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'."
To the Quasar
Ayreon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Within a distant nebula in the Taurus zodiac
I hear the wailing of a star, the weak pulse of a fading sun
All its fuel is burning out and its light will fade to black
I can't ignore its hopeless shout as it fires its death cry out in space
A fleeting moment of glory in time and space
A supernova resounds, a desperate symphony
Leaving behind a beacon fallen from grace
Lift your head up to the sky
And hear the faraway cry of a dying star
I heard its message from afar
A frequent surge of sight and sound
We approach the fallen neutron star
Spinning round and round and round
We attend this cosmic mass and we hear its sad lament
But even stars and planets pass in this cold and everlasting place
Lift your head up to the sky and hear the cry...
"We have encountered a quasar in the constellation Virgo. But does it really contain a
black hole, the portal to our final destination?"
(b)Quasar 3C273
Heading off into the core of a newborn galaxy
We have reached a brilliant star-like source of energy
This cosmic spectacle of radiance was formed
Fifteen billion years ago when the universe was born
To the quasar
Beyond the Milky Way
The red shift is high, a bright light in the sky
To the dark star
Beyond the light of day
The gravity's high, a black sun in the sky
3C273
As we approach the sea of light I'm forced to close my eyes
I can feel the vibrant waves of centuries go by
Then the pull of an unseen force is tearing us away
Could it be we found the entrance to our passageway?
The song "To The Quasar" by Ayreon describes a journey through space that encounters various cosmic phenomena, beginning with the Taurus Pulsar. The lyrics describe the wailing and desperate symphony of a dying star, the fleeting moment of glory that occurs during a supernova, and the sadness that comes from witnessing celestial bodies pass away in the vastness of space. The journey then takes the listener to the Quasar 3C273, a source of energy that was formed 15 billion years ago during the birth of the universe.
The lyrics of the song invite listeners to lift their heads up to the sky and listen to the cries of the dying stars, an invitation that speaks to our human fascination with the vastness and beauty of the cosmos. As the journey approaches the Quasar 3C273, the lyrics describe the feeling of being pulled towards an unseen force, leaving open the possibility that this cosmic phenomenon may contain the portal to the final destination of the journey.
Overall, the song's lyrics celebrate the beauty, mystery, and sadness of the cosmos, inviting listeners to connect with the wonder and awe that comes from gazing up at the night sky and contemplating the vastness of the universe.
Line by Line Meaning
Within a distant nebula in the Taurus zodiac
I hear the wailing of a star, the weak pulse of a fading sun
I can hear the cries of a dying star from a nebula in the Taurus constellation. Its life is fading and its pulse is weak.
All its fuel is burning out and its light will fade to black
I can't ignore its hopeless shout as it fires its death cry out in space
The star's fuel is depleting, causing its light to eventually disappear into the darkness of space. Its cries of lamentation fill the void.
A star in Taurus lights up and outshines the galaxy
A fleeting moment of glory in time and space
A supernova resounds, a desperate symphony
Leaving behind a beacon fallen from grace
A star in Taurus briefly shines brighter than the galaxy, before it dies and becomes a supernova. Its final song is a symphony of loss, leaving only a fallen star as a memory.
Lift your head up to the sky
And hear the faraway cry of a dying star
I heard its message from afar
A frequent surge of sight and sound
We approach the fallen neutron star
Spinning round and round and round
We attend this cosmic mass and we hear its sad lament
But even stars and planets pass in this cold and everlasting place
Lift your head up to the sky and hear the cry...
Looking up towards the sky, one can hear the distant cries of a dying star. The message can be heard from afar and the song is a consistent reminder of its impending doom. As we approach this cosmic mass, we hear its sorrowful tune. However, even stars and planets are not permanent in the vast, unyielding universe.
"We have encountered a quasar in the constellation Virgo. But does it really contain a
black hole, the portal to our final destination?"
As we journey through the galaxy, we come across a quasar in the Virgo constellation. We question whether or not it holds a black hole, potentially leading us to our final destination.
Heading off into the core of a newborn galaxy
We have reached a brilliant star-like source of energy
This cosmic spectacle of radiance was formed
Fifteen billion years ago when the universe was born
Venturing towards the center of a newly-formed galaxy, we discovered a star-like source of energy, a breathtaking sight of radiant light. This cosmic wonder was created billions of years ago during the universe's inception.
To the quasar
Beyond the Milky Way
The red shift is high, a bright light in the sky
To the dark star
Beyond the light of day
The gravity's high, a black sun in the sky
3C273
Journeying beyond the Milky Way, we come across a quasar where the red shift is high, causing a bright light in the sky. We also find a dark star beyond the light of day, where gravity is intense, resulting in a black sun. This region is called 3C273.
As we approach the sea of light I'm forced to close my eyes
I can feel the vibrant waves of centuries go by
Then the pull of an unseen force is tearing us away
Could it be we found the entrance to our passageway?
As we draw closer to the sea of light, it becomes blinding and we are forced to shut our eyes. The waves of energy flow through us, carrying the events of centuries past. Suddenly, we feel an inexplicable force pulling us in. Have we found the entrance to our passage to another realm?
Contributed by Olivia W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Leiana Emília
Portuguese Lyrics ;-)
Nota: Segundo a wikipédia, o termo "desvio para o vermelho" (em inglês redshift) corresponde a uma alteração na forma como a frequência das ondas de luz é observada no espectroscópio em função da velocidade relativa entre a fonte emissora e o receptor observador.
Para o Quasar
"Estamos a caminho do quasar, um objeto tão brilhante quanto uma galáxia. Nossa esperança é que o quasar pode conter uma fonte insondável de poder e perigo em seu centro ... um buraco negro."
"Em nossa jornada, recebemos as emissões de rádio de um pulsar - uma estrela de nêutrons implodida."
[Andi Deris, Lana Lane]
[A. O PULSAR DE TOURO]
Dentro de uma nebulosa distante no zodíaco de Touro
Eu ouço o lamento de uma estrela, o pulso fraco de um sol que se apaga
Todo o seu combustível está queimando e sua luz vai se apagar.
Eu não posso ignorar o seu brado sem esperança enquanto dispara seu grito de morte no espaço
Uma estrela em Touro se ilumina e supera a galáxia
Um momento fugaz de glória no tempo e no espaço
Uma supernova ressoa, uma sinfonia desesperada
Deixando para trás um farol caído da graça
Levante a cabeça para o céu
E ouça o grito distante de uma estrela moribunda
Eu ouvi sua mensagem de longe
Um surto frequente de visão e som
Nós nos aproximamos da estrela de nêutrons caída
Girando e girando e girando e girando
Nós assistimos a esta massa cósmica e ouvimos seu lamento triste
Mas até estrelas e planetas passam neste lugar frio e eterno
Uma estrela em Touro se ilumina e supera a galáxia
Um momento fugaz de glória no tempo e no espaço
Levante a cabeça para o céu e ouça o choro ...
[ "Encontramos um quasar na constelação de Virgem. Mas ele realmente contém um
buraco negro, o portal para o nosso destino final? " ]
[B. QUASAR 3C273]
Indo para dentro do núcleo de uma galáxia recém-nascida
Nós chegamos a uma fonte de energia brilhante como uma estrela
Este espetáculo cósmico de radiação foi formado
Quinze bilhões de anos atrás, quando o universo nasceu
Para o quasar (Para o quasar)
Além da via láctea
O desvio para o vermelho é alto, uma luz brilhante no céu
Para a estrela negra (Para a estrela negra)
Além da luz do dia
A gravidade é alta, um sol negro no céu
3C273
Quando nos aproximamos do mar de luz, sou forçado a fechar os olhos
Eu posso sentir as ondas vibrantes dos séculos passarem
Então a força de uma força invisível nos rasga
Será que encontramos a entrada da nossa passagem?
Para o quasar (Para o quasar)
Além da via láctea
O desvio para o vermelho é alto, uma luz brilhante no céu
Para a estrela negra (Para a estrela negra)
Além da luz do dia
A gravidade é alta, um sol negro no céu
3C273
Io Io
Lyrics in italiano:
"Stiamo seguendo la rotta verso il quasar,
un oggetto splendente come la galassia.
La nostra speranza è che il quasar
possa contenere una smisurata sorgente di energia e pericolo al suo centro
un buco nero"
"Nel nostro viaggio riceviamo una emissione radio di una pulsar,
una stella di neuroni implosa"
[A. Il Pulsar del Toro]
All'interno di una nebulosa distante nella costellazione del toro
odo il lamento di una stella, il debole pulsare di un sole che sta svanendo
Tutto il suo carburante sta bruciando e la sua luce sfumerà in nero
non posso ignorare il suo grido senza speranza
mentre brucia la sua morte grida nello spazio
Una stella nel Toro si accende e splende più della galassia
un attimo sfuggente di gloria nel tempo e nello spazio
una supernova risuona, una simfonia disperata
lascia indietro un faro caduto nella grazia
Alza la tua testa verso il cielo
e ascolta il pianto lontano di una stella morente
Ho ricevuto il suo messaggio da lontano
un improvviso sovraccarico di cose e suoni
ci stiamo avvicinando sulla stella di neuroni cadente
girando intorno ancora ed ancora
Assistiamo questa massa cosmica e ascoltiamo il suo triste lamento
ma anche stelle e pianeti si alternano in questo posto freddo ed eterno
Alza la tua testa verso il cielo e ascolta il grido...
"Abbiamo incontrato un quasar nella costellazione della Vergine.
Ma conterrà davvero un buco nero,
il portale per la nostra destinazione finale?"
[B. Quasar 3C 273]
Diretti nel cuore di una galassia appena nata
abbiamo raggiunto una forma di energia brillante e simile a una stella
questo spettacolo cosmico di radiazioni è stato generato
quindici miliardi di anni fa quando nacque l'universo
Nel quasar
oltre la Via Lattea
Lo spostamento verso il rosso è elevato, una luce brillante nel cielo
Verso la stella nera
oltre la luce del giorno
la gravità è elevata, un sole nero è nel cielo
3C 273
Non appena raggiungiamo il mare di luce sono obbligato a chiudere gli occhi
posso sentire l'onda vibrante dei secoli passare
poi la pressione di una forza imprevista ci porta via lontano
forse abbiamo trovato l'ingresso per la nostra destinazione?
Nel quasar
oltre la Via Lattea
Lo spostamento verso il rosso è elevato, una luce brillante nel cielo
Verso la stella nera
oltre la luce del giorno
la gravità è elevata, un sole nero è nel cielo
Santiago Castro Moreno
Este disco es increíble, cuanto más lo escucho más me gusta. Una autentica obra maestra.
Leiana Emília
Portuguese Lyrics ;-)
Nota: Segundo a wikipédia, o termo "desvio para o vermelho" (em inglês redshift) corresponde a uma alteração na forma como a frequência das ondas de luz é observada no espectroscópio em função da velocidade relativa entre a fonte emissora e o receptor observador.
Para o Quasar
"Estamos a caminho do quasar, um objeto tão brilhante quanto uma galáxia. Nossa esperança é que o quasar pode conter uma fonte insondável de poder e perigo em seu centro ... um buraco negro."
"Em nossa jornada, recebemos as emissões de rádio de um pulsar - uma estrela de nêutrons implodida."
[Andi Deris, Lana Lane]
[A. O PULSAR DE TOURO]
Dentro de uma nebulosa distante no zodíaco de Touro
Eu ouço o lamento de uma estrela, o pulso fraco de um sol que se apaga
Todo o seu combustível está queimando e sua luz vai se apagar.
Eu não posso ignorar o seu brado sem esperança enquanto dispara seu grito de morte no espaço
Uma estrela em Touro se ilumina e supera a galáxia
Um momento fugaz de glória no tempo e no espaço
Uma supernova ressoa, uma sinfonia desesperada
Deixando para trás um farol caído da graça
Levante a cabeça para o céu
E ouça o grito distante de uma estrela moribunda
Eu ouvi sua mensagem de longe
Um surto frequente de visão e som
Nós nos aproximamos da estrela de nêutrons caída
Girando e girando e girando e girando
Nós assistimos a esta massa cósmica e ouvimos seu lamento triste
Mas até estrelas e planetas passam neste lugar frio e eterno
Uma estrela em Touro se ilumina e supera a galáxia
Um momento fugaz de glória no tempo e no espaço
Levante a cabeça para o céu e ouça o choro ...
[ "Encontramos um quasar na constelação de Virgem. Mas ele realmente contém um
buraco negro, o portal para o nosso destino final? " ]
[B. QUASAR 3C273]
Indo para dentro do núcleo de uma galáxia recém-nascida
Nós chegamos a uma fonte de energia brilhante como uma estrela
Este espetáculo cósmico de radiação foi formado
Quinze bilhões de anos atrás, quando o universo nasceu
Para o quasar (Para o quasar)
Além da via láctea
O desvio para o vermelho é alto, uma luz brilhante no céu
Para a estrela negra (Para a estrela negra)
Além da luz do dia
A gravidade é alta, um sol negro no céu
3C273
Quando nos aproximamos do mar de luz, sou forçado a fechar os olhos
Eu posso sentir as ondas vibrantes dos séculos passarem
Então a força de uma força invisível nos rasga
Será que encontramos a entrada da nossa passagem?
Para o quasar (Para o quasar)
Além da via láctea
O desvio para o vermelho é alto, uma luz brilhante no céu
Para a estrela negra (Para a estrela negra)
Além da luz do dia
A gravidade é alta, um sol negro no céu
3C273
Bianca Turner
it gets very interesting at minute 3:30 love that part over and over again. Arjens finest <3
Wicked Child
YES! It’s my favorite part of the song too!
ThePirouliette
U're damn rite Barbara(Streisand) ! From 3:49 to 4:20 it sounds like Threshold at its best, Fairlight pads fit perfectly with this beat.
Reinaldo Parra
This song makes me fly in the space!
Revyl Okesh
Gotta love all the synths on this track!
Eugen Sechel
That moment at 4:20 when everything turns into cosmic chaos <3
Gor Gar
@ThePirouliette that's just a continuation of the same theme as before, the riff at 4:20 definitely breaks it up.
ThePirouliette
you must be kidding !! The climax starts at 3:20 and reaches its peak at 3:49