| Band
Members: |
Arjen “Ayreon” Lucassen / electric
and acoustic guitars, bass guitar, analogue synthesizers, Hammond,
Mellotron, additional keyboards |
Devon Graves (Dead Soul Tribe) as 'Agony'-Vocals
- Devin Townsend (SYL) as 'Rage' -Vocals
Eric Clayton (Saviour Machine) as 'Reason'-Vocals
|
| Band
Members: |
Mikael Åkerfeldt (Opeth) as 'Fear' -Vocals
Magnus Ekwall (The Quill) as 'Pride' -Vocals
Heather Findlay (Mostly Autumn) as 'Love' -Vocals
Mike Baker (Shadow Gallery) as 'Father' - Vocals
|
Irene Jansen (Karma) as 'Passion' - James LaBrie (Dream
Theater) as 'Me' --Vocals
Marcela Bovio (Elfonia) as 'Wife'-Vocals
Marcela Bovio (Elfonia) as 'Wife'
Mike Baker (Shadow Gallery) as 'Father' -Vocals
Arjen Lucassen (Ayreon) as 'Best Friend' -Vocals
|
| The
Review |
PROG ROCK GOES BROADWAY:
One thing's for sure: you can't
fault Ayreon mastermind Arjen Lucassen for inadequate ambition.
"The Human Equation" is Lucassen's most recent opus, a full-frontal
opera featuring an all-star cast of modern prog-rock stalwarts
performing his drama of an accident victim's internal coma
monologue as he works his way back to life over 20 days, as
represented by the 20 tracks of this 2 CD set. *****
Your appreciation of this work depends
strongly on your level of tolerance for the conceit of Lucassen's
big ideas and their execution. Let's grant up front his skill
as a composer, arranger & musician; the production is impeccable,
the musicianship is beyond reproach. In every way, this is
a "big screen" movie for your ears, with plenty of hi-fi drama
encompassing most of the stylistic conventions we have learned
to associate with progressive rock. In starring roles, Lucassen
casts the ubiquitous Dream Theater frontman James LaBrie as
the unnamed protagonist, working out his emotional "issues"
subconsciously as his body fights to come back from a car
crash. His Lorelai is Mostly Autumn's Heather Findlay, beguiling
as ever in the role of "Love," which (needless to say) is
the redemptive force beckoning him back to Life As We Know
It. *****
For me, this is a work with some
real high points. Lucassen is definitely capable of memorable
riffs, especially the rollicking "Day 7: Hope," and several
other moments among the other tracks that grab and hold your
attention, or echo back in your mind at odd moments as you
try to recall exactly whose song that was. His troupe of performers
(singers from bands I'm unfamiliar with, Elfonia, Saviour
Machine, The Quill, Dead Soul Tribe, Karma, Shadow Gallery)
perform with full gusto and surely earn their paychecks ungrudgingly.
*****
But again, I come back to my central
reservation: how much of a prog-rock Broadway show can you
stomach? I have to say that for me, not much--no amount of
sweaty riffing and high-gloss production can offset the inherent
kitschola this whole undertaking is tainted with. I suppose
it's sort of like pro wrestling or Jerry Springer as a cultural
divider--either you accept and appreciate its peculiar conventions
and take them to heart, or you roll your eyes and keep looking
for some other fount of musical expression. Put me in the
latter camp. *****
"The Human Equation" to my ears,
is the prog-rock equivalent of a PBS pledge drive special.
It's a big, "star studded" overwrought production entirely
too eager to impress you with its Big Idea pretensions and
stagey hokum. It's like a big puppy wagging its tail and eager
to gain your approval, hoping to win you over by virtue of
its shiny coat and big brown eyes. I mean no asperity to those
who favor this sort of thing; but to me such overabundant
precocity is contrary to the fierce pioneering individualism
of progressive rock that keeps it interesting for me.
"Human Equation," by contrast, is
a Michael Flatley roadshow playing Scranton, PA.
|
