[Live Review] Ayreon at An Amazing Flight Through Time – 30th Anniversary, 013, Tilburg

Has it really been thirty years since Ayreon debuted with The Final Experiment? Are we really that old? Apparently so because this weekend it was celebration time.

Once every couple of years, the city of Tilburg transforms into Ayreon city to celebrate the works of progressive metal maestro Arjen Anthony Lucassen (or should that be Sir Lucassen; the man was knighted earlier this year) through a plethora of special events. There will be bars hosting Ayreon karaoke, there will be concert film screenings, special Ayreon themed dinners and craft beers and much more. The main draw, however, are Ayreon concerts themselves. Since Arjen doesn’t tour, and basically can’t tour with a production this big and a cast of many well-known musicians, it only makes sense for the fans to grab their suitcases and go to Tilburg. This year, five concerts were given (two a day over the weekend) and a massive crowd gathered from over 71 different countries. Of course, we were there.

The venue on this Sunday evening, the last of five shows that sold out in record time, is of course packed. The queue outside 013 basically starts near the front doors and winds its way around the block, swerving through several streets and alleys to eventually end at the entrance where you get your tickets scanned. Luckily it’s dry, the temperature is still pleasant and everyone seems in good spirits. Inside, we find ourselves a good spot on the stairs where the view on the podium is good and ground ourselves there for the rest of the night.

It’s 20:30 sharp when Mike Mills enters the stage to ask if we can keep our phones in our pockets (most people comply, with only a small picture being taken here and there at times) and the Dream Sequencer Sequence (from The Universal Migrator) loads on a large screen and we are greeted by a hologram telling us that the systems are online and to enjoy the ride. It’s classic Lucassen sci-fi stuff and it’s great. After the intro, we launch into My House on Mars and, all the way from the debut album, Sail Away to Avalon, where Maggie Luyten will almost make you forget Barry Hay, who sang the original back in the day. Both songs are the start of what will become an evening that’s very heavy on the goosebump moments.

We are then treated to Green and Cream (from the Guilt Machine album), the new, spruced up version of Days of the Knights from Arjen’s first solo album that has just been re-released and a number of other deep cuts. The visuals are impressive all over with a large screen showing computer generated clips that tie in to the song’s lyrics and two side screens that connect to what’s happening in the centre. All musicians are impressive, with standouts being the always reliable Damian Wilson, “new guy” Dino Jelusick who makes a huge impression and of course well-known Ayreon collaborators like Marcela Bovio, Anneke van Giersbergen and Robert Soeterboek, who makes an entrance quite late in the evening during The Castle Hall. It’s also nice to see Heather Findlay back on the stage.

The first half of the show focuses mostly on stuff that’s never been played live before, and with deep cuts from Arjen’s other projects popping up as well, things can get confusing or even boring for the more casual fan. There was a moment in the middle of the first half where things even became a tad obscure for me, with a lot of the material coming from later records. I know the material, have those records at home but they just don’t hit as hard as the first few. Arjen’s albums are always very good, but the later ones tend to feel formulaic at places, but that’s a personal gripe. Lucky for me then, the second half is a big greatest hits fest, with a large focus on Into the Electric Castle and The Human Equation.

The show grinds to a halt then to allow the big man on the stage to say a few words of thanks, together with Joost, who basically organises these weekends, or at least has a very large hand in all of it coming together. A few words are also dedicated by a visibly emotional Lucassen to Edward Reekers, or “the voice of Ayreon” as Arjen himself calls him, who fell incurably ill just before these concerts and therefore, understandably, couldn’t be here. We end the evening with Set Your Controls from the first Star One album and two cuts from The Human Equation, where, during Day Two: Isolation, the entire cast joins together on stage for a grand finale.

For me personally, somehow, this was the first time seeing one of these Ayreon concerts live (I did however go to the Star One concert back in 2002) and I had a phenomenal evening. The phone-free vibe did a lot for the immersion, and both the sound, visuals and performances were excellent. I for one can’t wait to revisit the evening through the eventual release on Blu-ray and vinyl. Until that time I guess we’ll just have to make do with one of man’s many, many other releases from the last thirty years.

Setlist: