AYREON "The Day That The World Breaks Down" FIRST TIME REACTION

[@MisterJ56]

FYI: Arjen Lucassen - Composer - Dutch singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist musician and record producer best known for his long-running progressive metal/rock opera project Ayreon. SINGERS: James Labrie - Lead singer for Dream Theatre. Tommy Karevik - Lead singer of Kamelot and Seventh Wonder. Tommy Rodgers - Lead singer of Between the Buried and Me. Simone Simons - Lead singer of Epica. Nils K. Rue - Lead singer of Pagan's Mind and also worked with Eidolon. Tobias Sammet - Lead singer of Edguy & Avantasia. Hansi Kürsch - Lead singer of Blind Guardian and Demons & Wizards. Mike Mills - Multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and main songwriter for Toehider. Russell Allen - Lead singer of Symphony X (Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Allen/Lande). Michael Eriksen - Lead singer of Circus Maximus. Floor Jansen - Lead singer of After Forever, ReVamp & now Nightwish. INSTRUMENTALISTS: Joost van den Broek (ex-After Forever) - grand piano and electric piano, Maaike Peterse (Kingfisher Sky) - cello, Ed Warby - (Gorefest) drums, Ben Mathot - violin, Jeroen Goossens (ex-Pater Moeskroen) - flute and wind instruments, Arjen Anthony Lucassen - electric and acoustic guitars, all other instruments

[@TheMindofBruce]

Such an amazing piece of work by Arjen. I couldn’t believe all the singers in there.

[@tribblefluffer]

Love watching people discover this amazing song for the first time! Not many people pay attention to the actual story!

[@TheMindofBruce]

It blew my mind

[@chadbennett7873]

Welcome to Ayreon, Bruce! Arjen Anthony Lucassen is a composer on the level of Tuomas Holopainen, (two alone in the stratosphere) writing stories told in music. Ayreon is his project, along with Star One, of spce stories and it is not a band, but a collection of the finest musicians in the world. They rarely perform live, but when they do, it is a spectacle of epic purportions. Your next song MUST be "Everybody Dies" which is a live video featuring many of these singers, as it is from the same album. Arjen, although featured in this video, seldom takes the stage. when he does, it's epic, but he leaves the live performances to his friends. Joost basically manages and arranges the band for stage performances, although Arjen oversees everything. Joost was keyboardist in Floor's first band, After Forever, and Arjen basically discovered her when she was sixteen. Arjen is simply one of the finest human beings on the planet, and don't be surprised if he comments on your reaction. He's just a gift to the world!! I have everything I can find by him. Enjoy this ride, it's as classic as your Nightwish journey. BTW: The binary translates to TRUST TH-1 (the AI)

[@TheMindofBruce]

Wow that would be wild if he commented. I noticed in the video in one of his later solos, he put something to the nature of “if I had to perform this live I don’t think I’d be able to, I would have to practice, and I hate practice.” Haha that to me means Arjen just goes with what he is feeling at that moment in time and it was EPIC!

[@markschattefor6997]

@@TheMindofBruce I wouldn't be the first time he did it, in fact he came up for several people whoes reactions to his work were removed, and Arjen wanted to put them back on. And they did. His latest reaction with fans that I know of; kzbin.info/www/bejne/omqmn5See8SCi8U Not everybody "is only in it for the money". This is a conceptual continuity.

[@chadbennett7873]

@@TheMindofBruce He's a true genius, but ridiculously humble. He claims to have stage fright, so he might or might not make an appearance at a show, but he's there back stage. He might come out and introduce and close the show. There are some vids online of him singing, he's plays "The Hippie" and wears tie-dye ... he is a character of the highest order. He is gracious and kind, and watches reactions. He's not quite my age, but close enough that as a writer and poet, I'd love to just have a conversation with him over a cup of tea or the like. At the top of my bucket list is traveling to The Netherlands to see a show. They are rare, and happening around now or soon, or maybe already. It will be quite a while before another if patterns hold. So very glad you enjoyed his brilliance. "Everybody Dies" live version just has to be next - Mike Mills steals the show, but holy crap ... Arjen's Angels (backup singers) include Irene Jensen (Floor's younger sister); Marcella Bovio and Liszette van den Berg ... three of the finest singers going ... and all lead vocalists in their own projects. If you just go down the list of the bands from who performs, you have a roadmap to the next couple of years of incredible discovery!! Rock on, my friend!

[@TheMindofBruce]

@@chadbennett7873 thank you! I’m pretty excited to do a ton of research on this project, and to do Everybody Dies next. Thanks for all the details, and maybe I’ll see you at a show if I can make it to the Netherlands :)

[@matzek.3220]

The most recent shows happened on the weekend September 15th-17th. After 3 planned shows (one each evening) they had to quickly add two matinee shows bc tickets sold out so fast... Let me tell you it's a feast for ears and eyes 🎸🤘🏻! And again in his speech Arjen mentioned that people from more than 60 nationalities had bought tickets for the events. I met people from Sweden and the US (Kansas and Washington).

[@Bonovin]

Arjen L is a master to bring this to happen , and also live on stage , next song is " Everybody dies " . It is a mega collab with the best , Greetings from nwAse Sweden

[@TheMindofBruce]

Greetings! Thx for stopping by! I’ll have to check that song out next from Ayreon

[@PatrickVanDijk_NL]

@@TheMindofBruce Great! You'll see some of these great artists perform their asses off live on stage.

[@diedzjeeoudshoorn7726]

Can you imagine: in a rural part of the Netherlands there is a hermit in his attick. He happens to be one of the worlds greatest composers of modern times . He writes scifi stories and turnes them into fantastic prog rock. Next problem he faces: Who's gonne be playing the characters in my stories? That is, from the worlds best singers worldwide? Then the wonder takes place.....he writes up to 25 of this best singers worldwide and they are honoured to be invited by this master composer. Because his music is fantastic. Because he places them on the perfect spot and role in his stories, and because he is a very very cool dude and working with him is absolutely pleasant. The outcome: perfect music without any competition between the singers. No one tries to outperform the other. In the contrary, they support each other and together they are having a blast. A couple of weeks ago I was so lucky to witness this life in Tilburg, the Netherlands. A three levels high podium, filled with the top 25 singers worldwide, accompanied by the world class Ayreon band and musicians, complete with lasers, smoke, Flames, the works....In the audience more than 50 nationalities. People fly the globe over to witness this. Because of the amount of artists involved this can only be performed live once in a couple years. The concerts are sold out in literally 5 minutes. But man, what a blast. Next week the surgeon is going to remove my goose bumps. They won't go away by themselves. World class music, epic epic epic performance.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Incredible. Absolutely amazing. Thx for that, and good luck with the goosebump surgery 😹😹🤘

[@diedzjeeoudshoorn7726]

scares me to hell. Especially since they reach from my toes to my neck.... And a drip for refilling my tears. And facial reverse lift to get the corners from my mouth down again.....Maaaaaajor surgery!! @@TheMindofBruce

[@michaelnolan6951]

Yes! You are beginning to get an idea how interconnected the European Symphonic Metal/Heavy rock/Folk scene is. Arjen is a genius (and a super nice guy!) He is shy and doesn't like to perform live. He has founded multiple musical projects, often simultaneously and often sci fi themed. He attracts the most talented musicians from around the world, who often work with him on multiple projects for many years! Another vote for "Everybody dies" performed live. Set in the same story it features many of the same singers. Ot rocks! (Btw, great kitty cameo!)

[@TheMindofBruce]

Ya I was talking to my buddy last night after a concert we went to. I was talking about the Metal scene across the pond, and it’s completely different, I’m beginning to see how interconnected it is. So amazing

[@RonniePeterson]

So much talent put together by someone with so much talent himself. In your own time check out a complete Ayreon show. Its just genius.

[@TheMindofBruce]

I will have to do that. I can’t imagine Ayreon live, I’ll do Everybody Dies next

[@RonniePeterson]

Enjoy!@@TheMindofBruce

[@reactionsaccount3955]

Ayreon is the project of one man, Arjen Lucassen, which writes the music and the lyrics, makes the arrangments, etc., then invites all the best singers from European rock/metal to play the characters in the story and once every couple of years recently they do a few live shows in Arjen's home country the Netherlands. They just did a series of 5 shows for the album 01011001, that will be released next year on Blu-Ray. For now there are live performances on KZbin for the Universe and Electric Castle shows and all the performances are 🔥.

[@TheMindofBruce]

I heard they just did a live show. I can’t even imagine going to one of those

[@johnniecalhoun5381]

Arjen has known Floor since she was around 15 years old . He said that he knew she was gonna be a big artist !

[@pdutchie4924]

Hi Bruce, the whole ‘Universe’ concert is epic❣️ Just saw this live 2 weeks ago 🥳 Next one: Everybody dies’ Arjen writes prog rock opera’s and invites musicians he admires from all over the world to join him. Most of them are frontman and woman of their own band, that’s why live’s do not often happen. The binary he sings means: trust TH1

[@TheMindofBruce]

Wow, that must have been amazing. Everybody dies is next!

[@pdutchie4924]

@@TheMindofBruce it was awesome! This is my fanvideo of the opening 2 weeks ago kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZnrOaJpqj92sfaMsi=U4h2MwtPBlfMtxhh

[@merileopardisaksassa7030]

YES YES THANK YOU@@TheMindofBruce

[@jackwilbers]

The 01011001 show was just awesome. I was at the Sunday matinee show, can't wait for the Blue-Ray of the concert next year.

[@TheMateriaalkunde]

btw, the Starblade is not an entity but a starship. Built by the Captain who foresaw the ruin of planet Alpha once the computer network "The 'Frame" took over and decided that the best remedy for the ecological situation was to eliminate humanity. They do so by cutting off the supply systems. But an unexpected event occurs as the core of the powerunit melts down and Alpha itself gets destroyed. So far tells "Everybody dies." us. The story continues in "The Star of Sirrah" where the ten human survivers plus the loyal TH-1 set up to flee in the Starblade to an ocean planet. Oh boy, they have to live under the waves there and must adapt. In the process of adaptation the survivers of Alpha become more or less immortal which means they will not die of old age. Thus they call themselves the Forever.

[@CaffeineNightOwl]

this is a great reaction. arjen is a musical genius.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thank you! I agree!

[@RolandDeschain1]

The Mike Mills part is the most amazing thing I have ever seen a musician do. The word 'genius' doesn't even begin to cover it.

[@TheMindofBruce]

I agree Mike Mills crushed it. His only instruction was the lyrics, that blew my mind. I plan to do a quite a few more Ayreon pieces, and some of the artists from this piece as well!

[@jasonmarshall7572]

Arjen the creator of Ayreon is that hippy dude playing the guitar, bass guitar and keys. He also loves Sci fi and loves the television series Blake Seven. Also those 001 0010's are Binary if you translate it it spells the words: Trust TH-1. Which is the name of the Android Michael mills plays as. The word cold machine i always though meant heartless or cold hearted?.

[@TheMindofBruce]

I love sci fi as well, I think that’s why I loved this so much. I didn’t know what the binary spelled out that’s cool!

[@erwinamesz7642]

This might be one of the best reaction on TDTTWBD!!!!! You immediatly understood the story and be aware that the whole album is like a sf movie. The story continues and even the other Ayreon albums are present in the Ayreon story timeline!!!!! WE WANT MORE AYREON!!!

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thank you so much! There will be more Ayreon no question :) woohooo

[@erwinamesz7642]

@@TheMindofBruce Yes!!! Thank you sooo much!!!

[@trinadawn4166]

Nightwish army here Love Ayreon. When I saw this , I immediately wet to amazon! Got the live one as well universe.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Ya I’ll check it out. And everybody dies will be next as well

[@Drizzt_Do_Entreri]

Welcome to the ultimate rabbit hole for power and progressive music - Ayreon!

[@TheMindofBruce]

🤘🤘

[@mandje2002]

... Welcome in the amazing world of Arjen A. Lucassen Aka Ayreon Universe (Ayreon, Ambeon, Star One, Supersonic Revolution, Guilt Machine, Gentle Storm, Stream of Passion).... Enjoy this 100+ artist thick rabbit hole….!!!!! The cool thing about Ayreon is that all the albums sort of tie into the same story. 'The Source' (the album which this song is from) is technically the start of the story. It's about a race of humans that give control of their planet to a computer (the 'frame) to help solve an environmental catastrophe, but the computer determines that the best course of action is to eliminate the humans. Ten humans and the robot TH-1 escape the planet on the only interstellar ship they have (the 'Starblade') along with the ships crew and head to an ocean planet. The chemist creates a drug ('The Source', aka 'Liquid Eternity') that allows them to evolve into an 'aquatic race'. The drug also makes them basically immortal and allows them to communicate telepathically. The album ends with the survivors (ten plus the ships small crew) living on their new planet ('Planet Y') in relative peace, but in the final track we learn that TH-1 is becoming a new version of the 'frame deep in the ocean. The next album in the timeline, 01011001 ('Y') tells us how machines have now taken over this new planet, and the humans have basically merged with the machines are losing their emotions and sense of time. They now call themselves 'The Forever', since they are essentially ageless drones at this point. We also learn about how they seeded a comet with DNA and sent it to Earth, where it creates human life on our planet. The Forever believe they can live through us telepathically and that they may regain their emotions by doing so. Some of The Forever believe that we need to advance more quickly, and use their telepathy to give us medicine/technology, but this results in us advancing quicker than our morality can cope with. Eventually The Forever realize humanity is doomed and has to decide if they will give them the technology to reverse their past mistakes. Somewhere in the timeline sits the album 'The Electric Castle'From a summary by Arjen: "At the end of the journey those that successfully dealt with their personal demons find out that the voice belongs to an alien named 'Forever of the Stars', a member of an alien race living in a distant galaxy. These aliens created planet Earth and its people as an experiment so they could study, and hopefully one day experience emotions, as they themselves lost feelings eons ago." That's only three albums (less than half!) but I believe those three give you a solid foundation for how the story plays out. Also, I highly recommend any of the Electric Castle Live videos; They are just so fun to watch, plus John de Lancie ('Q' from Star Trek) plays the 'Forever of the Stars' character, which Arjen said he originally based on Q.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thanks for all the deets!

[@BrendonChase_2015]

Bruce my man, great reaction! Ayreon did the impossible and performed TDTTWBD live the other day as an encore. We were there, Sept. 16th, Saturday matinee show. Best concert ever, by a wide margin. Cheers from Amsterdam! 🤘

[@TheMindofBruce]

Oh wow! That would have been insane

[@BrendonChase_2015]

@@TheMindofBruce Oh yes it was. Ppl from 60+ different countries gathered together in Tilburg, The Netherlands, 5 sold-out shows in one weekend, a whole city devoted to Ayreon, free outdoor mini-concerts by stellar vocalists (e.g. Marcela Bovio, one of "Ayreon's Angels"). Better prepare for the Day That The Nxt Concert Comes to Town. Probably 2025, since Arjen reckons with abt 2yrs preparation. Keep in mind that Floor might return, cuz no NW tour for quite a while. So cu then & there ;)

[@TheMindofBruce]

@@BrendonChase_2015 Might have to take a trip in 2025 :)

[@noneofyerbeeswax8194]

@@BrendonChase_2015 👍In which songs did he sing (and play?) himself? O.t. Have you seen my latest exercise in trolldom? (The wordplay doesn't work in English, sadly). I hate practicing too, but I can't afford to lose the edge, you know..😜

[@BrendonChase_2015]

@@noneofyerbeeswax8194 Trolling the WoTlands or should I check elsewhere? The tall hippie dude didn't play, alas. He sang in "Connect The Dots" and "The Truth Is In Here", lying on a hospital stretcher (foreshadowing him catching the Co.. c..🦇okay: CO(n)VID-1984) 😇

[@justlittleoldme]

Wow is right, I effing love this! I first heard Ayreon a few years ago whilst painting our bedroom. I had Amazon music going with Nightwish, then it started playing similar things and this came on, well that was it, I was hooked! I also educated the neighbours into some bloody good music as the windows were open and the volume was up! 😁🤣 You might like this one from Ayreon, for me it is one of the most beautiful pieces of music out there. You'll like who's in it 😉

[@TheMindofBruce]

I love making the neighbors listen to good music 😹

[@WNYretiree]

Loved watching your face as you listened to this. Ayreon is a rabbit hole worth going down. I have a feeling you will be reacting to a lot more from Arjen and the talented people he recruits for his music.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Oh yes there will be more Ayreon on the channel :) I had fun with this one. Holy smokes it was good

[@frank1963]

Great reaction, all the usual “perpetrators” have given you enough information about Arjen and where to go next. Enjoy this extensive rabbit hole. I was one of the lucky ones, still recovering from the Ayreon concert two weeks ago.

[@TheMindofBruce]

So lucky!! I bet it was such a wonderful experience!!!

[@frank1963]

@@TheMindofBruce it’s a MUST, if only once in your life!!!

[@noneofyerbeeswax8194]

@@frank1963 Beneath the waves, you were invincible.😊

[@frank1963]

@@noneofyerbeeswax8194 🌊🤿💪

[@PomLimey]

Simply my favourite non Nightwish song. Arjen is just a genius. To put together a collaboration like this is amazing. A ten minute song that is so absorbing that it seemed like two. His guitar parts are stunning also. There are some great live songs out there featuring a lot of the singers you have just seen. “Everybody Dies” would be a good start. As usual, a comprehensive and detailed reaction. Keep up the good work.👍

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thanks so much! I will :) appreciate you all very much! :) 🤘

[@jeffhall2411]

i cant wait for the continuation with "Everybody Dies"...

[@TheMindofBruce]

🤘🤘🤘

[@robertsheeler321]

singers in order of appearance . James Labrie - Lead singer for Dream Theatre. Tommy Karevik - Lead singer of Kamelot . Tommy Rodgers - Lead singer of Between the Buried and Me. Simone Simmons - Lead singer of Epica. Nils K. Rue - Lead singer of Pagan's Mind . Tobias Sammet - Lead singer of Avantasia. Hansi Kürsch - Lead singer of Blind Guardian Mike Mills - Multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and main songwriter for Toehider. Russell Allen - Lead singer of Symphony X . Michael Eriksen - Lead singer of Circus Maximus. Floor Jansen - Lead singer of After Forever, ReVamp & now Nightwish. May I suggest their song "Everybody Dies" its a live performance - kzbin.info/www/bejne/b3KkiaeLmbJqrqc

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thank you!! I really loved Michael Eriksen, I heard a few of the other bands but I might have to dig into Circus Maximus

[@zemkluth9427]

Welcome to the Ayreon Universe. Don't be surprised if Arjen (pronounced ar-yun) himself comments on your video. He loves watching new listeners discover what he does. Ayreon just had a new Ayreon Universe concert a few weeks ago - I can't wait for the DVD!

[@TheMindofBruce]

🤘🤘 thanks! Can’t wait to dive in some more!

[@mascha28swinkels]

❤ Ayreon and Arjen’s other projects , the albums are amazing both story and music wise. And the live shows always make me smile 😊 everyone performing is just so happy being there and doing what they love with people they normally don’t get to make music with 🧡

[@TheMindofBruce]

Can’t wait to do a live version. Probably gonna revisit Ayreon in a week or 2. Got to keep expanding and getting into more and more stuff. So exciting!

[@Ireksojkowski]

Hello, nice reaction, I don't know if you know that Floor has her own prehistoric beetle, "Scientist Andreas Weigel discovered a new species of beetle last year and named it "Tmesisternus floorjansenae". The singer was extremely happy to have a six-legged namesake", best regards

[@TheMindofBruce]

That’s wild I had no idea she had a beetle named after her. That’s pretty cool

[@Ireksojkowski]

@@TheMindofBruce 🤘

[@senacht]

Ayreon is a music project. The participants list reads like a who’s who of Euro Metal. They’re all stars in their own right with bands of their own. This is basically what used to be called a rock opera. The genre is generally referred to as progressive metal or “prog.”

[@TheMindofBruce]

🤘

[@treintje1001]

I think a new Ayronaut has been born! Welcome to the Ayreon Universe! They occasionally play live and at this point there are two live DVD’s and a third one will be coming up shortly. Most of the footage is available on KZbin and I suggest you start with ‘Everybody dies’ or ‘Age of shadows’, both from the Ayreon Universe concert from 2017 which is basically a Greatest Hits show. The Ayreonauts will guide you in your journey. Have fun!

[@TheMindofBruce]

Oh yes, a new Ayronaut in the house! Or should I say universe!

[@BrendonChase_2015]

I concur. Those two recommendations are solid 👍

[@noneofyerbeeswax8194]

@@BrendonChase_2015 The age of shadows has beegun.🐝

[@martinklaus2203]

Hell yeah bro. Great stuff!!!!!! Now you need to react to Ayreon Live, performing Everybody Dies, and Valley Of The Queens.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Yessss! It’ll happen! 🤘🤘

[@martinklaus2203]

🤘😝🤘@@TheMindofBruce

[@richardhall6034]

Hi from the UK 👋 🇬🇧 division of the Ayreon army as you like sci fi you might like these songs from Ayreon Ayreon universe everybody dies live Ayreon universe intergalactic space crusaders live ( its a homage to the British sifi series blakes 7 from the early 1980s) Ayreon universe the eye of Ra live ( inspired by the film stargate) Enjoy 😊

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thank you! Everyone keeps suggesting everybody dies so that’ll probably be my next Ayreon song! :)

[@Mars-is4un]

🤗🍒🤘🏻 well done Bruce

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thank you kindly 🤘🤘

[@Maketheplays]

🤘🤘🤘

[@TheMindofBruce]

🤘🙏

[@wangtang7768]

Thx for the reaction Bruce !! When I saw you were doing this I knew you’d have a field day with it lol , btw I seen someone had deciphered the binary code 🤘🏼💥🤘🏼

[@TheMindofBruce]

Ya they did. Oh it was an experience for sure! Epic!! 🤘🤘🤘

[@merileopardisaksassa7030]

Check out 'Everybody dies' from 'Ayreon Universe live'! You can find it right here on KZbin. I think 8 sings are featured in it! Ayreon is the best! They played a few gigs 'live beaneth the waves' about 2 weeks ago and finished with this song :D Because the theme was another album it wasn't the original singers, but there were 19 singers, including Hansi from Blind Guardian & Irene Jansen (Floor's sister) and many of the OGs, featured! All the instruments are live too which is bonkers! The fans were insane too, standing in line for 8 plus hours and a constant line at the merch stand. I'm serious, it took 1 hour to get into the merch stand at all times for all 3 days of the event. I got an autograph and photo from several, including Hansi, my beloved

[@TheMindofBruce]

That’s incredible!! I can’t imagine how many people were in that line lol. That is a wild sight to see live, and congrats on the Hansi autograph :) I want to see Blind Guardian, hopefully they come stateside in the future

[@greywuuf]

Cold as is un feeling ......they gave controll to the machines. Cold is a descriptor of devoid of emotion.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Ya, I realized that afterwards. I initially thought they made a machine to turn the world back to the iceage to kill all biological life.

[@greywuuf]

@@TheMindofBruce stranger things have been proposed ;)

[@TheMindofBruce]

@@greywuuf hahaha. 😹😹🤘

[@ikkeschopkont]

Every album is a story. You are going to love the albums. 😊 I've seen the album 01011001 played live last month. And I am still in awe.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Stoked 🤘🤘

[@Sauro7482]

Please Please Please! React to the entire Ayreon Universe live concert! You'll love every minute of it! Imagine this video but an entire concert of your favorite singers and an insane band backing them!

[@TheMindofBruce]

Oh yes! I plan on it! I was blown away by this. I think I’ve showed all my friends lol

[@Sauro7482]

Can't wait! I watch the whole thing like once a month it's so good! You'll be amazed!@@TheMindofBruce

[@Zozo-K-]

Ayreon is not a “band,” per se, but one of the many musical projects of Dutch composer/multi-instrumentalist/producer Arjen Lucassen. All Ayreon albums are concept albums that tell a story, and Arjen recruits top-notch vocalists from all over the world to sing the parts of the different characters in the story. Floor and her sister Irene are frequent participants. Due to the logistics of getting everyone together in the same place at the same time, live performances are very few and far between. Luckily, the few that have taken place have been preserved on video. I’d recommend the live version of “Everybody Dies” as a good next step.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Ya I gathered it’s more of a project than a band after reacting to the video, but I love the concept so much. Everybody dies will be next for sure, the live version. I can’t imagine how hard it would be to gather all these incredible artists at the same time to do this live.

[@richardwest6358]

Arjen was, in fact, one of the first to recognise Floor, and her sister Irene's, talents and has regularly used them both in his shows since the early 2000s

[@TheMindofBruce]

@@richardwest6358 that’s impressive. I can’t wait to dive into more of this project. Sheeesh

[@nanns77]

Of course the idea and compositions are excellent, but you couldn't go wrong with so many great musicians.

[@TheMindofBruce]

🤘🤘

[@elvwood]

Hey, fun reaction, you picked up a lot of the story/character roles, especially for a first listen! One thing: I believe the "cold machine" tag is because it's an emotionless (or at least callous) mainframe computer causing the disaster, rather than a global cooling device. Anyway, maybe do the live version of _Everybody_ _Dies_ next?

[@TheMindofBruce]

Everybody dies is next for sure!! 🤘🤘

[@djdoubleyouab3568]

You missed out almost 30 years of Ayreon music😆 A lot to discover, and it is worth it ..

[@TheMindofBruce]

I missed so much music lol. So glad I started this channel so you all can show me epic stuff like this!!

[@martintucker187]

One of the most enjoyable reactions I've seen for a while! Well done. Hi from AUS.😉 🤘

[@TheMindofBruce]

Hey! That means a lot! Thx for watching and commenting :) 🤘

[@robynturnham2706]

Hi to you to from Aus.

[@R---66---R]

Yeah, well...ofcourse I subbed immed! T O P reaction we got here! Greetz from NL.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thanks!! Welcome!

[@theglanconer6463]

Hell yeah, Arjen is one of our great composers (he loves old school Terminator) And bloody hell Hollywood if you want to make some money why not take a listen to Arjen and 'his' poets and musicians. Slainte from the Netherlands my friend !

[@TheMindofBruce]

Im so glad this was recommended. It’s such a good song and Arjen is amazing

[@JAYWALKER1000]

Proceed to the live performance of Everybody Dies.

[@TheMindofBruce]

That’s next on the list!

[@robynturnham2706]

'Starblade' is the Captain's spaceship that will help them escape Alpha. Space Metal/Prog Rock, what more could you want.

[@TheMindofBruce]

I really couldn’t ask for more LOL. It is incredible

[@OlettaLiano]

This is just the first track of the album. The rest of the album is just as awesome. By Cold Machine he meant the computer is totally unfeeling with no mercy for the humans.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Ya I initially thought it was a machine turning the world to an ice age to kill all biological life lol

[@marcusfranconium3392]

Just imagine this project doing live shows . they are mythical and spoken of in hushed words , as they are sold out with out advertisement just by word of mouth and few personnel mesages of Arjen Lucassen him self.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Oh ya I could see this project selling out in seconds.

[@marcusfranconium3392]

@@TheMindofBruce As it happens there was a concert only a a few weeks /days ago . Ayreon is huge in tallent As more than 80 singers, artist and even actors took part in in this project and side projects ranging from dee snider, burce dickenson , davy townsend to floor and irene jansen Fish ( marilion ) to name a few of them . Its just a great project where every one wants to be part of .

[@danburrito]

Not sure if anybody has mentioned it already, but "Starblade" is the space ship that the Alphan's are taking to flee the planet.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Ya, it’s been mentioned, thank you tho! 🤘🤘 can’t wait to do some more Ayreon

[@scottanderson7302]

Ayreon is a project by Arjen. All the musicians and vocalists involved collaborate on each album and can change with each of them. But mostly are the same ones. Its not as much a commercial endeavor as much as a "hey lets see if we can pull this off" kind of thing. The talent that comes together for this is crazy. And the live shows are rare but said to be life changing. I would recommend the live performance of Everybody Dies from the same album.

[@TheMindofBruce]

That’s the most recommended, so it’ll be next from Ayreon! Thank you 🤘

[@djdoubleyouab3568]

Thomas Holopainen, Arjen Lucassen, Tobias Sammat, the classic composers of the future. Our Grand Grand children will study their music 😁👍

[@TheMindofBruce]

I have to agree. I have to check out some of Tobias’s work. I don’t know if my ears have been graced by his work yet. So glad I finally got to hear Arjen’s work. Much more to come on the channel!

[@02TEN]

Well, you can start with Avantasia's (Tobias Sammat) 'Misplaced among the angels' , with Floor Jansen .....@@TheMindofBruce

[@roblaw4554]

Oh yeah, another rabbit hole...DIVE! Nice react, just keep 'em coming. For the Ayreon course, ANYTHING from Universe is worth your attention. (and then you could go through all the amazing album tracks) Do. More! Cheers rl 🤘👹🤘

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thanks! Will do!🤘🤘

[@peterang6912]

If you watch closely you can say that Tommy Karevik sings with his hands in this video and the complete album is on YT and is around 1.20 minutes long

[@TheMindofBruce]

I’ll take a look. 🤘

[@StergiosMekras]

So... yeah. Now you need to watch Everybody Dies (ironically, the live version)

[@TheMindofBruce]

🤘🤘

[@pauld6222]

If you love SyFy, eventually you will want to watch his live rock opera called Electric Castle Live and Other Tales. The story is narrated by the one and only John de Lancie. Its so good!

[@TheMindofBruce]

🤘🤘 I’ll def check that one out

[@jackwilbers]

@@TheMindofBruce Be sure to start at the, well, the start. As this concert is one big story. kzbin.info/www/bejne/kGe8d5Wdgt-ekLs

[@pekkakarppinen1608]

Yes, this is a true intergalactical Masterpiece!. Excellent casting of singers, and then there's Floor 💗👸. The genius behind all of this is "The Tall Hippie Dude", Arjen Anthony Lucassen, the tallest known rock musician (203 cm). Haha, l have a 17 years old tabby too. 🐈⛄👍

[@TheMindofBruce]

Aww, I love kitties :) and music haha! I noticed Arjen called himself a hippie in the video lol

[@MikeyMike1999]

I loved this so much, when does Everybody Dies drop??

[@TheMindofBruce]

Soon :)

[@JAYWALKER1000]

Dutch singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer, Arjen Lucassen, creates these projects ("rock operas") and he can get just about any singer and any musician he wants because they all want to work with him - even the Queen Valkyrie.

[@erwinmulder1338]

Some clarifications: The 'Starblade' is a spaceship that the Captain was planning to use to escape the planet. And not unlike the biblical Noah and his ark, people scoffed him and thought the Captain was overreacting, but now doomsday is here, people are suddenly all ears. The binary part of TH-1 (the ship's computer) spells 'TRUST TH-1'. Also 'a cold machine' is just a way to indicate that a machine has no emotions, devoid of empathy and 'warmth'.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thanks!

[@chriso6719]

Been looking forward to this one.🤘🤘. 🐈🐈LOL. You lit up when you saw Simone. I'm thinking , wait until he sees Floor.😁 A prog rock/metal opera project of Dutch musician Arjen Anthony Lucassen. He writes the songs and invites guest singers and musicians to play them. Mostly a studio project , they have put together a few live shows, the latest was last month in The Netherlands. He writes concept albums, telling a story across multiple records. The Source is the first chronologically in the story arc. TDTTWBD is the 1st song on the record. Basically about AI taking over. Yep, trying to fix the environment, the machine they created decides the best way, is to eliminate humans. Starblade is the space ship a few use to escape the planet. Yes, Mike Mills character is a machine. The binary that he sings translates to Trust TH-1, TH for his band Toehider. Sir Joost van den Broek, seen here on grand piano, is a musician and producer himself, is one of the people he works with often. He was the keyboardist in After Forever (04-09) with Floor, played with and produced ReVamp(Floor's band before Nightwish), and has produced the last 3 EPICA albums, and more. He does a lot of work on the live Ayreon shows too. The 11 vocalists are: James LaBrie (Dream Theater) as The Historian Tommy Karevik (Kamelot, Seventh Wonder) as The Opposition Leader Tommy Rogers (Between the Buried and Me) as The Chemist Simone Simons (Epica) as The Counselor Nils K. Rue (Pagan's Mind) as The Prophet Tobias Sammet (Edguy, Avantasia) as The Captain Hansi Kürsch (Blind Guardian) as The Astronomer Mike Mills (Toehider) as TH-1 Russell Allen (Symphony X) as The President Michael Eriksen (Circus Maximus) as The Diplomat Floor Jansen (Nightwish, ex-After Forever, ex-ReVamp) as The Biologist For more Ayreon, check out the lives. From the Ayreon universe show- Everybody Dies, Star of Sirrah, Intergalactic Space Crusaders, Valley of the Queens, or the show closer Eye of Ra with all 16 singers on stage. This show is pretty much a best of Ayreon and another of Arjen's projects ,Star One.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Omg Chris, this video was a joy to experience. It’s literally like an epic journey. I was so stoked to see Simone then Floor haha. I was like wooohooooo. Thanks for the deets as always!!

[@chriso6719]

@@TheMindofBruce Epic for sure. Wait until you see those live vids.🤘. In the ones I mentioned above, Floor's sister Irene is one of the backup singers.

[@TheMindofBruce]

@@chriso6719 For sure!! I’ll do Everybody Dies next.

[@chriso6719]

@@TheMindofBruce Sweet.🤘🤘. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday.

[@frank1963]

Hi Chris, a wonderfully detailed commentary, as always. Have a nice Sunday

[@javadan]

This compilation is pure mental therapy. I can't get through a day without watching it at least once. Glad you found it.

[@TheMindofBruce]

It’s such a journey, I played it for my metal head friend in the way home from the concert last night he was into it big time. I’m thankful of the Hope Squad for suggesting such epic music.

[@yvonnecampbell7036]

The way you said "Dude, seriously!?" I knew it was a cat xD xD

[@TheMindofBruce]

😹😹 they like to make guest appearances every time I record a reaction lol

[@yvonnecampbell7036]

Wel, even "negative" attention is attention haha ;) I love cats.

[@robertrijkers4923]

listening to the entire album to get the whole story..... and ofc hear the 12th singer that wasn't on this track, the end of the story is what I suspected would happen but still a nice twist.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Oh ya I wanna check it all out! 🤘🤘

[@noneofyerbeeswax8194]

Awesome reaction to this awesome song! Looks like you really enjoyed it. I won't be much surprised if the tall hippie dude himself shows up here to drop an -F-bomb- comment.😂 Hope he's recovered from co.. c.. c.. can't say the word.🤭

[@TheMindofBruce]

Hahaha. Thank you!! I really did, it was an epic journey. That would be super cool 😹🤘

[@pretzeldip7234]

I like the lightsabre 😁

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thanks!! 🤘

[@liabowden8526]

My two *most* favorite things herein are (every moment of) Michael Mills & getting to see Arjen enjoying playing. Oh, btw. You like fantasy... maybe you perchance even played Skyrim at some point (there's a Skyrim quote at the start if you go to the "live performance"- not really traditional live cuz it's All Michael Mills, lol)?? Either way, Toehider: How Much For That Dragon Tooth. I effing Love that song, kinda want to roll a D&D character based on it, ngl. Not neatly enough people have given it a listen & it's a crying shame.

[@martinklaus2203]

The binary code spells out Trust TH-1 (TH-1 is the computer....TH stands for Toe Hider, Mike Mills' band).

[@TheMindofBruce]

I love that lol. Minor details that’s so sick

[@3534538]

I like the light-saber light on your face, that was (is) a good idea. For me "cold machine" means emotionally cold with having no emotions, I never thought about a machine cooling the world. I don't believe that machine would care... Thanks for this enjoyable and thoughtful reaction 🥰

[@TheMindofBruce]

For some reason when I heard cold machine I remember reading about some machine that can make rain lol, my brain went there for a second like this machine wanted to bring the world to ice age again and remove all biological life. I think emotionally cold is probably more appropriate :) Thanks, I think the lightsaber was a good idea, you were the first one to mention that so thank you!! 🙏😹🤘

[@NorbertPueschel]

Arjen is officially the world greatest professional musician. Literally. Floor only reaches up to his shoulder… ;-) „Everybody dies“!is probably the next video to watch; it is the conclusion of the story. There are more songs set in this musical / story universe; for example „Valley of the Queens“.

[@TheMindofBruce]

🤘🤘🙏🙏

[@noneofyerbeeswax8194]

🤣Lol, that's true! "Everybody Dies" is an indecently fun song - for what it's about.

[@TenZrzut]

I know what you're thinking. You're thinking surely this is just some fun in the studio. This cannot be done live, right? RIGHT? Certainly not as a finale of a 2h30m show. And don't even get me started on the logistics of getting all these singers. Or instrumentalists who could play all this. Or how would you even do the zero-one part live. Not with 3D audio inside the live venue and freaking lasers. No sir. I'm sure this has not happened. I wouldn't believe it. Even if I was there when they did it I would just repress that.

[@TheMindofBruce]

😳😳😳😳

[@TenZrzut]

@@TheMindofBruce All that to say you're going to have some really cool stuff to react to. Probably early next year. I highly recommend live renditions of Ayreon if you like cool lyrics and duets. On my part I'm going to recommend Computer Eyes and Mirror Maze from previous live shows.

[@TheMindofBruce]

@@TenZrzut I can’t wait to do some of the live music! 🤘 going to be exciting!

[@johnniecalhoun5381]

next song Ayreon everybody dies ,, the live video !!!

[@TheMindofBruce]

🙏🤘🤘

[@anneliendekramer9243]

Great reaction. Thank you. I believe Arjen likes to watch the reaction video's..the ammount of creativity is out of this world..the live shows are so great and joyfull. Everybody is having a great time on stage, and off stage..😊

[@TheMindofBruce]

I’d be so stoked if he commented haha. I want to tell him he is a genius. 🤘😹 and thank you! I appreciate that a lot!

[@Cthugni]

Love your enthusiasm! Great reaction, and attention to details. Keep these gems comin', such an easy sub! =) I'd love to see you check out a few of these singers. For example the second, Tommy with the band Kamelot. Sacrimony (live) is a great one. And Tobias Sammet (Avantasia with Scarecrow for example).

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thanks for the sub!! I plan to check out some of the singers bands. A few people mentioned to check out Tobias Sammet. I like the band name Kamelot so I think based on the name alone I have to do a reaction. 🤘🤘🤘

[@trevorwalker2434]

Awesome reaction, dude! If you love this, you'll love Arjen Lucassen's Star One project where each song is based on a Sci-fi film or TV series. May I recommend Star One's Fate of Man based on the first Terminator movie. Thanks again.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Oh yes I think I’d love that!

[@chriso6719]

​@@TheMindofBruce The singer for Fate of Man, Brittney Slayes (Hayes), is the lead singer of the Canadian band Unleash The Archers. Recommend checking them out beforehand. Suggest -Awakening (full band playthrough).

[@TheMindofBruce]

@@chriso6719 I love Unleash the archers. I’ll bring them on the channel with some stuff I haven’t heard yet. Awakening is so good

[@chriso6719]

@@TheMindofBruce cr*p , forget what I just said. We already had that conversation. 😞The forgetting stuff part of getting old really s*cks.☹ But Brittney does sing Fate of Man.

[@TheMindofBruce]

@@chriso6719 hahaha I don’t mind. Keep ‘em coming! 🤘

[@Calumetto]

Ayreon is just brilliant. I'd suggest the "Electric Castle" live tracks. Some of the live stuff harkens to Star Trek and Stargate, so if you're into SciFi, you should enjoy a lot.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Great suggestion! I’ll have to add that as well!

[@matzek.3220]

Starblade is the name of the captain's spaceship which is the only way to escape from Alpha. Edit: To help you with the lyrics, the president says "cold machine" because he is talking about a computer or AI which makes calculations based on zeros and ones but without any emotion or empathy. The Alphans had issues on their planet and let the computer called The Frame find a solution. Unfortunately the solution was to wipe out mankind and since they gave the Frame complete control they are thrown into a fight against machines.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Staaaarblllaaaade :)

[@matzek.3220]

​@@TheMindofBruceMichael Mills is crazily talented and such a funny guy. Watch the Universe concert (as a reaction or not) and you will see it...

[@BlazingDrag00n]

You Sir, are very charismatic. If something blows your mind, you show it, but you also keep it real and you pay attention to a lot of things. Keep it up, you are doing great. PS: Another vote for "Everybody dies" live by Ayreon.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Thanks a lot for that! I appreciate it very much! I wear my emotions on my face haha, good thing I guess :)

[@anthonycragg451]

Try out The electric castle and other tales, it will blow your mind

[@TheMindofBruce]

🤘🤘 thanks!!

[@stephsteph4574]

You saw and heard Tobias Sammet in there. He kinda does the same as Arjen. He has this project called "Avantasia" where he plays, writes and sings the music with many other different artists. He has two songs with Floor btw 😉 you should check that out as well

[@TheMindofBruce]

Oh wow I didn’t realize that. Thanks!

[@stephsteph4574]

@@TheMindofBruce "Misplaced among the Angels" or "Kill the pain away" are the songs with Floor! 😉

[@TheMindofBruce]

@@stephsteph4574 Added to the list :)

[@wanmac31]

😁🇫🇮💙🪄🎼✨💯🤘

[@TheMindofBruce]

Yaaas 🤘🤘🤘

[@robvanraak]

Hey Bruce, fun that you discovered the genius Arjen who is of course a dutchie jus like Floor. See the suggestions below for more songs of this artist. Have fun with the journey you are making right now.

[@TheMindofBruce]

Oh yes!! Thanks for taking the journey with me!

[@bertoverweel6588]

Ayreon isn't a band, it's a project.

[@wimvank.7463]

He Bruce, we Dutchies can do something cant' we?

[@TheMindofBruce]

Yes I have to say y’all do it better than pretty much everyone lol.

[@andyohil7465]

If you like stories and Floor then try Tobias Sammets ADVANTASIA….‼️👍🏆

[@TheMindofBruce]

I for sure will! I just added a few tracks to my list today

[@ladycempluk2481]

would you mind reacting killing me inside reunion - come on girl (live at synchronize fest 2019)

[@TheMindofBruce]

I’ll add it to my never ending list haha 🤘

[@graciefolden2359]

I would appreciate some knowledge from subs but I would also do my own research from a trusted source or publication, after all info from subs is usually just a regurgitation of and their own interpretation of info they searched online from who knows what source 😊

[@TheMindofBruce]

Ya I typically research a bit myself, but some of the people who are subs have limitless knowledge about these bands. I usually react with no info then after the first song do some of my own research. 🤘🤘

[@graciefolden2359]

@@TheMindofBruce understandable, I'm just one of those people that has trusted to many people, that I knew personally, only to find out disturbing truths after the fact so I guess for me to go by 3rd party knowledge from someone I've never laid eyes on in person is extremely questionable at times. I will say that a lot of fans of Arjen & his Aryeon project are very respectable to share credible info tho. PS, the 'cold machines' line is referring to a cold lifeless thing rather than a machine to "cool" the planet. Loved your honest and appreciative looking reaction, great job 👍👌🖖

[@TheMindofBruce]

@@graciefolden2359 Ya, my mind thought that the machines were building a cold machine to turn the planet back to ice age to kill all biological life lol.

[@vmaxbabe]

Bruce thanks for reacting to this song! Arjen Anthony Lucassen is a genius composer and he’s such a nice guy, every artist wants to work with him! Floor worked with him since the beginning of this century! Ayreon is not a band but a project, spanning many albums. Arjen has many more: Star One, The Gentle Storm, Supersonic Revolution, Ambion, etc. His body of work is vast and very divers. As unlikely as it would seem, Arjen and friends managed to organize a few live shows the last few years. Getting his cast together plus proficient musicians from all over the world at a specific time and place… think of that. I was fortunate to attend one of the shows a few weeks again. It was magical! The Source is a great album and in 2017 the live show featured a lot of best of Ayreon songs. Most reactors react to one of those songs, called Everybody Dies. 5 main singers plus 3 background singers makes for a dunamite performance. In the 2023 show the first song featured 8 singers and 3 backing vocalists. Mindblowing! I can’t wait for the dvd to be published! If you want to hear more Ayreon, stick to the live shows: Ayreon Universe (2017) and Ayreon Electric Castle and other tales (2019). Enjoy!

[@TheMindofBruce]

You got it! Everyone mentioned everybody dies already so that’ll be the next one! 🤘🙏

[@vmaxbabe]

@@TheMindofBruce thanks!!