The Human Equation

Last updated
The Human Equation
Ayreon - Human Equation.jpg
Studio album by
Ayreon
Released25 May 2004
RecordedOctober 2003–March 2004
Genre Progressive metal [1]
Length102:14
Label Inside Out Music
Producer Arjen Lucassen
Ayreon chronology
Universal Migrator Part 2: Flight of the Migrator
(2000)		The Human Equation
(2004)		 01011001
(2008)
Arjen Anthony Lucassen chronology
Live on Earth
(2003)		The Human Equation
(2004)		 Embrace the Storm
(2005)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Laut.de Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
Plattentests.de  [ de ]8/10 [3]
Rock Hard 9/10 [4]

The Human Equation is the sixth album from the progressive rock project Ayreon by Dutch musician Arjen Anthony Lucassen, released on 25 May 2004 via Inside Out Music. As with other Ayreon albums, it features guest appearances from several musicians previously unrelated to the project, including James LaBrie of Dream Theater, Mikael Åkerfeldt of Opeth, Eric Clayton of Saviour Machine, and Devin Townsend, performing music arranged and written by Lucassen.

Contents

As with nearly every Ayreon album, it is a concept album with each character being portrayed by one singer. However unlike previous albums, The Human Equation is not a sci-fi story but takes place almost entirely in the mind of a character called Me (played by LaBrie) who is in a coma after a car crash, with each song consisting of one day spent in coma. While his Wife (Marcela Bovio) and Best Friend (Lucassen) are at his side in the real world, Me, trapped in his own mind, encounters representations of his own feelings and recalls his life from his childhood to his crash.

The album was released in three different editions: a regular edition with two CDs, a Special Edition with two CDs and a DVD, and a Limited Deluxe Edition with two CDs, a DVD and a 36-page booklet. The album peaked at #7 at Dutch Albums Chart and at #50 at Germany Albums Top 50. [5] [6] The album was also released on vinyl in December 2012. [7]

The Human Equation is one of the few Ayreon albums in which Lucassen did not write all the lyrics (the others are Into the Electric Castle and The Theory of Everything ): Townsend wrote all lyrics for his character Rage, while Heather Findlay of Mostly Autumn and Devon Graves of Deadsoul Tribe also wrote some of the lyrics for their characters, Love and Agony. The albums marks the first collaboration between Lucassen and Bovio, selected by Lucassen via an internet female singing contest to play Wife. The following year, Bovio and Lucassen created together progressive/symphonic metal band Stream of Passion.

Concept and storyline

The album explores the idea of psychological rebirth, and follows the story of a man who, after falling into a coma following a car crash, is confronted with his past, his emotions, and his current situation as he lays trapped inside his own mind. The circumstances surrounding the crash are mysterious, as the man ("Me", portrayed by James LaBrie) ploughed into a tree on a deserted road in broad daylight. Following this, he slips into a twenty-day coma, with each day represented by a single song. Each song follows a slightly different format, though there are major common themes, such as the presence of Me's manifest emotions in his dream world including Fear (Mikael Åkerfeldt), Reason (Eric Clayton), and Pride (Magnus Ekwall); the presence of Me's Wife (Marcela Bovio) and Best Friend (Arjen Anthony Lucassen) at his bedside; and the past events that Me is forced to reflect on.

The plot builds from Me’s early broken state to his eventual rebirth as a new and better man. His own dark past, in which he suffered beneath an abusive Father (Mike Baker), was driven to become merciless by school bullies, and eventually betrayed his closest friend for his own benefit; is intertwined with the plot surrounding Wife and Best Friend, eventually revealing the cause of the crash: Me had witnessed the two sharing an intimate moment, and had swerved his car into a tree in his despair. The three eventually come clean and forgive each other, leading Me to conquer his negative emotions and escape his nightmarish prison.

The story terminates with a sci-fi twist in contrast to the psychodrama of the album, but reminiscent of earlier Ayreon releases. The final song cuts suddenly to silence as it crescendoes to a climax, and a computerised voice announces the shut-down of the Dream Sequencer. The voice of Forever of the Stars then speaks the final words of the album ("Emotions...I remember..."), tying its events into the overall Ayreon plot that began with The Final Experiment .

The Theater Equation

The Theater Equation is a video release of a live performance of The Human Equation in 2015.

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Arjen Anthony Lucassen except where noted; all music is composed by Lucassen

CD 1
No.TitleVocals (in order of appearance)Length
1."Day One: Vigil" Arjen Anthony Lucassen, Marcela Bovio 1:33
2."Day Two: Isolation" James LaBrie, Mikael Åkerfeldt, Eric Clayton, Irene Jansen, Magnus Ekwall, Heather Findlay8:42
3."Day Three: Pain" (Lucassen/Devin Townsend )Devon Graves, LaBrie, Devin Townsend, Findlay4:58
4."Day Four: Mystery"Lucassen, Bovio, Jansen, LaBrie, Ekwall, Findlay, Graves5:37
5."Day Five: Voices"Ekwall, LaBrie, Clayton, Findlay, Åkerfeldt7:09
6."Day Six: Childhood"Graves, LaBrie, Åkerfeldt5:05
7."Day Seven: Hope"Lucassen, LaBrie2:47
8."Day Eight: School" (Lucassen/Townsend)Åkerfeldt, LaBrie, Townsend, Graves, Ekwall, Clayton, Jansen4:22
9."Day Nine: Playground" (Adaptation of Edvard Grieg's "Morning Mood")instrumental2:15
10."Day Ten: Memories"Lucassen, Bovio, Ekwall, Findlay, Jansen, Clayton3:57
11."Day Eleven: Love"LaBrie, Findlay, Jansen, Ekwall, Graves, Åkerfeldt, Bovio4:18
Total length:50:20
CD 2
No.TitleVocalsLength
12."Day Twelve: Trauma"Clayton, Åkerfeldt, Graves, Jansen, Ekwall9:54
13."Day Thirteen: Sign" (Lucassen/Heather Findlay)Findlay, Bovio, LaBrie, Lucassen4:47
14."Day Fourteen: Pride"LaBrie, Ekwall, Clayton4:42
15."Day Fifteen: Betrayal"Åkerfeldt, Graves, Clayton, Jansen, LaBrie5:24
16."Day Sixteen: Loser" (Lucassen/Townsend) Mike Baker, Townsend4:46
17."Day Seventeen: Accident?" (Lucassen/Devon Graves)Clayton, Bovio, Graves, Jansen5:42
18."Day Eighteen: Realization"Clayton, LaBrie, Jansen, Ekwall, Findlay, Graves, Åkerfeldt, Lucassen, Bovio4:31
19."Day Nineteen: Disclosure"Lucassen, Bovio, Findlay, Jansen, LaBrie4:42
20."Day Twenty: Confrontation"Lucassen, LaBrie, Bovio, Findlay, Graves, Jansen, Clayton, Ekwall, Åkerfeldt, Peter Daltrey 7:03
Total length:51:41

Disc 2 has ten four-second and one nine-second hidden tracks which introduce "Day Twelve: Trauma".

DVD (Special and Deluxe editions)
No.TitleLength
1."Inside" (behind the scenes)45:27
2."Concept" (the concept of The Human Equation)3:05
3."Drums" ( Ed Warby's drums)3:32
4."Video" (videoclip of "Day Eleven: Love")3:49
5."Teaser" (teaser trailer)1:28
Total length:57:25

Personnel

Charts

Chart (2004)Peak
position
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [5] 7
French Albums (SNEP) [8] 160
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [6] 50

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ayreon</span> Dutch progressive rock/metal project

Ayreon is a musical project by Dutch songwriter, singer, musician and record producer Arjen Anthony Lucassen. Ayreon's music is described as progressive rock, progressive metal and power metal sometimes combined with genres such as folk, electronica, experimental and classical music. The majority of Ayreon's albums are dubbed "rock operas" because the albums contain complex storylines featuring a host of characters, usually with each one being represented by a unique vocalist.

<i>Into the Electric Castle</i> 1998 studio album by Ayreon

Into the Electric Castle – A Space Opera is the third album of the progressive metal project Ayreon by Dutch singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Arjen Anthony Lucassen. Released in 1998, it was the band's first double album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arjen Lucassen</span> Dutch musician

Arjen Anthony Lucassen is a Dutch singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist musician and record producer, best known for his long-running progressive metal/rock opera project Ayreon. Lucassen started his career in 1980 as the guitarist and backing vocalist of Dutch heavy metal band Bodine as Iron Anthony, before joining Vengeance in 1984. After eight years he left the band, wanting to go into a more progressive direction, and released two years later an unsuccessful solo album entitled Pools of Sorrow, Waves of Joy under the nickname Anthony.

<i>Universal Migrator Part 1: The Dream Sequencer</i> 2000 studio album by Ayreon

Universal Migrator Part 1: The Dream Sequencer is a progressive rock album released in 2000 by Dutch multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Arjen Lucassen, and is the fourth album of his Ayreon project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stream of Passion</span> Dutch progressive metal band

Stream of Passion is a Dutch progressive metal band with symphonic and gothic influences founded by guitarist and composer Arjen Anthony Lucassen and Mexican singer, violinist, and lyricist Marcela Bovio. They have released four studio albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcela Bovio</span> Mexican singer

Marcela Alejandra Bovio García is a Mexican singer and violinist who is currently a member of the Dutch symphonic death metal band MaYaN.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johan van Stratum</span> Dutch bassist (born 1982)

Johan van Stratum is a Dutch bassist and a member of the progressive metal band VUUR.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Day Eleven: Love</span> 2004 single by Ayreon

"Day Eleven: Love" is the fourth single by Ayreon, released on 2004, from their album The Human Equation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loser (Ayreon song)</span> 2004 single by Ayreon

"Loser" is a song by Arjen Anthony Lucassen's progressive rock/metal opera Ayreon, originally released under the title "Day Sixteen: Loser" as a part of the 2004 album The Human Equation. It is the fifth track of the second disc, and the sixteenth track of the overall album. It was later released as the fifth single by Ayreon under the new title "Loser"; this version, very different, features several new musicians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Come Back to Me (Ayreon song)</span> 2005 single by Ayreon

“Come Back to Me” is the fifth single by Arjen Anthony Lucassen's progressive rock/metal opera Ayreon, released on 2005 from its sixth album, The Human Equation, in which the song was called “Day Seven: Hope”.

<i>Timeline</i> (Ayreon album) 2008 compilation album by Ayreon

Timeline is the second compilation album by Dutch progressive metal project Ayreon. It was released in November 2008 in Europe. It was also released in North America in early 2009. The album features three CDs containing selected songs from all Ayreon albums, and a DVD featuring live performances, video clips and behind-the-scenes.

Elfonía was an experimental rock band with elements of progressive and ambient music. It was founded by Alejandro Millán and Marcela Bovio in 2001 following the leaving of their previous band, Hydra.

Guilt Machine is a musical project by Dutch musician Arjen Anthony Lucassen, owner of other musical projects such as Star One, Ayreon and Ambeon. The project's debut release, On This Perfect Day, was released in August 2009.

<i>The Theory of Everything</i> (Ayreon album) 2013 studio album by Ayreon

The Theory of Everything is the eighth studio album from Ayreon, a progressive metal/rock opera project by Dutch musician Arjen Anthony Lucassen, released on 28 October 2013.

<i>The Theater Equation</i> 2016 live album by Ayreon

The Theater Equation is a live album and DVD/Blu-ray by Arjen Anthony Lucassen's progressive rock/metal rock opera project Ayreon. The Theater Equation originally consisted of a four live performances, with cast, choir and small orchestra, of the 2004 album The Human Equation, as an actual rock opera, complete with mise-en-scène. It is the first Ayreon live release, although Ayreon songs had previously been featured on live albums by two of Lucassen's other musical projects, and marks the first time an Ayreon album was performed live in its entirety. The Theater Equation consisted of four shows, all played in Rotterdam between September 18 and 20, 2015, with the last performance being the one recorded for the album.

<i>The Source</i> (Ayreon album) 2017 studio album by Ayreon

The Source is the ninth studio album from Ayreon, a progressive metal/rock opera project by Dutch musician Arjen Anthony Lucassen, released on 28 April 2017. It is Lucassen's first album under his new label, Mascot Label Group.

<i>Ayreon Universe – The Best of Ayreon Live</i> 2018 live album by Ayreon

Ayreon Universe – The Best of Ayreon Live, alternatively known as Ayreon Universe – Best of Ayreon Live or simply Ayreon Universe, is a live album and DVD/Blu-ray by Arjen Anthony Lucassen's progressive rock/metal rock opera project Ayreon, released on 30 March 2018. Unlike Ayreon's first live album The Theater Equation, which was a stage performance of the album The Human Equation, Ayreon Universe was performed as a traditional concert, with two additional songs from Star One, another project by Lucassen. It was recorded during a series of concerts in September 2017, which were the first ever official Ayreon concerts, although The Theater Equation was released as an official Ayreon product.

<i>Electric Castle Live and Other Tales</i> 2020 live album by Ayreon

Electric Castle Live and Other Tales is a live album and DVD/Blu-ray by Arjen Anthony Lucassen's progressive rock/metal rock opera project Ayreon, released on 27 March 2020. It is a live version of the 1998 studio album Into the Electric Castle, performed as an actual rock opera, complete with mise-en-scène; it is a recording of one of four live performances between 13 and 15 September 2019 in Tilburg to celebrate the original album's 20th anniversary in a way similar to The Theater Equation, with songs from other Lucassen projects performed once the songs from the albums were all performed.

<i>Transitus</i> (album) 2020 studio album by Ayreon

Transitus is the tenth studio album by the Dutch progressive rock/metal band Ayreon. It was released on 25 September 2020. The album is accompanied by a 25 page comic book, not included with CD or vinyl, and illustrated by Felix Vega.

<i>Revel in Time</i> 2022 studio album by Star One

Revel in Time is the third studio album by Arjen Anthony Lucassen's progressive metal project/supergroup Star One, released via Inside Out on 18 February 2022.

References

  1. ↑ "The 100 Greatest Prog Songs Of All Time". Prog Magazine . March 26, 2018. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  2. ↑ ""The Human Equation" von Ayreon – laut.de – Album".
  3. ↑ "Ayreon - The human equation • Plattentests.de-Rezension".
  4. ↑ "Rock Hard - AYREON - The Human Equation".
  5. 1 2 "Dutchcharts.nl – Ayreon – The Human Equation" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 15, 2015.
  6. 1 2 "Offiziellecharts.de – Ayreon – The Human Equation" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  7. ↑ "Ayreon vinyl editions : ArjenLucassen.com". www.arjenlucassen.com. Archived from the original on 2012-11-28.
  8. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Ayreon – The Human Equation". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 15, 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.