In his latest (2013) release, The Theory of Everything, Arjen unveils a completely revamped conceptual universe for Ayreon. Gone are the complicated story lines featuring sci-fi, aliens and time-travel; in their place is a real-world drama set in the here and now.
Wrapping up the original Ayreon saga with ‘Epilogue: The Memory Remains’, a track on the ‘Timeline’ boxed set, Arjen took a creative hiatus from Ayreon to focus on other projects including Guilt Machine, Star One and his solo record ‘Lost In New Real’. And yet something kept calling him back to Ayreon. Determined to revamp and revitalize the Ayreon universe, Arjen spent 18 months crafting a simpler yet by no means less extravagant new record. Summing up the new concept, Arjen explains, “it takes a look at the fine line between genius and madness, focusing on the conflicting desires of the characters and the consequences of following their passions. It’s not science fiction, but a human story set in a science context.”
- The Theory of Everything features a stellar cast of guests, with members past and present of Nightwish, Lacuna Coil, Kamelot, Genesis, Yes, ELP, Asia, Toehider, Grand Magus, and Ancient Bards (see below)
- It is a double album
- It covers a completely new story line for the Ayreon universe
- It comprises four 20-plus minute “epics” divided into 42 separate tracks
- It’s a true Rock Opera with a dramatic, real-world storyline
- It is available in 4 editions, including an exclusive 5-disc limited edition, as well as 2-LP vinyl
- The DVD for the special and limited editions features two and a half hours of behind the scenes content
- Official release date is 28 October, 2013
- The 5-disc Limited Edition is currently sold out in Arjen’s shop, but signed copies of the vinyl and Special Editions are are still available in Arjen’s webshop
Arjen ran a series of “guess the musician” contests via Facebook. You can see all of the videos on his Youtube channel.
GUEST MUSICIANS
Vocalists
(in order of appearance)
JB (Grand Magus) as The Teacher
Sara Squadrani (Ancient Bards) as The Girl
Michael Mills (Toehider) as The Father
Cristina Scabbia (Lacuna Coil) as The Mother
Tommy Karevik (Kamelot, Seventh Wonder) as The Prodigy
Marco Hietala (Nightwish, Tarot) as The Rival
John Wetton (Asia, King Crimson) as The Psychiatrist
Instrumentalists
Ed Warby (Hail of Bullets, Gorefest) – drums
Rick Wakeman (Yes) – keyboards
Keith Emerson (Emerson Lake and Palmer) – keyboards
Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater) – keyboards
Steve Hackett (Genesis) – lead guitar
Troy Donockley (Nightwish) – Whistles, Uilleann pipes
Ben Mathot (Dis) –violin
Maaike Peterse (Kingfisher Sky) – cello
Jeroen Goossens (Flairck) – flute , bass flute, piccolo, bamboo flute and contrabass flute
Siddharta Barnhoorn – orchestrations
Michael Mills (Toehider) – Irish Bouzouki
Wilmer Waarbroek – backing vocals
Arjen Anthony Lucassen – electric and acoustic guitars, bass guitar, mandolin, analog synthesizers,
Hammond, Solina Strings
Track Listing
CD1
PHASE I: SINGULARITY (23:29)
1 Prologue: The Blackboard
2 The Theory of Everything part 1
3 Patterns
4 The Prodigy’s World
5 The Teacher’s Discovery
6 Love and Envy
7 Progressive Waves
8 The Gift
9 The Eleventh Dimension
10 Inertia
11 The Theory of Everything part 2
PHASE II: SYMMETRY (21:31)
12 The Consultation
13 Diagnosis
14 The Argument 1
15The Rival’s Dilemma
16 Surface Tension
17A Reason To Live
18 Potential
19 Quantum Chaos
20 Dark Medicine
21 Alive!
22 The Prediction
CD2
PHASE III: ENTANGLEMENT (22:34)
1 Fluctuations
2 Transformation
3 Collision
4 Side Effects
5 Frequency Modulation
6 Magnetism
7 Quid Pro Quo
8 String Theory
9 Fortune?
PHASE IV: UNIFICATION (22:20)
10 Mirror Of Dreams
11 The Lighthouse
12 The Argument 2
13 The Parting
14 The Visitation
15 The Breakthrough
16 The Note
17 The Uncertainty Principle
18 Dark Energy
19 The Theory of Everything part 3
20 The Blackboard (reprise)
DVD content
(special and limited editions only)
- Feature: The Making of The Theory of Everything (47:49)
- Full length interviews with Arjen, Cristina Scabbia, Tommy Karevik, JB, Sara Squadrani, Marco Hietala, Mike Mills, and Ed Warby (Total time 1:31:19)
- Time lapse clips of recording sessions (total time 12:56)
The artwork for the album cover (top of page) was painted by Belgian artist Jef Bertels, who has painted all of the Ayreon covers since Into the Electric Castle. Additional artwork for the album booklet is by Christophe Dessaigne, who also designed the Star One “Victims of the Modern Age” and Guilt Machine “On this Perfect Day.”