everything and The Source (2012–2017)
The Theory of Everything was released on 28 October 2013. In 2015, The Human Equation was performed in its entirety live in an unofficial full-scale theatrical production called The Theater Equation, with Lucassen making an appearance and helping promote the project. It was performed four times, all at the Nieuwe Luxor theater in Rotterdam between 18 and 20 September. Although produced as an unofficial series of performances, it was recorded and released in June of the following year as an official Ayreon release, The Theater Equation, produced and mixed by Lucassen himself.
The Source was released on 28 April 2017, marking a return to science fiction and the Ayreon storyline. It is Lucassen's first album under his new label, Mascot Label Group.
Focus on live performances (2017–2020)
In November 2016, Lucassen announced the first ever official Ayreon concerts for September 2017, entitled Ayreon Universe. The show featured 16 singers and 11 instrumentalists, all of which had previously worked together with Lucassen on his studio albums. Unlike The Theater Equation, it consisted of unrelated songs from Ayreon performed after each other as in a traditional concert, with a few songs from Star One featured as well. One of the performances was released as a live album/DVD on March 30, 2018, titled Ayreon Universe – The Best of Ayreon Live.
On December 7, 2017, Lucassen stated that a new Ayreon concert would take place on June 22, 2018 at Graspop Metal Meeting, where they would headline the Marquee stage. It featured the same instrumentalists as the Ayreon Universe shows and most of its vocalists, along with Simone Simons and Tom S. Englund, who had never performed live with Ayreon before, and Mark Jansen and Barry Hay, who had never collaborated with Lucassen before; Lucassen himself also performed a few songs.
Between September 13 and 15 of 2019, the album Into the Electric Castle was performed in Tilburg in its entirety similarly to The Theater Equation in 2015, this time as official Ayreon performances. Fish, Anneke van Giersbergen, Damian Wilson, Edward Reekers, Edwin Balogh, and George Oosthoek returned from the original cast, alongside Ed Warby and flutist Thijs van Leer, who also performed on the original album. Simone Simons and Mark Jansen of Epica, Praying Mantis singer John Jaycee Cuijpers, Marcela Bovio, Bovio's husband and VUUR bassist Johan van Stratum, and Ex Libris members Dianne van Giersbergen and Bob Wijtsma were also featured, with actor John de Lancie acting as narrator. One of the performances was released as the live album Electric Castle Live and Other Tales on March 27, 2020.
Ayreon was supposed to headline the Night of the Prog Festival in Germany on July 18, 2020 to perform Into the Electric Castle once again, however the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Transitus (2020–present)
On May 8, 2020, Lucassen revealed on his YouTube channel that his next album would be an Ayreon album, titled Transitus and to be released the same year; the album will be released alongside a tie-in comic book.
On May 13, 2020, he announced the first member of the cast, actor Tom Baker, providing spoken vocals as the character of "The Storyteller". The rest of the cast was announced during the following week, also including Tommy Karevik of Kamelot and Seventh Wonder as the lead character of Daniel, Cammie Gilbert of Oceans of Slumber as Abby, Michael "Mike" Mills of Toehider as The Statue, Amanda Somerville as Lavinia, Paul Manzi of Arena and The Sweet as Henry, Dianne van Giersbergen of Ex Libris as The Soprano, Threshold drummer Johanne James as Abraham, Simone Simons of Epica as The Angel of Death, and Dee Snider of Twisted Sister as Daniel's Father; Marcela Bovio of MaYaN (and Lucassen's former band Stream of Passion) and Caroline Westendorp of The Charm the Fury portray a duo of characters known as the Furies.
Featured musicians include Joe Satriani and former Megadeth member Marty Friedman on lead guitars and YouTube musician Patty Gurdy on the hurdy-gurdy. Keyboardist Joost van den Broek, violonist Ben Mathot, and flutist Jeroen Goossens, all of whom had been featured on every Ayreon album since 2007's 01011001, are also returning. Juan van Emmerloot acted as drummer, making Transitus Ayreon's second album after 2000's Universal Migrator Part 1: The Dream Sequencer not to have Ed Warby on drums, as Lucassen stated that he did not originally conceive Transitus as an Ayreon album, and felt like it would need a completely different style of drummer. Although they had long lost track of each other, the he and Van Emmerloot had worked together 35 years prior, when Lucassen was part of Vengeance and Van Emmerloot was a session drummer; after becoming curious about what had happened to Van Emmerloot since their last meeting, Lucassen looked his drumming videos on YouTube and realized he would be a perfect fit for Transitus.
Etymology
Lucassen said, "Though I do like the similarity of the sound of my own name Arjen and the project name Ayreon, this is purely coincidental. Yet no one seems to believe that! Originally I called the leading character of the first Ayreon album 'Aries'. But then I had to change it because it had to fit the meter of the song. I wanted the new name to sound old fashioned because of the medieval influences, so I used the old-English sounding 'AY' (Aylesbury, Ayrshire). But I also wanted it to sound modern because of the futuristic parts ("2084") so I used 'ON' (electron, neutron, etc.), hence 'Ayreon'."
Out of the White Hole
Ayreon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And out of nowhere we materialize
From a blaze of fire to a world of ice
We folded space to a distant sun
Inside the heart of M31
On a steady course to the planet Y
The search for life has now begun
In the constellation M31
Light years away, beyond our Galaxy
I see a planet like our own
A golden sun is shining down on me
Could it be that we are not alone?
We're passing Sirrah in Alpha Pegasi
Into the atmosphere of planet Y
What will we find? Chances almost none.
Will there be life in M31?
(b) Planet Y
We're diving through the nebulae and arrive on planet Y
A hundred thousand hollow eyes are gazing at the sky
There seems to be no motion, no pleasure and no pain
No symptoms of emotion, no loss and no gain
Solar screens and cold machines are covering up the ground
Crystal covered fields of green and oceans underground
Countless different entities but they all look the same
But then one of the entities is crying out its name:
Forever...
Remember Forever...
(c) The Search Continues
It's time to leave and carry out our quest
Miles to go and things to see before we rest
We came in vain, our search is not yet done
For there's some kind of life in M31!
The lyrics of Ayreon's "Out of the White Hole" tell a story about humans discovering life in another galaxy, M31. In the first stanza, the lyrics describe the journey through space as humans move from one place to another, traveling from a world of fire to ice. They travel through M31, a constellation that is light-years away from our galaxy. The search for life begins when they reach planet Y, which orbits around a star in Sirrah's eye. The lyrics show a sense of wonder and interest in discovering something new and unique.
In the second stanza, the lyrics describe the experience on planet Y as humans dive through the nebulae to find a hundred thousand entities gazing at the sky. Despite the planet's beauty, the humans start to notice an odd sense of emptiness and stillness. The lyrics talk about the machines and screens covering the ground, and how even though there are countless entities present, they all look the same. However, one of the entities cries out its name and reminds humans to remember it forever.
Finally, in the third stanza, the lyrics express the sense of continuation and perseverance as humans prepare to leave planet Y and carry on with their quest. They acknowledge that their search for life is still not over, for there is some kind of life in M31. The lyrics leave us mulling over possibilities of the kind of life they seek out on their further travels.
Line by Line Meaning
And out of nowhere we materialize
We suddenly appear in existence.
From a blaze of fire to a world of ice
From an intense heat to a cold planet.
We folded space to a distant sun
We traveled through a shortcut in space to reach a star far away.
Inside the heart of M31
A place located in the galaxy M31.
On a steady course to the planet Y
Heading straight towards a specific planet.
Circling round a star in Sirrah's eye
Orbiting around a star in the constellation Alpha Pegasi.
The search for life has now begun
Looking for any sign of living creatures.
In the constellation M31
Located in a specific region of the universe.
Light years away, beyond our Galaxy
Far from our own galaxy, or Milky Way.
I see a planet like our own
A place that looks familiar to us, like our home.
A golden sun is shining down on me
A bright star beams light onto the surface of the planet.
Could it be that we are not alone?
Is it possible that other life forms exist out there?
We're passing Sirrah in Alpha Pegasi
Moving past a specific star in the constellation Alpha Pegasi.
Into the atmosphere of planet Y
Entering the air surrounding the planet.
What will we find? Chances almost none.
We don't expect to find any signs of life.
Will there be life in M31?
Is there a possibility of living creatures existing in this region of space?
We're diving through the nebulae and arrive on planet Y
Traveling through vast clouds of gas to reach our destination, planet Y.
A hundred thousand hollow eyes are gazing at the sky
Many creatures with empty, expressionless eyes are staring upwards.
There seems to be no motion, no pleasure and no pain
There is no indication of movement or any sense of emotion.
No symptoms of emotion, no loss and no gain
No signs of feeling, winning or losing.
Solar screens and cold machines are covering up the ground
Artificial structures and machines blanket the surface.
Crystal covered fields of green and oceans underground
Fields of green covered in crystals and bodies of water located below the surface.
Countless different entities but they all look the same
Numerous creatures with identical appearances.
But then one of the entities is crying out its name:
One of the creatures suddenly vocalizes its own identity.
Forever...
A sentiment of lasting for all time.
Remember forever...
A plea to recall something that will never fade away.
It's time to leave and carry out our quest
It's time to go and continue our journey.
Miles to go and things to see before we rest
We still have much to travel and still more to witness before we can rest.
We came in vain, our search is not yet done
Our initial attempt was pointless, but the search continues.
For there's some kind of life in M31!
There is some form of living beings existing in M31, after all.
Contributed by Riley R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Io Io
Lyrics in italiano:
"Siamo usciti dal buco bianco nella galassia M31,
conosciuta anche come Andromeda.
Vediamo un pianeta che assomiglia molto alla Terra.
Che possa ospitare la vita? E se sì chi vive lì?"
[A. M31]
E fuori dal nulla ci materializziamo
da un'incendio di fuoco verso un mondo di ghiaccio
pieghiamo lo spazio versp un sole distante
nel cuore di M31
In una orbita fissa verso il pianeta Y
ruotando attorno a una stella nell'occhio di Sirrah
La ricerca di vita è cominciata
nella costellazione M31
Anni luce fa, oltre la nostra galassia
vedo un pianeta come il nostro
un sole d'oro sta splendendo su di me
forse non siamo soli?
Stiamo superando Sirrah in Alpha Pegasi
Nell'atmosfera del pianeta Y
Cosa troveremo? Differenze quasi nessuna
Ci sarà vita su M31?
Anni luce fa, oltre la nostra galassia
vedo un pianeta come il nostro
un sole d'oro sta splendendo su di me
forse non siamo soli?
[B. Il pianeta Y]
Ci immergiamo nella nebulosa e arriviamo al pianeta Y
Centinaia di migliaia di occhi incavati fissano il cielo
Non sembra esserci movimento, piacere o dolore
Nessuna emozione, nessuna perdita nessun guadagno
Schermi solari e fredde macchine coprono il suolo
campi verdi coperti da cristalli e oceani sotterranei
Innumerevoli entità diverse che sembrano tutte la stessa
Ma una delle entità sta gridando il suo nome
Forever
Ricorda Forever
[C. La ricerca continua]
É ora di partire e continuare la nostra ricerc
Miglia da attraversare e cose da vedere prima di poterci riposare
siamo venuti per niente, la nostra ricerca non è terminata
perchè c'è qualche forma di vita su M31!
Anni luce fa, oltre la nostra galassia
vedo un pianeta come il nostro
un sole d'oro sta splendendo su di me
forse non siamo soli?
Dawnrunner42
Such an upbeat energetic groove and grand sweeping scope of vocals and lyrics; listening to it never fails to make me happy. Thank you Arjen!
Bianca Turner
Criminally underrated, I've loved this song and album from day 1❤
ThePirouliette
We meet again...
Likewise here than on To the Quasar track, that humongous rogue wave at 3:07 grounding absolutely everything around until 3:51. U know I used to listen a lot of metal bands yet, as heavy as Meshuggah or Strapping Young Lad for eg. But I mean gosh ! This beat is overwhelming, I can't help turning knobs at max when it comes.
Bianca Turner
@ThePirouliette well well we perhaps meet even more (again)
Bat Rastard
This is magnificent! Arjen, you are a legend, my friend.
Chloé Small
I read somewhere years ago that Arjen doesn't like this song ("Unfortunately not one of my best songs").
I personally enjoy it very much, and I love its connection to the Ayreon lore.
Forever... Remember Forever...
Gamma Angel
A real bummer if that's true. I would've killed to see this played live (hopefully with Timo himself). Especially for that wonderfully nasty rhythm section at 3:05
Ryer
That's really a bummer, I've slept on this song for years but it's a goddamn banger.
Edmundo Nehuellanca Carrillo
tremenda composición!
Blake K
When a bands sci-fi universe is so expansive the songs can have easter eggs
'Countless different entities but they all look the same
But then one of the entities is crying out its name:
Forever...
Remember Forever...'