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Review:
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After a short respite into a different side project
called Guilt Machine, Arjen Lucassen returns to the familiar
ground of Star One. This time out it’s called Victims of
the Modern Age. It has been seven years since the Live On
Earth album was released. It was worth the wait, no surprise
there. This is not predictable and quite unlike its previous
lineup and sound.***
Arjen is brilliant once again, isn’t he always? Just
when you think he is due for some kind of let down, a project
that his longtime fans won’t like so much, he puts it all
to rest in a heartbeat. Arjen gives his listeners something
to enjoy with a few new twists and turns but mainly it rocks
and that is the most important factor. ***
Victims of the Modern Age is another multi-dimensional
star studded affair that maintains a theme from start to
finish complete with heavy metal guitars, driving spacey
keyboards, all the great music you would expect from an
Arjen Lucassen project. The theme or concept if you will
is not too hard to figure out from the title. What transpires
are the ravages of time and the ecological breakdown of
mother earth and all its trappings that bring us to our
eventual demise as a human race. Arjen has been professing
the eventual takeover of our technology driven society and
our inevitable demise for a long time (“It All Ends Here’),
warning of our self destruction (note the ominous mushroom
cloud on the colorful futuristic cover), and the fear of
waiting for that one maniacal futuristic god that falls
from the sky to push the button and end it all. He is like
a modern day Jules Verne writing a script for the future
that does not seem too farfetched at this point. Do note
in his stories that he always leaves the door open for man
to make things right (“24 Hours”), he always did. Let’s
hope in the present real world we will wake up before it’s
too late.***
Besides the genius of Arjen Luccassen steering his
troops into a space metal galaxy once again you have some
familiar names that are part of the crew. The ever changing
vocal parts and music that matches each unique voice and
character, are handled by Damian Wilson (Original Star One
crew member, Threshold, Headspace), Russell Allen (Symphony
X), Floor Jansen (ex-After Forever, ReVamp), Dan Swanö (Nightingale,
Second Sky, ex-Edge of Sanity) and some special guests on
the bonus disc including Tony Martin on “Closer To The Stars”
(formerly of Black Sabbath).***
The first disc is full of energy and fat metal power
chords. Tracks like the catchy yet divergent “Digital Rain”,
“24 Hours” and “Alive, She's Alive, We're Alive” will get
inside your head and will refuse to leave. Then the “bonus”
disc is just as good as the main CD and continues in the
same fashion, in fact I enjoyed it even more. “Two Plus
Two Equals Five” is an amazing track. The hypnotic drones
of the guitar and deep undertow of the bass and drums pushes
the unique “from the bowels of hell” vocals from guest vocalist
Rodney Blaze to make it the most unique track on the entire
set. You know, I can hear Ronnie James Dio (god rest his
soul) singing some of these songs. Just imagine how glorious
that would have been?***
You have to love the way they wrap this set up with
the ELP classic “Knife Edge” (courtesy of Damian, Arjen,
Floor and Russell). Arjen and his band do an amazing workup
of that song and it’s a fitting way to close the curtain
on yet another flight across the heavy metal prog universe.
There is no getting around it; the more you listen to this
music the more it digs its way into the fiber of your soul
and cover tracks like “Knife Edge” is just the icing on
the proverbial prog rock cake. Time to climb aboard the
Star One flight again; it’s the only way to fly!
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