UPDATE: You can order the album in our web shop.

READ REVIEWS HERE

Hey Ayreonauts! Most of the Ayreon-related internet action is now to be found on Arjen’s Facebook page, but below you’ll find the basic info on the new Ayreon album “The Theory of Everything.”

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 begins 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 story

It is available in 4 editions, including an exclusive 5-disc limited edition, as well as 2LP vinyl

The DVD for the special and limited editions features two and a half hours of behind the scenes content

Release date 28 October, 2013

Signed copies are 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.”