Ayreon/Arjen Lucassen Thread (Star Three on the way)

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Yea I know what happened but honestly Bruce performance on ItBH was such a welcome surprise so I would love a second collab even if the chances are very slim. Not that I didn't recognize Bruces talent but somehow his voice just worked so well in that song. I do think that Arjen is a really good producer and knows what buttons to push in order to get the best of his guests vocalists, then again it might have also been a song that fitted Bruces voice really well.

[Zook]

According to Wikipedia, Arjen spoke about the Star One colab too soon and Bruce's manager pulled to plug. Did Bruce want it to be a surprise or something? I don't see the problem. They were well on their way.

[Ben_Jamin]

It makes it more understanding that this album is set before 01....Like right after 2084 and hopefully it'll transition right into 01..

But I feel the story of the war and the forever's. If so, this is the album I'm anticipating.

He's got a mix of THE and 01 in one...of the best...how much awesome can you get...

[MirrorMask]

Excited for Hansi!  always been a massive Blind Guardian fan.

[ErHaO]

Another guitar solo is teased. I have no clue who this is, but it (again) sounds great 

[Evermind]

I guessed Guthrie Govan, but I have no idea, really.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Paul Gilbert and Guthrie Govan!  What's next a Satriani and Steve Vai duet? 

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Ohh I recognized the voice instantly but still I couldn't figure it out but of course it's Tobias Sammet.

[Kwyjibo]

Nice addition. Both of them doing things kinda similar, they should collaborate on a better project than that one off Elected EP.

[ErHaO]

While I really like Avantasia and do love some of Sammet's performances, I am typically not very fond of his voice (one of the reasons why I don't really like Edguy but love Avantasia, I guess). Still, he has a very recognisable voice that fits Ayreon perfectly.

[Kwyjibo]

Almost all of the time when Arjen chooses a singer he makes the best use of his or her voice. So even if I don't like them personally (as I said above about Hansi Kürsch) they almost always add something good to the whole project.

The only one that was criminally underused was Daniel Gildenlöw on 010101010. Not that he was bad sounding but he sometimes wasn't hardly recognizable.

[Ben_Jamin]

Wow that last Sample of Tobias Sammet sounded epic as hell.

[ErHaO]

Wow that last Sample of Tobias Sammet sounded epic as hell.

Yes, I love that bit. Judging from the music, it is the same song as the first one in Floor's sample.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Just heard the new singer guess 3 mins after Arjen posted it, so it's a pure blind guess. Some really great samples and i'm pretty sure that's Michael Eriksen from Circus Maximus, right?

[ErHaO]

Pretty sure that's him, yes. I like his voice and after the (for me) really dissapointing CM album, I look forward to hearing him on Ayreon.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Ayreon Universe Live - 17 september 2017

 

[ErHaO]

Ayreon Universe Live - 17 september 2017

 

Will definitely try to get tickets for that!!! 

013 is a good venue too and the crowd that place attracts (mixture of Dutch, Belgian, and German) is usually pretty great.

Hopefully he will record another BR/DVD for this, I love all three Arjen Lucassen live releases quite a bit.

[ErHaO]

So I just looked in my mail and read some of the details:

The full line-up of 16 singers:
-Floor Jansen
-Irene Jansen
-Marco Hietala
-Russel Allen
-Damian Wilson
-Hansi Kürsch
-Tommy Karevik
-Jonas Renske
-Anneke van Giersbergen
-Mike Mills
-Marcela Bovio
-Robert Soeterbroek
-Edward Reekers
-Jan van Feggelen
-Magali Luyten
-Lisette Marije

The band:
-Ed Warby (drums)
-Arjen himself (guitar, singing?)
-Marcel Coenen (lead guitar)
-Johan van Stratum (bass)
-Ferry Duijsens (guitar)
-Joost van den Broek (keyboards)
-Ben Mathot (violin)
-Jeroen Goossens (flutes, woodwinds)
-Maaike Petersen (cello)

Ayreon and Star One songs will be played.

I mean, damn, that is one mighty line-up for a concert. I kind of expect some of these singers to be on the new album as well (Russel, Karevik, Marco, Damian?). Russel Allen won the votes for what singer the fans want on the next Ayreon, so I expect that one at the very least.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

   What a line-up! So cool that so many enjoy working with Arjen and have time to do it.

Russell, Damian, Marco, Anneke and Tommy and everyone else.... That will be one helluva party!

[Nick]

Okay, so here's the deal. I'm still pissed I missed The Theater Equation, and I want to be at this, badly.

Is anyone here near a major market that is looking to travel to this? I'd be looking to fly into like Berlin, London, Paris, etc and then travel with someone for both shows to help keep my costs down.

[Evermind]

This is interesting. I might even attend one or both shows since I will most probably be in Germany in September, but I don't think I'm going to grab the tickets now. I'm pretty sure this will sell out as quickly as The Theater Equation did, but I'm also pretty sure there will be plenty of spare tickets around. The fact the most tickets (except the VIP ones) are General Admission ones also encourages me to wait.

Also, maybe the locals can help me out: are there any trains to get back to Germany after the (second) show or the only options are to leave early or to travel back next morning?

[Elite]

Trains in the Netherlands are frequent, but in the evenings you're going to be out of luck. There is probably no way you can get to Germany that same night.

I'm considering to get a ticket as soon as sales start, but since that's at 10:00am, I will be working then. How quickly did the Theater Equation sell out? I know we're not talking about Adele or Beyoncé here, but I would be sad if this sells out before I've even had the chance to get a ticket.

[Evermind]

Trains in the Netherlands are frequent, but in the evenings you're going to be out of luck. There is probably no way you can get to Germany that same night.

I'm considering to get a ticket as soon as sales start, but since that's at 10:00am, I will be working then. How quickly did the Theater Equation sell out? I know we're not talking about Adele or Beyoncé here, but I would be sad if this sells out before I've even had the chance to get a ticket.

I think for the Friday show it took less than an hour to sell out. When we bought our tickets we looked at what was left available and there were almost no seats left. But the sales started at 6 P.M. I think, so there's that too. Overall though, I don't think it's wise to wait until the evening if you really want to attend.

You can also subscribe to Arjen's mail newsletter so you can order the tickets a day earlier (at November 23rd). I'd say this is a must, because a lot of people are probably doing it right now.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Speaking of that line-up, I have a hunch some of those names are on the upcoming album but haven't been revealed yet. Would love to hear Reekers return or even Russell or Damian. Those 3 last singers are unknown to me, maybe they appear? Or maybe i'm completely wrong. 

[Evermind]

Both Magali and Lisette were on 01011011, and Jay van Feggelen played Barbarian on ITEC and also sang on The Final Experiment.

I do think Russell will be on the new album, though, and maybe Damian too. Also totally agree with you about Reekers, he needs to sing on Ayreon album again, it's been too long.

[Adami]

Magali is awesome! She was on a few songs on 01 such as Ride the Comet and Liquid Eternity.

[Evermind]

I agree, and she also did a good job touring with Beyond the Bridge, based on the few low-quality YouTube videos I saw.

[Nick]

Magali is one of my favorite Ayreon vocalists, especially among female vocalists. One thing I've always appreciated about Ayreon is his ability to bring the best out of vocalists, and give them room to do their best work. This applies mainly to male vocalists as I think the female vocals don't come across as distinct. Not a problem with Magali though.

[ErHaO]

013 houses 3000 people, so there will be roughly 6000 tickets available. Ultimately, this is about the same amount of people as the Theater Equation, since that show was 4*1500 seats. I think it is worth to note that quite a bit of the singers are from popular bands (for their genre) and metal concerts in 013 typically sell very well (I have seen many sold out shows there). Tickets are also way cheaper on average than for TE. But honestly, I don't know how this will sell, Dutch folks don't know Arjen Lucassen very well, even those who are into all the artists he frequently has as guests. But keep in mind 013 is fairly close for Belgian/German people as well.

I know that from Amsterdam/Rotterdam, travelling to 013 takes about 2/1,5 hours. And there are international trains (from Paris, Berlin, Antwerp) that stop fairly on the route.  Getting there is no problem, if you play it safe and leave early. The problem would (potentially) be going back, as Tilburg isn't a very large station (it's not a major city of ours) and I am not sure till how late the trains will go at that time (current plans might change). So that is something to keep in mind when planning.

[Elite]

^ all of that. I do however think that 013 is the perfect venue for this. Many a prog band has played there begore.

[Evermind]

And obviously, leaving early is not an option. Not for this kind of show.

[Ben_Jamin]

Okay, so here's the deal. I'm still pissed I missed The Theater Equation, and I want to be at this, badly.

Is anyone here near a major market that is looking to travel to this? I'd be looking to fly into like Berlin, London, Paris, etc and then travel with someone for both shows to help keep my costs down.

I'm in New Mexico, but I'd be so down. My head just exploded from the singers.

[ErHaO]

As for the unknown names, Lisette is from the Theater Equation's choir (Passion stand in), she was good at the try-out, she is a powerhouse somewhat akin to the Jansen sisters. Singer of Kayak is good as well, though Kayak has had some fame in the past (70's Dutch prog band).

^ all of that. I do however think that 013 is the perfect venue for this. Many a prog band has played there begore.

Yeah, it's one of my favourite venues and usually has my favourite crowds. I have seen Steven Wilson, Alice Cooper, Blind Guardian, Sonata Arctica, Kamelot, Wintersun/Finntroll/Turisas/Alestorm, and Van Canto there (as well as some random dance parties as a student there). From all the acts I have seen at other places as well, 013 was always the best.

People here might also know it from the Porcupine Tree and Flying Colors dvd's, though back then the venue was smaller (2000 instead of 3000).

[Ben_Jamin]

I'm seeing

Ride the Comet
Journey on The Waves of Time
The Decision Tree
01 songs


Pretty much anything other than THE

[ErHaO]

I'm seeing

Ride the Comet
Journey on The Waves of Time
The Decision Tree
01 songs


Pretty much anything other than THE

Marco, Tommy, and Mike probably means a TOE part as well.

Though I expect newer Star One songs, I would love to see the Intergalactic Space Crusaders duet with Russel and Damian in person. And offcourse Dawn of a Million Souls.