Ayreon - your thoughts?

[Jax]

I was listening to The Final Experiment (still my favorite Ayreon cd) this weekend, & thought I'd ask..what do ya'll think of Ayreon? If you like them, what are your favorite cds? And what do you think of Arjen's other projects like Ambeon and Star One?

If you haven't heard Ayreon, you MUST at least go buy Flight of the Migrator, if only for 'Dawn of a Million Souls', in which our boys MJR & Russ put on most impressive performances. For the record, Russ also has a prominent part in Star One, both the studio cd and the live cd/dvd.

 

[Kenneth R.]

As I said in the other thread, Arjen is one talented dude who somehow manages to score a bunch of other talented people for every album... and then writes pretty poor lyrics and kills the otherwise good music. That's just my experience, Ayreon isn't the kind of thing I can put on and listen start to finish, which is minus points by me.

I do really like Star One (especially since the depths of Swanö's vox on it are insane) and Russell's presence as well. Ambeon is pretty cool as well in its own way. As for Ayreon songs that I like, well there's "Pain", "Loser", "Sail Away to Avalon" etc, where songs like "Childhood" just do nothing for me

 

[Jax]

Oh, I love 'Sail Away to Avalon'..and I love 'Loser', I think Bakes did a great job on that, a nice variation on his usual SG vocal style.

 

[Kenneth R.]

definitely, and I'm actually surprised I'm as disenchanted with Human Equation as much as I am, considering Arjen picked people from some of my favorite bands (Åkerfeldt, Graves, Townsend, Findlay, Bovio...etc) to be on it... I just think it has some really high points where I think damn, this is awesome, only to segue into the next song where I want to skip it because it just sounds either really cheesy (even for cheesy metal which can be a good time ) or its more narrative than music

 

[Eternal Dragon]

I have checked out dawn of a million souls. Russ sings amazingly like always, but imo the lyrics were pretty damn cheezy. It's grown on me though so thats ok. I've got NO idea how mjr pulls off the INSANE chromatic run at the end of the solo!!!! Pure genious..... I've never seen/heard anything like that run on guitar ever!

 

[ABQShredHead]

Stream of Passion is one of my faves at the moment. Lori Linstruth's playing is awesome.

I think Arjen's songwriting nears transcendency for our current era. Absolutely phenomenal all around.

 

[Kronikle66]

Arjen is my favorite musical mastermind of all time. Own all the Ayreon albums, Star One, and Ambeon. The song that sucked me into Ayreon was Isis and Osiris. The Final Experiment was my favorite album of theirs until The Human Equation came out. I loved every part of the album except the middle few tracks. Actual Fantasy never sucked me in like any of his other cds, though there are a few songs that really hit home like The Abbey of Synn, Computer Eyes, and Forevermore. Into the Electric Castle was my first thorough ass kicking into the world of metal operas. I loved it instantly, but there are a lot of weak tracks that really take away from the album. The Dream Sequencer has the coolest opening to an album I've ever heard. My House on Mars is the best song on the album. Musically, I wasn't as impressed. Flight of the Migrator, on the other hand, kicked my ass the first couple times I heard it, espescially with Dawn of a Million Souls. Then comes the masterpeice. The greatest contribution to music: The Human Equation. This is without a doubt my favorite album of all time. The only song that sucks is Day 13: Sign. Other then that, it's just a musical high from beginning to end.

Star One is badass. A little cheesy, but damn is it a fun ride, espescially High Moon. Ambeon, I don't really care for :-\.

 

[Thraxz]

Arjen is one of my favorite musical mastermind of all time.

There, fixed so I can +1.

I have checked out dawn of a million souls. Russ sings amazingly like always, but imo the lyrics were pretty damn cheezy. It's grown on me though so thats ok. I've got NO idea how mjr pulls off the INSANE chromatic run at the end of the solo!!!! Pure genious..... I've never seen/heard anything like that run on guitar ever!

+1

Damn guys, stop saying what I want to say first.

 

[proulxski]

Arjen Luccasen is aight, I find him to be a brilliant musician...However his music tends to bore me! As for favorite albums, id have to go with 'The Universal Migrator' album and perhaps 'Human Equation'! Dawn of a Million souls is a pretty bad-ass song... and yeh the chromatic run at the end of his solo os pretty fucking incredible, I think even some of the greatist guitartists are like "WTF?" Despite the fact he's stuff tends to bore me, he knows how to set the mood and environment... I think universal migrator is a good example of this, the spacey feeling... its actualy really phoenominal!!!

 

[RequiemX]

Arjen is a genius. Every Ayreon project is amazing (though I didn't quite like THE). I have troubles listening to them in the car because when it starts, I want to listen to the end. heh

I was listening to Actual Fantasy (revisted) yesterday and wow. It's just so awesome. I know it's many people's least favorite but it might be my top pick.

Cheese? Love it.

 

[ThornsOfSorrow]

I love pretty much everything that Arjen has ever done. Ayreon is one of my favorite bands, and I also love Ambeon, Star one, and Stream of Passion. Also, I'm very interested to see if Arjen will ever be able to top "The Human Equation", since that album is simply amazing.

 

[1by4by9]

Ayreon is one of my favourites after Symphony X, Blind Guardian and Evergrey. I love especially The Dream Sequencer and Flight Of The Migrator albums. They really hit the spot.

 

[Androz]

I love Ayreon, my favorite releases are Into the Electric Castle and The Human Equation, I love Ambeon and Star One too.

(Come on Kenneth, you can't complain about the cheesee lyrics being Nightingale one of your favorite bands, I really love Nightingale too, but I can't deny the Cheesy-ness)

 

[douggrz]

Ayreon/Arjen are/is brilliant, though definitely not for everyone (takes some patience to sit through ANY double album I think). The music is like a B-grade science-fiction movie gone metal - it's both hilarious and awesome, and I think the lyrics fit the music perfectly (especially on Into the Electric Castle, where the cheesiness actually ADDS to the music, in my opinion). I can see people being turned off by the cheese, but I think it's an essential part of the Ayreon sound. The Human Equation is the one exception to this, though, where Arjen clearly went for a more serious tone - a refreshing change, and well done too. Easily one of my favourite bands/groups/musicians/projects. Star One is awesome too.

 

[Kenneth R.]

The difference is that the cheesiness of Ayreon like "daddy said he'll be home soon" or "yes indeed, i see it too!" just make me laugh, while Swanö's "now i'm back in the darkness, waiting room for what's to be" etc is just cool. If you want to bust me for cheesiness: Unicorn. "I put my jacket round your body cause you're getting cold " that's about as cheese as a french bakery. still, something about the presentation in Ayreon just doesn't sit well with me, as if there are silent cues reminding you "this is a play-script, this is a play-script" rather than an album start to finish. There's some awesome stuff on it, but I itch to skip the dialog tracks...

 

[Snowmaker]

I've got more Arjen CDs than I know what to do with. 5 or 6 autographed items. Most of the CD reissues. I think the only project/CD of his I don't have is Ambeon.

I've even got a T-shirt that makes me look fat:

 

[RobbM]

What I love about Ayreon is that it really paints pictures in your mind, and really gets the imagination flowing. I don't find the lyrics to be cheese at all, they each serve a purpose, and really allow the development of different characters. Lyrics like "daddy said he'll be home soon" are actually comming from a 10 y.o., so it fits the character.

The Dream Sequencer is my all time favorite. The music, lyrics, and the story are just, for lack of a better word, awesome. Its not heavy, but more dreamy, like Pink Floyd, with some ELP and Beatles mixed in, which fits it perfectly. "..And the Druids Turn to Stone" is my favorite on that album, although I love all the songs.
The Human Equasion is right up there too. I just find it so facinating that Arjen can combine all these different types of music genres on one album and actually make it work, with the addition of one of the most creative and unique storys I've ever heard. This album perfectly illustrates his music genius. Oh, an incase anyones wondering, he doesn't always write the lyrics, he just comes up with the story line.

Ambeon has to have one of the best female vocalists I have ever heard in my life, and she was only like 14 when she did it. Plus she wrote all of the lyrics, while being guided by Arjen. I hope she get to work with him again..but right now shes busy with http://www.theendorphins.com/ .

 

[Kenneth R.]

Druids Turn To Stone is a great song.

 

[Beelzebub]

I've got more Arjen CDs than I know what to do with. 5 or 6 autographed items. Most of the CD reissues. I think the only project/CD of his I don't have is Ambeon.

I've even got a T-shirt that makes me look fat:

Nice legs

I like Ayreon a lot but I have to admit that I find myself bored with some of the aforementioned interludes between incredibly amazing songs.

 

[Horus]

For me, like would be an understatement when reffering to Ayreon. Arjen Lucassan is one of my songwritinmg idols. Flight of the Migrator is one of the best albums I've ever heard. The songs on that are brilliant, as well as the guest musucians on it. Amazing album, from an amazing songwriter.