I've first heard of Ayreon due to James's involvement and bought The Human Equation. I'm almost ashamed to admit now that I didn't like it at the first listen but the second time was the slap in the face and punch in the guts I so much deserved and needed. It's such addictive music, great composition, perfect choice of singers and instrumentalists, the limited edition is one of the most beautiful album box sets I've ever seen, and maybe most importantly Arjen seems to be pretty much the kind of person I tend to immediately be friends with, a quirky Prog-Trek-Nerd, much like I am myself!
I really love DT but I wouldn't really know what to say to them as a group in a meet and greet or similar situation (that's why I'm not interested in M&Gs) beyond something like "thanks for the great work, continue doing what you love, maybe take more time off and more time to demo individual ideas before mashing them together, have a great concert, bye". Maybe that would be different with the individual members outside the group context. Despite being a vocalist and guitar player, I guess JR would be the kind of personality and sense of humour I would be most compatible with for an interesting conversation.
But with Arjen, whose approach to making music is somewhat similar to what I like to do, I could probably chat away for at least a few weeks: Music and bands in general, guitars and amps and other instruments, influences, (sci-fi) movies and TV shows, different singing styles, science, technology, (cover) art and design, music toys, computer games, cats, space exploration, and quite possibly a lot more. I haven't met the guy and without him touring with his projects it's highly unlikely but I'm sure it would be great fun.
The Human Equation was the best album of the decade 2001 to 2010 for me and I like 01 a lot too. So I'm very much looking forward to The Theory Of Everything.
Greetings...
Nef