Ayreon - 01011001
A new Ayreon album is always an exciting acquaintance. Hailing from Holland, Anthony Arjen Lucassen, the Ayreon mastermind, is known for assembling an impressive assortment of singers and instrumentalists for each of his rock operas. His previous, The Human Equation, was a small masterpiece of progressive rock and metal fused together in an original, varied and even moving package. As is usually the case with Ayreon albums 01011001 is different in several ways. The most immediate difference lies in the music, which is a bit more laid back this time and uses more electronic effects to enhance the atmosphere. This suits the dark story very well but also gives the album an impression of being tightly knit together and harder to get into.

01011001 is a return to a more sci-fi themed concept and deals with evolution in an interesting way. My first impression was one of slight confusion. The multitude of singers can be daunting at first since it's not just one or two different singers for each song. The opening song has 8 different singers trading lines and so it continues through the 102 minute long album.

This is a lot to take in at once and on the first listens only a couple of songs stood out. However this changed when I sat down and read through the booklet, where the lyrics show who sings what, and really focused on the music. Suddenly it became a fascinating journey and the songs started making sense. That you are willing to take time out and really concentrate on the music is quintessential in getting the most from the album. Time and patience is however rewarded generously as the album unfolds. Not that this should be a surprise in itself, but in this day and age it is a pleasure to find an album that really challenges the listener and takes no easy routes. After this phase of getting to know the album it is possible to just sit back and enjoy it, discovering new layers with each listen.

The amount of vocalists can be a bit overwhelming. The list below will give you a short overview of the participants.

Hansi Kursch (Blind Guardian), Daniel Gildenlöw (Pain of Salvation), Tom S. Englund (Evergrey), Jonas Renkse (Katatonia), Jorn Lande, Anneke van Giersbergen (Agua de Annique, ex-Gathering), Steve Lee (Gotthard), Bob Catley (Magnum), Floor Jansen (After Forever), Magali Luyten (Virus IV), Simone Simons (Epica), Phideaux Xavier (Phideaux), Wudstik, Marjan Welman (Elister), Liselotte Hegt (Dial), Ty Tabor (King's X) and Arjen Lucassen.

Vocally things are very high class and every single vocalist is more than up for the job.

But one man manages to stand out in this high quality pack. That man is Jorn Lande. Whenever he opens his mouth on this album the result is captivating, even breathtaking. His voice really shines here in a way that took me by surprise. Right from the first song where he ad libs to Steve Lee and Daniel Gildenlöw's duet through to he and Steve Lee's final cry, Jorn Lande embellishes the album with vocal virtuosity.

Besides Jorn Lande every vocalist has his or her own standout moments on the album. Anneke has some beautiful moments in her duet with Jorn in the ambient Comatose and the way she enters the sound in Beneath the Waves is mesmerizing.
Jonas Renkse mostly brings a dreaming despair to his lines before surprising me quite a lot in the final song with a monstrous ....... well, you will hear. Steve Lee brings in a varied and impressive performance as well. Even Arjen himself delivers a great performance on a couple of songs.

Magali Luyten gives Ride The Comet and Liquid Eternity a most welcome powerful kick in their respective chorusasses. Liquid Eternity is otherwise ruled by a strong atmosphere and a wonderfully melodic instrumental bridge section halfway through. Also Jorn Lande and Floor Jansen's short duet here is.... well put.

Simone Simons and Phideaux acoustic diversion Web of Lies is a sweet little ironic diversion while Ty Tabor successfully gives his song a feeling of complacent indifference.
Daniel Gildenlöw is as always unique. Especially memorable is his opening moment of Beneath the waves where he gives the song a special sense of longing and loss.

Other vocal highlights include the duets where Floor Jansen participates. First with Hansi Kürsch in Age of Shadows, then with Jorn Lande in Beneath the Waves where two vocal deities truly clash and finally in Ride The Comet with Tom Englund, Jonas Renkse, Bob Catley and Jorn Lande.

Marjan Welman and Wudstik appear towards the end of the album where E=MC2 provides some headbanging goodness and leaves me with a surprisingly strong vision of Jean Michel Jarre.
The Sixth Extinction concludes this massive undertaking with a portent suffocating atmosphere.

The songs all have something special to offer, though some take longer than others to fully bloom. Newborn Race especially is a fantastic song. Through six varied parts the song grows and diverts in several directions. It builds tension perfectly for the exciting Ride the Comet.

Michael Romeo and Lori Linstruth guest with one guitar solo each while Joost van den Broek, Derek Sherinian and Thomas Bodin each guest with one synth solo. All do a splendid job but I naturally would have liked to have heard more where that came from.

References to earlier Ayreon albums go all the way back to "The Final Experiment" and if you have them all you just might be able to connect the dots and uncover the grand design. Another great moment also urges you to check out the Queensrÿche back catalogue.

It should be noted that listening to the album through good headphones is highly recommended at least once as the album takes on a new life in this environment.

One area where the album does not quite equal The Human Equation is the story, which I didn't find as absorbing. Also a few melody lines are not as original as usual, for example the main melody of River of time reminds strongly of Day Eleven: Love from the before mentioned album. But these are small issues in the overall view and ones that don't prevent the album from leaving a grand impression. I could go on and on and on about all the great little detail that makes the album such a delightful journey but I'd better leave the rest for your own discovery.

01011001 gets the RevelationZ stamp of outstanding quality, a big bold 01011010.

Written by Steen
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Show all reviews by Steen

Ratings

Steen: 8/10

Members: 8.5/10 - Average of 1 ratings.



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Profile pictureTommy

Rating: 8.5/10
The Ayreon moniker has grown into one of my most cherished bands and this new opus only ma... · Read more ·

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Comment by Skunkur (Member) - Sunday, January 20, 2008
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In the review you refer to "A great moment" on the CD that "urges you to check out the Queensrÿche back catalogue". I've been listening to the disk back and forth for the last few days and can't seem to find the moment. Can you give me a hint where it is?

Posted by Skunkur
Sunday, January 20, 2008

Comment by Steen (Staff) - Sunday, January 20, 2008
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I'm referring to Jorn Lande's "Listen to The Warning" in Unnatural Selection.

Posted by Steen (Staff)
Sunday, January 20, 2008

Review by Tommy (Member) - Tuesday, January 8, 2008
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Comments: 74
Ratings: 31
The Ayreon moniker has grown into one of my most cherished bands and this new opus only makes my admiration for Arjen bigger. The Human Equation was fantastic but there is just something about it when he takes the thing into space, he's a master in creating these tense and dreamy scenarios. It makes me think of favourite scenes from 2001: A Space Odyssey, Aliens, The Abyss and other great science fiction movies.
A brilliant album where Jorn Lande's divine approach sends thoughts back to his work with Beyond Twilight's first album and the amazing Burn The Sun piece by Ark.

Bob Catley and Tom S. Englund are smoking too and overall this huge project just clicks with only a few songs drifting into less interesting circulation, it gets the balance between mellowness and hardness refreshingly right.

The story has many cool and relevant aspects, but could have been more close-knit as a whole. Production is crisp but the extra something is clearly the imaginative use of 17 singers...fascinating.

Favourite tracks:

Comatose. The duet between Anneke van Giersbergen and Lande is just thrilling and the keyboard work mesmerising.

Beneath The Waves. Mystic, compelling and almost healing as it slowly takes you in.

Newborn Race. Optimising the use of seven great vocal performances into a firestorm of melodic wonders.

Unnatural Selection. The groove is just so damn heavy.

Rating: 8.5/10

Posted by Tommy
Tuesday, January 8, 2008










Review by Steen

Released by
InsideOut - 2008

Tracklisting
CD 1
Age Of Shadows
Comatose
Liquid Eternity
Connect The Dots
Beneath The Waves
Newborn Race
Ride The Comet
Web Of Lies

CD 2
The Fifth Extinction
Waking Dreams
The Truth Is In Here
Unnatural Selection
River Of Time
E=MC2
The Sixth Extinction

Supplied by Target


Style
Progressive Rock

Related links
Visit the band page

Ayreon - Official Website

Other articles
Day Eleven: Love (Single) - (Steen)

Interview with Arjen Anthony Lucassen - (Hashman)

The Human Equation - (Steen)

Band Profile - (Steen)

01011001 - (Alanna)



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