AYREON was born two decades ago Arjen was suddenly and inexplicably overwhelmed by a compulsion to create rock-operas. This was back in the 1990s, the era of grunge and alternative rock, so the idea of releasing a rock opera was unthinkable to most sensible people. Yet history has shown that Arjen’s creative impulse was not only a personal triumph, it spearheaded a whole new era of rock operas.
Flash forward to 2010, and Ayreon has won Arjen so much critical acclaim that he can now draw from a vast pool of vocalists and musicians who are eager to work with him. The artists on an Ayreon album are all carefully hand-picked by Arjen to be the perfect musical fit for the role he has in mind. They also need to be enthusiastic about the prospect:
Every artist I contact has to be into Ayreon from the start. They have to be excited about my music, share my vision for the project and want to get involved emotionally as if it were their own. If I get the impression that they’re only ‘in it for the money’ or publicity, I will ask someone else. I simply can’t work like that!
Musically, Ayreon albums tend to be characterized by extreme opposites: brutal guitars cut to lighthearted mandolins, classic roaring Hammonds collide with screaming digital synths, and dark death grunts battle angelic celtic voices. The dramatic concepts range from fantasy (Actual Fantasy) to science fiction (01011001) to the inner landscape of human emotion (The Human Equation).
People often ask Arjen to name his favorite album, but for him “it’s impossible to say. Each album has its own special place within the Ayreon Universe.”
Я никогда не забуду, какое впечатление произвел на меня прошлый альбом голландца Arjen’а Lucassen’а - “The Human Equation”. До сих пор помню, как сидела, слушала альбом, читала параллельно тексты и не переставала удивляться, как такое можно было написать. Вообще, каждый альбом Ayreon – это маленький мир, в котором живут разные персонажи, в котором переплетаются чувства людей, взаимоотношения; это мир со своей философией и со своими законами. Мы же, каждый раз слушая альбомы этого “сказочника”, и...
Каждый раз, когда покупаешь новый диск голландского музыкального чародея Арьена Люкассена – жди сюрприза. Будь это хэви-метал-ориентированный Star One, электронный Ambeon, коллекция рок-каверов 60-х, выпущенная под вводящим в заблуждение именем Strange Hobby, или же его основное детище Ayreon, каждый раз, когда выходит альбом, это что-то абсолютно свежее и неожиданное. В этот раз Арьен решил отказаться от своих любимых научно-фантастических историй и выпустил очень неожиданный двойной альбом “Th...
Нидерланды
Flash forward to 2010, and Ayreon has won Arjen so much critical acclaim that he can now draw from a vast pool of vocalists and musicians who are eager to work with him. The artists on an Ayreon album are all carefully hand-picked by Arjen to be the perfect musical fit for the role he has in mind. They also need to be enthusiastic about the prospect:
Every artist I contact has to be into Ayreon from the start. They have to be excited about my music, share my vision for the project and want to get involved emotionally as if it were their own. If I get the impression that they’re only ‘in it for the money’ or publicity, I will ask someone else. I simply can’t work like that!
Musically, Ayreon albums tend to be characterized by extreme opposites: brutal guitars cut to lighthearted mandolins, classic roaring Hammonds collide with screaming digital synths, and dark death grunts battle angelic celtic voices. The dramatic concepts range from fantasy (Actual Fantasy) to science fiction (01011001) to the inner landscape of human emotion (The Human Equation).
People often ask Arjen to name his favorite album, but for him “it’s impossible to say. Each album has its own special place within the Ayreon Universe.”