Freedom to Music
Posts tagged Jeroen Goossens
Ayreon – 01011001 (2008) (@256)
02 Aug 2010
(Review from metal-archives.com, progarchives.com, amazon)
Arjen Lucassen sure has evolved big time since his days as a guitarist in Dutch hair metal band Vengeance. 01011001 is the seventh regular release from his Ayreon project.
Ambient and electronic music has a clear influence on the sound here, folk music influences are used quite extensively too; and the songs come across as well structured, planned and executed.
Less dramatics and less metal than in the previous releases; and not as pretentious as previous releases either.
Those who missed the instrumental section on “The Human Equation” will be glad to see their return with “0101101″. The production values are closer to “The Human Equation” than anything else, but the songs are written more in the style of “Electric Castle” and “Universal Migrator”, with longer vocal parts and long instrumentals. Thanks to the aid of many top-gun progressive musicians, Symphony X’s Michael Romeo and ex-Dream Theater’s Derek Sherinian among them, “0101101″ should not be a disappointment to the progressive fans who were hooked with “Electric Castle” or “Universal Migrator”.
The structure of the concept, it is divided into two different disc: “Y” and “Earth”, each one including the planet where its own part of the story develops. Between both albums, a total of 17 different vocalists are featured, divided in two categories: Forever and Men.
The first disc “Y”, can be considered as the very beginning of the whole Ayreon story. Its name refers to the planet “Y”, an imaginary planet located in the Andromeda constelation and supposed to be home for the Forevers, intelligent beings (just like mankind, and this happens because, further on the story, it is said that mankind was actually created by the Forevers) that now try to stay alive by artificial ways because machines have destroyed their planet and their sun, forcing them to live in the darkness and lose their emotions. They moan for an undefined period of time in the shadows until they discover a way to survive in another planet, by sending their DNA to a distant galaxy on a comet to find the perfect planet while they look after them in every moment.
Due to the fact that about 3 or 4 of the 8 songs of the disc are connected with the sadness, darkness, memories and lack of emotions of the Forevers, “Y” is incredibly melancholic (in contrast with the “happiness” found in the other disc), ethereal and, of course, very slow. These elements create a very delicate harmony based on tragedy, loss, grief, greed and a little arrogance.
The second disc, “Earth” continues the concept that was told in “Ride The Comet”, with the discovering by the Forevers of a planet perfect to breed a new race and live again throght them. That planet was the Earth, back then inhabited by the dinosaurs. The Forevers, sensing danger from those giant reptiles, killed them and placed their seeds on Earth, resulting in the birth of the human race. Next, according to the story, Forevers gave men and women emotions and feelings but, fearing that the humans’ evolution moved far too slow, they started giving manking more knowledge than what they could control, leading to overpopulation, massive pollution, nuclear bombs, global warming and misuse of liberty and expression. Wanting to prevent mankind from their eventual destruction, the Forevers started sending them signals, but all efforts were useless: nothing could be done, and mankind was destroyed during a nuclear World War in 2084 (as told before on “Flight of The Migrator Pt. I: The Dream Sequencer”), and forcing the survivors to escpae to Mars: They eventually die until there’s only one man alive and, knowing he won’t survive, the Forevers send him their last hope in the shape of the artifact called the Dream Sequencer, not before pleading to the Universal Migrator to restore their lives.
“Earth” includes more lively songs than “Y”, faster tempos and “brighter” atmospheres, giving the sensation of being surrounded by life every time. It’s clearly more aggressive, including even death grunts. This time, the atmosphere is not as important as before, losing the leadership of the songs and giving it to the guitars, keyboards and strings, which are more widely used this time.
Line-up:
- Arjen Lucassen / vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, synths and programming
with
- Anneke Van Giersbergen / vocals
- Bob Catley / vocals
- Daniel Gildenlow / vocals
- Floor Jansen / vocals
- Hansi Kursch / vocals
- Jonas Renkse / vocals
- Jorn Lande / vocals
- Liselotte Hegt / vocals
- Magali Luyten / vocals
- Marjan Welman / vocals
- Phideaux Xavier / vocals
- Simone Simons / vocals
- Steve Lee / vocals
- Tom S. Englund / vocals
- Ty Tabor / vocals
- Wudstik / vocals
- Lori Linstruth / guitars
- Michael Romeo / guitars
- Ben Mathot / Violin
- David Faber / Violoncello
- Jeroen Goossens / Flute
- Derek Sherinian / keyboards
- Joost van den Broek / keyboards
- Tomas Bodin / keyboards
- Ed Warby / drum
Track List:
CD1
01. Age of Shadows – 10:47
02. Comatose – 4:26
03. Liquid Eternity – 8:09
04. Connect the Dots – 4:12
05. Beneath the Waves – 8:26
06. Newborn Race – 7:49
07. Ride the Comet – 3:29
08. Web of Lies – 2:50
CD2
01. The Fifth Extinction – 10:29
02. Waking Dreams – 6:31
03. The Truth is in Here – 5:12
04. Unnatural Selection – 7:15
05. River of Time – 4:24
06. E=mc² – 5:50
07. The Sixth Extinction – 12:18
Link in comments.
Ayreon – Human Equation (2004) (@256)
25 Jul 2010
(Review from seaoftranquility.org, metal-archives.com, progarchives.com)
With his new Ayreon album, Arjen Lucassen seems to be moving deeper and deeper into the rock opera world. Looking at the lyric sheet here it looks like something written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. The guest list on each album is getting longer with the singers on this album being assigned roles to play.
The Human Equation follows the story of a man who falls in a coma after plowing his car into a tree. While in a coma, he unlocks some hidden region of his mind where he confronts his emotions and and memories. Meanwhile, his best friend and wife sit at his hospital bed waiting for a sign of life.
Like most rock operas, the songs work best as a unified whole, but songs like “Day Eleven: Love” and “Day Sixteen: Loser” certainly do stand out for the great vocals and melodies. There is one thing that cannot be overlooked and that is the impressive roster of singers and instrumentalists Lucassen has assembled for his latest project: Martin Orford from IQ and Ken Hensley from Uriah Heep make small but invaluable contributions. Hensley’s short but raging Hammond organ solo on “Day Sixteen: Loser” certainly takes us back to Hensley’s work with Uriah Heep.
As for the singers, James LaBrie from Dream Theater plays the part of the man in the coma, simply known as Me. If you are used to Labrie’s work with Dream Theater, be prepared to be surprised here. For the most part, his singing is mellow and happily he proves that he has more depth as a singer than he is generally given credit for. Heather Findlay from Mostly Autumn is cast as Love and her singing is as impressive and moving here as it is with her own band. Mikael Akerfeldt of Opeth is given ample opportunity to shine as well; the man has a great voice. Relative newcomer Marcela Bovia also deserves a mention as the wife; judging from her performance with Ayreon, she has a bright future ahead of her.
Line-up:
- Arjen Lucassen / electric and acoustic guitars, bass guitar, analogue synthesizers, Hammond, Mellotron, additional keyboards, mandoline, vocals as ‘Best Friend’
- Devon Graves / vocals as ‘Agony’
- Devin Townsend / vocals as ‘Rage’
- Eric Clayton / vocals as ‘Reason’
- Mikael Akerfeldt / vocals as ‘Fear’
- Magnus Ekwall / vocals as ‘Pride’
- Heather Findlay / vocals as ‘Love’
- Irene Jansen / vocals as ‘Passion’
- James LaBrie / vocals as ‘Me’
- Marcela Bovio / vocals as ‘Wife’
- Mike Baker / vocals as ‘Father’
- Ken Hensley / Hammond (16)
- Oliver Wakeman / keyboards (17)
- Martin Orford / keyboards (15)
- Ed Warby / drums
- Joost van den Broek / synthesizer (2), spinet (13)
- John McManus / Low-flute (13,16,18), tin-whistle (18)
- Jeroen Goossens / flute (3,5,9,14,18), alto-flute (2), bass flute (5,14), panpipes (6), descant and treble recorder (13), didgeridoo (16), bassoon (18)
- Robert Baba / violins
- Marieke van der Heyden / cello
Track List:
CD1
01. Day One: Vigil – 1:33
02. Day Two: Isolation – 8:42
03. Day Three: Pain – 4:58
04. Day Four: Mystery – 5:37
05. Day Five: Voices – 7:09
06. Day Six: Childhood – 5:05
07. Day Seven: Hope – 2:47
08. Day Eight: School – 4:22
09. Day Nine: Playground – 2:15
10. Day Ten: Memories – 3:57
11. Day Eleven: Love – 4:18
CD2
12. Day Twelve: Trauma – 8:59
13. Day Thirteen: Sign – 4:47
14. Day Fourteen: Pride – 4:42
15. Day Fifteen: Betrayal – 5:24
16. Day Sixteen: Loser – 4:46
17. Day Seventeen: Accident? – 5:42
18. Day Eighteen: Realization – 4:31
19. Day Nineteen: Disclosure – 4:42
20. Day Twenty: Confrontation – 7:03
Link in comments.
Flairck – Symphony of the Old World (2000) (@256)
15 Jan 2007
(Info from flairck.nl)
It has always been a wish of ours to travel the world with a large orchestra of musicians from every corner of the earth, using all the strange instruments that were created in different places throughout history. An orchestra where talented musicians from all points of the compass touch down for some time, combining their knowledge and love for their own music with each other. “Symphony for the Old World” is a first step in this direction. It is a two-hour theatre-concert in four parts, based on combinations of original and traditional themes from the North, West, East and South of Europe. It is performed by nine musicians: five members of Flairck are joined by a Scandinavian violinist, a Romanian cembalon player, a Flamenco guitarist and a Celtic piper, four soloists from the corners of Europe.
Line-up:
* Erik Visser – guitars
* Ben van den Berg – accordion
* Natalia Rogalski – vocals, glassharmonica
* Jeroen Goossens – flutes and other wind instruments
* Tim Brandsen – double bass and acoustic bass guitar
* Mirella Pirskanen – violin, vocals, Hardanger fele
* Eric Vaarzon Morel – Flamenco guitar
* Marius Preda – cembalon, marimba
* Roelof Rosendal – Uilleann-pipes, percussion, ud
Track List:
CD1
01. The West – 24:25
02. The East – 27:14
CD2
01. The North – 23:45
02. The South – 32:35
03. Finale – 5:17
04. Encore – 5:37
Links in comments.
Flairck – Cuerpos Tocados: Music for the Body (1998) (@256)
14 Jan 2007
(Info from flairck.nl)
01) Inuit Game, Vocal Chords, Vocal Waltz (52093 E. Visser)
These performancces, called “Katajjait” (Inuit, Hudson Bay), are competitive games performed by two women placed face to face and very close to each other. The song stops when one of the women is out of breath or laughs.
02) Amazonians, Dance for Giants and Witches (42293 J. Goossens)
This pre-Columbian fragment gives an impression of South America before its discovery by Columbus.
(Vocals: Arlette Jequier L., Judith Sijp, Natalia Rogalski, Jeroen Goossens, Ben van den Berg, Michel Grens, Erik Visser)
03) Tracheus (32263 J. Goossens)
(Vocals: Jeroen Goossens, Michel Grens)
04) The Woman and the Knife (32153 J. Sijp)
(Vocal: Judith Sijp)
05) Under Water Song, Bathing Pigmy Girls (32023 B. v.d. Berg)
Two girls are bathing in a river while beating their hands on the water to create a musical accompaniment.
(Vocals: Judith Sijp, Natalia Rogalski, Jeroen Goossens, Michel Grens)
06) White Man Coming (42133 B. v.d. Berg)
(Vocals: Judith Sijp, Natalia Rogalski, Jeroen Goossens, Ben van den Berg, Michel Grens, Erik Visser)
07) Song for One Voice and Two Mountains (32043 B. v.d. Berg, E. Visser)
(Performed by: Natalia Rogalski and two delays)
08) Piece for Six Bodies (32083 E. Visser)
(Bodysounds: Natalia Rogalski, Ben van den Berg, Michel Grens, Erik Visser)
09) Whistlers Quartet (22173 B. v.d. Berg)
(Whistling: Michel Grens and an Amazonian friend)
10) Figures (42163 J. Sijp)
(Vocals: Judith Sijp, Natalia Rogalski, Michel Grens and one delay)
11) Song for Two Voices and a Mountain (42233 B. v.d. Berg, N. Rogalski)
(Vocals: Arlette Jequier L., Francesca Ankarola, Judith Sijp, Pedro Espinoza, Michel Grens, Erik Visser)
12) Lament for Lola (52303 E. Visser, N. Rogalski)
Lola Kiepja was the last Selk’nam to live in Tierra del Fuego in the traditional way. Shortly before she died in 1967 her songs were recorded by Anne Chapman.
(Vocals: Natalia Rogalski)
Link in comments.
Flairck – De Gouden Eeuw (1996) (@256)
13 Jan 2007
(Info from flairck.nl)
Flairck in the Golden Age: a music theatre production inspired by the eyewitness report of the horrific sinking of one of the United East India Company’s biggest ships. The wealth and poverty of the Golden Age, the foundations upon which this enterprise, the first of the multinationals, was built, are reflected in life on board ship. The cramped conditions on the long voyages heightened the contrast between rich and poor, rulers and ruled. When the crew is washed up on a desert island following a shipwreck, however, suddenly a different order prevails: power to the strong. The balance of power is not straightened out until East India Company ships appear on the horizon. An alternation of light-hearted and serious episodes, drama and farce, culminates in the loss of the ship and its hierarchy.
Flairck, augmented to form a bizarre ‘Orchestra of the Golden Age’, present the story as an operatic spectacle. Unlike many of their previous productions, there is a good deal of singing in this one, for which the Polish-Dutch singer Natalia Rogalski has been engaged. With a mixture of 17th-century and new lyrics, compositions and instruments, we are guaranteed a wealth of musical styles, ranging from sea shanties to compositions by the 17th-century Rhetoricians, from minuets to “wooden-leg’ dances.
‘The Golden Age’ is set in 17th-century Holland, on board a ship and on an island in the Indian Ocean. The gigantic sail let down from the tall mast on stage is also used for videos and slides of stormy weather and art from the Golden Age.
With this production Flairck are making a clear effort to show aspects of Dutch history and culture to audiences at home and abroad.
Line-up:
* Erik Visser – Gitaar & (zang), 6 snarige gitaar (Bert Kwakkel), 12 snarige gitaar (Guild). Erik Visser gebruikt D’Addario snaren
* Ben van den Berg – Accordeon (Hohner), Piano, Orgel, Claviola (Hohner), koorzang
* Michel Grens – Marimba (vijf-octaafs Adams Traveller, ‘King George’ tuning), Vibrafoon (Yamaha), Ander gestemd en ongestemd slagwerk, Koorzang
* Carla Veen – Cello, Viola da Gamba, Koorzang
* Natalia Rogalski – Zang, Glasharmonica, Percussie
* Jeroen Goossens – Fluit (Powell/Muramitsu) Kromhoorn, Piccolo (Yamaha), Kena, Alfluit (Jupiter), Sampogna, Basfluit (Philipp Hammig), Didgeridoo, Traverso, Claviola (Hohner), Pijpersfluit, Tinwistle, Blokfluit, Koorzang
* Antoinette Lohmann – Viool, Altviool, Barokviool, Viola d’amore, Koorzang
Track List:
01. Ouverture – 5:17
02. De Heren van Zes Weken – 5:17
03. Adieu – 3:12
04. De Afvaart – 3:14
05. Windstilte – 4:43
06. De Houtenbenendans – 2:30
07. Taveerne van de zeven zeeën – 2:31
08. De Verkrachting – 2:07
09. Zwart was de nacht – 3:42
10. Terra Incognita – Lied van Toeval – 6:41
11. Regen – 2:49
12. Lied van de Wolven – 3:25
13. De Rechtzaken – 3:39
14. Aankomst in Holland – 3:14
15. Finale – 2:48
Link in comments.
