James LaBrie - Dream Theater (USA), Tommy Karevik - Kamelot (USA) and Seventh Wonder (Sweden), Tommy Rogers - Between the Buried and Me (USA), Simone Simons - Epica (Holland), Nil K. Rue - Pagan's Mind (Norway), Tobias Sammet - Avantasia, Edguy (German), Hansi Kirsch - Blind Guardian (German), Michael Mills - Toehider (Australia), Russell Allen - Symphony X (USA), Michael Eriksen - Circus Maximus (Norway), Floor Jansen - Nightwish (Finland). Arjen lucassen, the very tall player is the main composer of Ayreon and he is from Holland.
Note that the countries listed are where the bands originate. Not the singers. For example we all know Floor is Dutch. But also Tommy Karevik is Swedish.
Also if you love Tommy K as much as I do, check out his other band Seventh Wonder. Personally I think it’s more true of his vocal talents than his work in Kamelot
Here is a list of the composer and singers in order of appearance: Arjen Lucassen - Composer - Dutch singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist musician and record producer best known for his long-running progressive metal/rock opera project Ayreon. 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 Simmons - 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 and Allen/Lande. Michael Eriksen - Lead singer of Circus Maximus. Floor Jansen - Lead singer of After Forever, ReVamp & now Nightwish. Next I would suggest reacting to the performances at Ayreon Universe concert, especially the following Intergalactic Space Crusaders, River of Time, Merlin's Will, Valley of the Queens, Ride the Comet, Star of Sirrah, And the Druids Turn to Stone, Age of Shadows & Everybody Dies.
@@shuriken4852 well the english wiki does not have the list... but I will gladly help you ;) the Dutch for 'artist' is 'artiest' and names are the same in both...
There it is! I saw the spoiler alert in the comments of Epica feat Floor. Haven't started the vid yet, but already know more earballs will be blown. Arjen is from the Netherlands and he writes everything and then he contacts the artists he thinks would be perfect for each role in the story. Another great one from Ayreon is 'Everybody dies'. Please check out the live version. :)
Ayreon is not a band but the music creation of Anthony Lucassen a Dutch musician, song writer and so much more.Yes it is normal for him to have several singers. And yes that is him.FYI.....He's almost 7 foot tall.....Try .....Valley of the Queens.....Everybody dies
Ayreon is one of the many musical projects of Dutch composer/multi-instrumentalist Arjen Lucasson (the guy narrating the video and playing the guitar, bass and keyboards). All Ayreon albums are concept albums and most fit into a larger Ayreon “universe.” He always gets top-notch vocalists to sing the parts of all the different characters (Floor is a frequent participant). Some of his other projects include Star One, Guilt Machine, Ambeon, and The Gentle Storm.
There's 17 tracks on the album. The 11 singers are split into smaller groups for each track. Floor sings on 11 of the tracks with various other singers. 😀
if it ain't dutch it ain't much... Welcome in the amazing world of Arjen A. Lucassen Aka Ayreon Universe (Ayreon, Ambeon, Star one, Guilt Machine, Gentle Storm, Stream of Passion).... Enjoy this rabbit hole….!!!!!
Ayreon is the (main) project of Dutch composer, producer, singer and multi-instrumentalist Arjen Anthony Lucassen. He does scifi concept albums. He has had over 80 different singers on his 9 (double)albums. Most albums are part of the bigger story called the Ayreon Universe. He has not done many live-shows but the ones he did are all killer. The 4 main shows are: 1.) Star One - live on earth (actually starone is a side project, but they did play some Ayreon songs) 2002-dvd2003 2.) The Theater Equation (a playthrough of the cd human equation, this is more a broadway-theater show) 2105-dvd2016 3.) Ayreon Universe (a best of full on prog-rock-metal show) 2017-dvd2018 4.) Ayreon - Electric castle live and other tales (a playtrough of the cd Into the electric castle, and 1 song of each side-project) 2019-dvd2020
Its a freaking crime that Mike isn't known in our own country where bloody pop stars are treated like gods. I could go on all day lol. Subbed and I'm Australian as well. Both the Universe Live and Electric Castle and Other Tales Live concerts are saved on my channel. Universe I usually watch every Friday night.
Eargasms all around, I’ve heard and seen this at least 30 times, and it still gets me every time, enjoy the rest of the Ayreon rabbit hole, Arjen doesn’t have bad music..
Short fingers!!! - and then saying Arjen has long fingers... Well, let's just say that Floor's head is reaching Arjen's shoulders - maybe because the tallest people in average height in the world is from Holland - just like the greatest singers and prog rock composers are.. Arjen has been working with over 100 of the top singers and musicians during the years, many if them several times - he started working with Floor in 2000, and later her sister Irene. It is an incredible impressive row of world class musicians and singers you will meet in the Arjen Lucassen projects - like this ongoing Ayreon project, which is partly driven by his fans, that gives imput to the story. This was a kind of introduction to the album The Source - so I suggest that you just follow the order on the album. All the singers are there, playing their roles on different tracks, doing superb storytelling that will bring you further out into the Ayreon Universe - needless to say that the music and compositions are matching the singers. There are 3 - 5 top composers in the world now a days - Tuomas from Nightwish and Arjen Lucassen are 2 of them - just lean back and enjoy. 👍🤘 🤘
I'm an Aussie and a BIG Ayreon fan - have been for quite a while. Tommy has been out here with Kamelot a couple of times, Nightwish and Epica have been here as well. Michael Mills lives in Melbourne! Ayreon Universe - which is a live concert, is a great place for you to start, as it gives you an overall Ayreon feel - you'll love it - follow the singers and you will discover a treasure trove of music that is out there.
The rest of the story is told in the rest of the album. All his albums are concept albums with a story where the singers play out their role in the different songs. There's also some live performances from the 'Ayreon Universe' show/DVD. 'Everybody Dies' is a song from the same album, maybe you should check it out. Link: ua-cam.com/video/9AAXtUdM7xE/v-deo.html (It has Michael Mills in it too ;)
Short fat fingers is no excuse my friend. I have small girl hands, and I've been playing a 6-string bass with a neck the size of a 2"x4" for 20 years. 😂 I saw this video for the first time about a year ago, and bough the album 10 seconds after if finished. It must be so cool to get this many awesome musicians together for a project.
Well to defend him, fat fingers on a guitar make it harder to touch just one string at a time. And short fingers (like myself) make barre-chords a lot harder to take. With a lot of practice, yes of course. But long thin fingers make it easier. Or did he say bass guitar? Then I heard wrong.
@@Garbox80 I still say it's no excuse. With practice, anyone can learn to play regardless of your physical build or ability. Tony Iommy of Black Sabbath was missing the first joints of two fingers of his fretting hand. That didn't stop him from having a 50 year long career. Django Reinhardt only had two fingers. And he was one of the world's best Jazz guitarists. It's really about how much time and work you're willing to put into it.
Hoo boy. You can’t go wrong with Ayreon. Choose any live recording here on YT and you’re good to go. I won’t provide detailed info bc I’m sleepy as hell, but basically Ayreon is a project made by Arjen Anthony Lucassen... and it can be called a metal opera. Every album tells a story and has several guest vocalists, each has their own role.
Now run off and find "Ayreon - Everybody Dies (Ayreon Universe)" to see and hear a song from one of the very rare live performances of this project. And then start digging in the 25 year or so long history of this project and all the side ventures it has spawned over the years as well.
Thanks for your awesome reaction. I got the goosebumps again after seeing you getting them . And with good reasons. You have entered the holy temple of prog rock. The pinnacle of epicness, brought to you by no one less then Arjen Lucassen. Remember that name and listen to all of his music, that he composed over 30 years!!! Ayreon, the gentle storm, star one, you name it. In 200 years time his name will be mentioned and honoured next to Mozart, Beethoven, Bach etc. This is the top league of music.
I have listened to this track at least a hundred times and i am still in awe ! so much talent, so much greatness. Unbelievable beautiful. The concept of bringing so much talent together to expose the talent of the composition from Arjen is indead exceptional and to much to take in at first listening!
The album this song is from, 'The Source', was an amazing return to form for Ayreon. It's also the heaviest Ayreon record. The song 'Star of Sirrah' has one of the best 'bang your head' riffs of the past decade.
Welcome to the universe of the Ayreon and his Ayreonauts in this amazing sci-fi story which goes on and on since 1995 and each album is always concept, with each singer as unique character and each song adding to the story from the same Ayreon universe. Arjen is insanely good and very modest guy
Think of this track as the prologue of a novel. It introduces you to all the main characters of the the whole story that takes place over the whole album.
It's so fun watching all of these prog/power metal-loving UA-camrs lose their sh1t over Ayreon. Just like I did, almost 20 years ago, when I first got into this incredible project/band/wizardry. But I've got to say, _compositionally-speaking_ I think "The Source" is possibly Arjen's best work to date (I have yet to hear "Transitus" yet, so I'm not 100% certain that this is still true). I love the old stuff, don't get me wrong. But this album SLAYS. Part of it is the personnel, and the production is first-rate...but most of it is just REALLY GOOD WRITING. In the world of prog composition, three names currently rise above the rest - Daniel Gildenlöw (Pain of Salvation), Arjen Anthony Lucassen and Neal Morse. These guys took the torch from the '70s prog legends, and they ran with it, becoming modern prog legends in their own right. And who knows what the kids who are growing up hearing this phenomenal music, AND the original prog from 40+ years ago, will come up with? I can't wait to see!
The eye of rah live show and the age of shadows live show featuring Floor Jansen and Marco from nightwish as guest singers and Intergalactic space crusaders live live shows, awesome 😎
The singers in order of appearance are: James LaBrie from Dream Theater Tommy Karevik from Kamelot, Seventh Wonder Tommy Rogers from Between the Buried and Me Simone Simons from th most epic Epica Nils K. Rue from Pagan's Mind Tobias Sammet from Edguy and here mentioned Avantasia
Told you you would love this 😄 The mastermind behind Ayreon is Arjen Lucassen, he writes rock opera’s en then invites musicians from all over the world that he admires to join the project. To proceed, check out the songs from the ‘Universe’ concert by Ayreon following up this song. Great ones are: Age of shadows Everybody dies Merlin’s Will Dawn of a million souls Valley of the queens Star of Sirrah The eye of Ra You can’t go wrong because the whole concert is epic! 🙋🏼♀️
Cant count the times I've watched / heard this song and its just an eargasm everytime. So beautifully done by everyone involved. I play this in the car and on everything else lol. The album is amazing too.
Avantasia is Tobias Sammets version of a metal opera, most songs feature guest singers and musicians from all over the world, people Tobias had always wanted to work with. Among those are names like Alice Cooper, Klaus Meine (Scorpions), Dee Snider, Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation), Marco Hietala (Nightwish), Hansi Kürsch (Blind Guardian), Jon Oliva (Savatage), Geoff Tate (Queensryche), Ronnie Atkins (Pretty Maids), Jorn Lande (Masterplan), Biff Byford (Saxon) Michael Kiske (Helloween), Bob Catley (Mangum), David DeFeis (Virgin Steele), Candice Night, Amanda Somerville and many more. Their live shows are an experience on their own - usually lasting about 3-3,5 hours of pure awesomeness.
Zero and one...its THE cosmic Law...the zero is the emptyness...and the one reprisents the manifestation ...the beginning of All ( the zero 0 ) of All there is 💎
Man this was an awesome reaction, so very satisfying to watch! And short fingers don't have to hold you back. Have you seen Emppu from Nightwish? He's tiny and an amazing guitar player.
What a lovely reaction, you notice so much and I've sen many reactions to this amazing song. It's funny when you talked about the shape of your fingers, they also call it "piano fingers" when they are long and slim and have great reach but in my family it's guitar fingers. They are Indo (that's what mixed Indonesian European is called) and loads of them play guitar and the hand build is part of it, long flexible slim fingers. Indo-rock is a whole style of music full of guitar players like that. They can even play chords differently from finger flexibility. That coupled with a love for guitar music means my family is full of people who play guitars and play or have played in bands.
Arjen is an absolute beast of a musician, he takes his experience and influences and melds them together to push a narrative. If you listen to how he constructs his music there are no wasted notes or "filler". He's the guy everyone wants to hang with, apparently helped give Floor her start as well. Everyone on this is a Jugganaught of their genre but they all seem to hands down acknowledge Arjen (the prog rock hippy) as king. lol
that was an appropriate reaction. thank you. I guess in the comments you´ ve already gotten all the facts on ayreon you need. there are also some mindblowing live performances to be seen and heard. it´s another rabbithole.
Avantasia: The scarecrow live, Seven angels live, Ravens child lyrics video, Moonglow video. His other band Edguy: The piper never dirs, Vain glory opera
Definitely check out Toehider, I have their last two CDs and am in awe. So much variation in style and tone, but still distinctly Mike. I broke down and bought the remainder of his discography that was available, but it won't arrive via post until late May early June. It is so hard to pick a favorite! (I do have a least favorite due to my general dislike of harsher vocals, but even then I never skip it, as it does have one super funny part that makes it worth while). I have see a few reactors checkout 'Whatever Makes You Feel Superior'. Each of the two albums that I have so far have a "Saga" song which are really fun, 'Concerning Lix and Fairs' and 'Meet the Sloth'. If I had to pick a favorite (which like for Nightwish is almost impossible), I would say 'How Much For That Dragon's Tooth' and 'The Ultimate Exalter' are good candidates.
“What is this” sir welcome to the wonderous mindblowing universe of Ayreon. Get ready for a journey through space and time and the best vocalists you can think of. Have fun!
Haha talking about fingers on guitarists. When you check in Ayreon Universe (live) keep an eye on Marcel Coenen who is one of Europe's best guitarists: D
Trying to keep up with this is like visiting a sports pub with 1000 screens of different matches being played, and following each one flawlessly. Or a conversation with my late mother, you'd get whiplash from the direction changes, MID-WORD.
Finally tuned in...have seen your vids on my homepage before, but passed. Ayreon lends you some legit cred. I've now watched several of your reacts and subbed. I see you've hit some of the high points- Nighwish, Sabaton, Epica, UTA, Jinjer... So it turns out once one dives into a rabbit hole they find express lanes to so many other bands! Enjoy your journey, and keep up the fine reacts!
Jep. That’s me over 20 years ago... who are those singers?... I discovered so many great musicians and singers through Ayreon and I saw Floor live for the first time with Ayreon / Star One. Check out the Ayreon Universe show. You can pick any song, basically. Same as in the Nightwish Wacken show. No fillers.
Wait until you listen to the live stuff, there’s not one single bad song, it’s all awesome. Arjen has kick started a few projects in hiss time, one of my faves is Stream of Passion, a fabulous band, that sadly disbanded a few years ago, with lead singer Marcelo Bovio, she is truly wonderful. Marcelo also features prominently on the Ayreon live videos. If you’d like a recommendation, I would say Deceiver/Songs of the Ocean live. There is also a fantastic video of Songs of the Ocean by Ayreon live, featuring a large cast of singers and musicians.
Tommy Karevik is the singer from Kamelot. You should check them out too. Such good music!!!!!!! You met Simone Simons with Epica (Sancta terra) You should check out their new album OMEGA.
The collaberation between Arjen Lucassen and Floor Jansen goes way back. In fact he was one of the first to recognize the enormous potential of Floor. Together with her sister Irene and Simone Simons they feature in several of the projects Arjen produced over the years. This is another giant rabbit hole you are facing. Here is link to a lyric video of the album 'The Source': ua-cam.com/video/vN-kbmQckw8/v-deo.html As it is difficult to get so much singers together at one place at the same time there are a limited number of live shows of Ayreon. But the videos that do exist of those events are a must see.
Arjen, plays all guitars all bases, all keys including the hammond (except the grand piano, played by Joost) plus wrote all music and lyrics. And he mixes and produces it all.
Nice to see a mental brake down🤯 Ayreon is my third favorite band after Pink Floyd and Nightwish. Listen to the two live concerts: Ayreon Universe live The electric castle live and other tales All the albums See Wikipedia for everything you want to know about the musicians, albums, songs etc.
All the music in the Ayreon discography is mind blowing and if you want to check out a masterpiece view and listen The Electric Castle Live and Other Tales. I speak of music and visuals of some of the the best live performance in this century! This is now my favorite music dvd and this musical gem will send you strait to progressive rock nirvana.
The only problem with his live performances is that there is always a danger having that much talent in one spot.....space time distortions all that kind of stuff.
@@alexwensveen8105 They have done a couple of very special shows every few years. They would have done another one this year but I'm sure Covid prevented that.
Hey Jordan, glad you found Arjen Lucassen, I'm sure that you'd love to hear a new interview, check out "Breaking Absolutes Ep. 20 (you need the Updated Audio version). Then on to his many other projects! Don't forget Mike Mills Toehider :)
Promote the HECK out of this please. The current world situation is seriously impacting plans for this. Arjen has said he writes stories and would love to do a musical movie ..and talks have taken place ...but he just doesn't have the following and exposure. And it is a Shame ....he is extremely talented and he certainly has the talent working with him and many have worked with him over and over.
Im so angry that he is so unknown in our own country, and that our metal community is so small even Simone and Floor (until beste zangers) are unknown to the general public. They deserve allll the recognition.
Hey Schnitzel :), love your stuff. A double feature of Blind Guardian - The Bard's Song & Valhalla - Live at Wacken Open Air 2016 Would be great (Hansi Kürsch)
🤔 love watching how this hits you. Arjen Lucassen is a Dutch composer check out more of his live stuff...Btw his length is 2.03 so that explains his long fingers funny to see that Floor looks like a woman of average hight standing next to him during a live show...
Great reaction! By the way, you may want to compare your fingers to those of Marco Sfogli,.Have a listen to him and then realize that it's just about practice. Anyway, thanks for a very enjoyable reaction.
When you have the time listen to the INTO THE ELECTRIC CASTLE or Arjens sideproject STAR ONE. Love your reaction on this song btw! Cheers from the Netherlands!
This is Tuomas's hiking buddy Tony Kakko and his Wolfpack Sonata Arctica. Since I totally adore this band and the evolution of their sound, I will start you off with a golden oldie and the OG Wolfpack line up Wolf and Raven ua-cam.com/video/NPHqfYfHx7s/v-deo.html
Arjen Anthony Lucassen is the Dutch progressive metal genius and creator of Ayreon and all of the music. His music is sci fi rock/metal opera stories. The singers all play roles in the story. Tommy Karevik is an amazing vocalist from the band "Kamelot". You will soon be introduced to the amazing Michael Mills from down under. Mike plays the role of the computer TH-1. This stuff gets even heavier in live performances. Arjen is playing all of the keys (Except for the grand piano), guitars, and bass parts on this song. Arjen does not like to tour so he is a legend in the Netherlands and Germany area. But nobody know him in America and beyond. check out my link below and you will see a big man with hands like yours that will amaze you on the guitar. It is a live performance. hang on to your mind. ua-cam.com/video/3dEHQNAZsIo/v-deo.html - Star of Sirrah -Ayreon Universe live. This song is from the same album "The Source".
Hey from Germany! Just found your reaction, really cool! 👍 You should really do some Ayreon live because it's just so good! You saw Tobias Sammet in there. He does in Avantasia pretty much the same that Arjen does in Ayreon! If you're interested in checking them out (which would be definately worth it) you could go with "The Scarecrow live (the flying opera)". It's one of my all time favourites! Or you could go with "Raven child" where you'll hear Hansi Kürsch from the legendary Blind Guardian (which you should get into, too 😀) again!
If you want to listen to another female lead singer( she is dutch). You should reactvto Within Temptation's The Purge, Angels or Mother Earth. I still love it after 10 times. Tarja has a new single with The .band Primal Fear and the song is I will be gone. Tarja is the 1st singer of Nightwish. Arjen is 6ft 8.
I'm so obsessed with Blackbriar at the moment that when you where talking about another Dutch band with a female lead. I immediately thought of Zora from Blackbriar oops
Guess what, Michael Romeo has fat fingers too, and he plays the guitar like there's no tomorrow. You should check him out, he's the guitarist of Symphony X, btw. And two of my most favorite singers ever are here, Floor Jansen and Russell Allen! 😁🤘
So.. As you loved this, and as you're an Aussie, you HAVE to give Ne Oblivicaris a go. Ne Oblivicaris - And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope (live, obviously): ua-cam.com/video/rNuVdsx7qJY/v-deo.html Anyway, have a damn good day!
Hand size can make a difference... I recall seeing somewhere that Steve Vai (maybe John 5) has a fret hand (left) that is like an inch longer than his right hand. Starting so young while his hands were still growing he actually 'grew' his hand by stretching for those long chords and notes... Insane! 😀
If you want more to the story, listen to the rest of the album... and then the rest of their albums. Most of them follow one huge comprehensive storyline :)
A Perfect Reaction!! I know you will get lots of feedback on this. My only suggestion is to watch Ayreon - The Source (Album Lyric Video). This is just a part of what is known as the "Ayreon Universe" then prepare yourself for what in my opinion is a life changing journey.
Hey, you should definitely check out Avantasia, The scarecrow live show wacken and The Raven Child lyrical video and Moonglow official video featuring Candice Night, awesome 😎
Actually the end isn't the end. This is just the beginning... (By the way, search for Ayreon Universe, The Best of Ayreon Live and pick out any number. There are 16 singers in this concert.)
Luca Stricagnoli doesn't seem to have very long fingers but he sure can play. Sure, he probably practices for 40 hours a day but that's expected for his playing level: Exhibit A: THE BEATLES (While My Guitar Gently Weeps) - Luca Stricagnoli ua-cam.com/video/rXq1rvuN_lI/v-deo.html Exhibit B: SWEET HOME ALABAMA (Lynyrd Skynyrd) - Luca Stricagnoli ua-cam.com/video/QBVyRpnyqSM/v-deo.html
James LaBrie - Dream Theater (USA), Tommy Karevik - Kamelot (USA) and Seventh Wonder (Sweden), Tommy Rogers - Between the Buried and Me (USA), Simone Simons - Epica (Holland), Nil K. Rue - Pagan's Mind (Norway), Tobias Sammet - Avantasia, Edguy (German), Hansi Kirsch - Blind Guardian (German), Michael Mills - Toehider (Australia), Russell Allen - Symphony X (USA), Michael Eriksen - Circus Maximus (Norway), Floor Jansen - Nightwish (Finland). Arjen lucassen, the very tall player is the main composer of Ayreon and he is from Holland.
Note that the countries listed are where the bands originate. Not the singers. For example we all know Floor is Dutch. But also Tommy Karevik is Swedish.
Thanks for this!
Also if you love Tommy K as much as I do, check out his other band Seventh Wonder. Personally I think it’s more true of his vocal talents than his work in Kamelot
@@erwinmulder1338 James Labrie is Canadian as well.
Here is a list of the composer and singers in order of appearance:
Arjen Lucassen - Composer - Dutch singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist musician and record producer best known for his long-running progressive metal/rock opera project Ayreon.
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 Simmons - 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 and Allen/Lande.
Michael Eriksen - Lead singer of Circus Maximus.
Floor Jansen - Lead singer of After Forever, ReVamp & now Nightwish.
Next I would suggest reacting to the performances at Ayreon Universe concert, especially the following Intergalactic Space Crusaders, River of Time, Merlin's Will, Valley of the Queens, Ride the Comet, Star of Sirrah, And the Druids Turn to Stone, Age of Shadows & Everybody Dies.
Good one! In addition the Dutch Wikipedia page gives a complete overview of Arjen's works ;)
nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayreon
@@hermenw.huiskamp8555 Good tip, except that unfortunately I do not speak Dutch. 😉
@@shuriken4852 well the english wiki does not have the list... but I will gladly help you ;) the Dutch for 'artist' is 'artiest' and names are the same in both...
There it is! I saw the spoiler alert in the comments of Epica feat Floor. Haven't started the vid yet, but already know more earballs will be blown. Arjen is from the Netherlands and he writes everything and then he contacts the artists he thinks would be perfect for each role in the story. Another great one from Ayreon is 'Everybody dies'. Please check out the live version. :)
I don't want to sound creepy, but I love to watch your mind being boggled and can feel your goosies over here in Germany - awesome reaction!
Speaking of your goosies, Marco is also a regular vocalist in Arjen's projects 🤘
Haha...yes it's mind blowing. Awesome reaction
Same here! (It reaches all the way up to the German coastline!)
Ayreon is not a band but the music creation of Anthony Lucassen a Dutch musician, song writer and so much more.Yes it is normal for him to have several singers. And yes that is him.FYI.....He's almost 7 foot tall.....Try .....Valley of the Queens.....Everybody dies
Ayreon is one of the many musical projects of Dutch composer/multi-instrumentalist Arjen Lucasson (the guy narrating the video and playing the guitar, bass and keyboards). All Ayreon albums are concept albums and most fit into a larger Ayreon “universe.” He always gets top-notch vocalists to sing the parts of all the different characters (Floor is a frequent participant). Some of his other projects include Star One, Guilt Machine, Ambeon, and The Gentle Storm.
Lucassen*
There's 17 tracks on the album. The 11 singers are split into smaller groups for each track. Floor sings on 11 of the tracks with various other singers. 😀
You will have to check out Mike Mills and Toehider as the music is both brilliant and lyrically genius and often hilarious!
And he is an extremely underrated Aussie - so much talent
And a really nice dude!
if it ain't dutch it ain't much... Welcome in the amazing world of Arjen A. Lucassen Aka Ayreon Universe (Ayreon, Ambeon, Star one, Guilt Machine, Gentle Storm, Stream of Passion).... Enjoy this rabbit hole….!!!!!
Ayreon is the (main) project of Dutch composer, producer, singer and multi-instrumentalist Arjen Anthony Lucassen. He does scifi concept albums. He has had over 80 different singers on his 9 (double)albums. Most albums are part of the bigger story called the Ayreon Universe.
He has not done many live-shows but the ones he did are all killer. The 4 main shows are: 1.) Star One - live on earth (actually starone is a side project, but they did play some Ayreon songs) 2002-dvd2003
2.) The Theater Equation (a playthrough of the cd human equation, this is more a broadway-theater show) 2105-dvd2016
3.) Ayreon Universe (a best of full on prog-rock-metal show) 2017-dvd2018
4.) Ayreon - Electric castle live and other tales (a playtrough of the cd Into the electric castle, and 1 song of each side-project) 2019-dvd2020
Its a freaking crime that Mike isn't known in our own country where bloody pop stars are treated like gods. I could go on all day lol.
Subbed and I'm Australian as well.
Both the Universe Live and Electric Castle and Other Tales Live concerts are saved on my channel.
Universe I usually watch every Friday night.
Tommy Karevik...'the swede'....🇸🇪..in the 'Kamelot'
Eargasms all around, I’ve heard and seen this at least 30 times, and it still gets me every time, enjoy the rest of the Ayreon rabbit hole, Arjen doesn’t have bad music..
Short fingers!!! - and then saying Arjen has long fingers...
Well, let's just say that Floor's head is reaching Arjen's shoulders - maybe because the tallest people in average height in the world is from Holland - just like the greatest singers and prog rock composers are..
Arjen has been working with over 100 of the top singers and musicians during the years, many if them several times - he started working with Floor in 2000, and later her sister Irene. It is an incredible impressive row of world class musicians and singers you will meet in the Arjen Lucassen projects - like this ongoing Ayreon project, which is partly driven by his fans, that gives imput to the story.
This was a kind of introduction to the album The Source - so I suggest that you just follow the order on the album. All the singers are there, playing their roles on different tracks, doing superb storytelling that will bring you further out into the Ayreon Universe - needless to say that the music and compositions are matching the singers.
There are 3 - 5 top composers in the world now a days - Tuomas from Nightwish and Arjen Lucassen are 2 of them - just lean back and enjoy. 👍🤘 🤘
I'm an Aussie and a BIG Ayreon fan - have been for quite a while. Tommy has been out here with Kamelot a couple of times, Nightwish and Epica have been here as well. Michael Mills lives in Melbourne! Ayreon Universe - which is a live concert, is a great place for you to start, as it gives you an overall Ayreon feel - you'll love it - follow the singers and you will discover a treasure trove of music that is out there.
I'm an Aussie too. I couldn't agree with you more. By the way I'm 65.
Check out the live stuff. The Eye of Ra. Everybody Dies........all good.🤪😜😁🔥♥️🤘👍🎶
Evrerybody Dies is sick.
The rest of the story is told in the rest of the album. All his albums are concept albums with a story where the singers play out their role in the different songs. There's also some live performances from the 'Ayreon Universe' show/DVD. 'Everybody Dies' is a song from the same album, maybe you should check it out. Link: ua-cam.com/video/9AAXtUdM7xE/v-deo.html (It has Michael Mills in it too ;)
Yes! This is a great second helping of Ayreon.
Short fat fingers is no excuse my friend. I have small girl hands, and I've been playing a 6-string bass with a neck the size of a 2"x4" for 20 years. 😂 I saw this video for the first time about a year ago, and bough the album 10 seconds after if finished. It must be so cool to get this many awesome musicians together for a project.
I was thinking of the ladies from Lovebites and their virtuosity.
@@PittDaddy Yeah, or Band-Maid. I have a total crush on Misa.
Well to defend him, fat fingers on a guitar make it harder to touch just one string at a time. And short fingers (like myself) make barre-chords a lot harder to take. With a lot of practice, yes of course. But long thin fingers make it easier.
Or did he say bass guitar? Then I heard wrong.
@@Garbox80 I still say it's no excuse. With practice, anyone can learn to play regardless of your physical build or ability. Tony Iommy of Black Sabbath was missing the first joints of two fingers of his fretting hand. That didn't stop him from having a 50 year long career. Django Reinhardt only had two fingers. And he was one of the world's best Jazz guitarists. It's really about how much time and work you're willing to put into it.
Hoo boy. You can’t go wrong with Ayreon. Choose any live recording here on YT and you’re good to go.
I won’t provide detailed info bc I’m sleepy as hell, but basically Ayreon is a project made by Arjen Anthony Lucassen... and it can be called a metal opera. Every album tells a story and has several guest vocalists, each has their own role.
The Valkyrie Queen as the "Anchor" of the song...and there are live performances of all of Ayreon.
Valley of the Queens for one! ua-cam.com/video/TbebO5BZi-I/v-deo.html
Yes, the guitar player is Arjen Anthony Lucassen, he is the composer, producer, organiser, etc. etc. Ayreon is his continuing project
Now run off and find "Ayreon - Everybody Dies (Ayreon Universe)" to see and hear a song from one of the very rare live performances of this project. And then start digging in the 25 year or so long history of this project and all the side ventures it has spawned over the years as well.
Thanks for your awesome reaction. I got the goosebumps again after seeing you getting them . And with good reasons. You have entered the holy temple of prog rock. The pinnacle of epicness, brought to you by no one less then Arjen Lucassen. Remember that name and listen to all of his music, that he composed over 30 years!!! Ayreon, the gentle storm, star one, you name it. In 200 years time his name will be mentioned and honoured next to Mozart, Beethoven, Bach etc. This is the top league of music.
I have listened to this track at least a hundred times and i am still in awe ! so much talent, so much greatness. Unbelievable beautiful.
The concept of bringing so much talent together to expose the talent of the composition from Arjen is indead exceptional and to much to take in at first listening!
The album this song is from, 'The Source', was an amazing return to form for Ayreon. It's also the heaviest Ayreon record.
The song 'Star of Sirrah' has one of the best 'bang your head' riffs of the past decade.
Welcome to the universe of the Ayreon and his Ayreonauts in this amazing sci-fi story which goes on and on since 1995 and each album is always concept, with each singer as unique character and each song adding to the story from the same Ayreon universe.
Arjen is insanely good and very modest guy
As an Aussie; Everybody dies live with Michael as leadsinger. It's a must, really it is. No really, just trust me, it is...😬
Mike Mills has immense talent but he also perfectly gets Arjen's sense of humour.
Think of this track as the prologue of a novel. It introduces you to all the main characters of the the whole story that takes place over the whole album.
Yeah exactly, a bit like an ouverture to an opera
It's so fun watching all of these prog/power metal-loving UA-camrs lose their sh1t over Ayreon. Just like I did, almost 20 years ago, when I first got into this incredible project/band/wizardry. But I've got to say, _compositionally-speaking_ I think "The Source" is possibly Arjen's best work to date (I have yet to hear "Transitus" yet, so I'm not 100% certain that this is still true). I love the old stuff, don't get me wrong. But this album SLAYS. Part of it is the personnel, and the production is first-rate...but most of it is just REALLY GOOD WRITING. In the world of prog composition, three names currently rise above the rest - Daniel Gildenlöw (Pain of Salvation), Arjen Anthony Lucassen and Neal Morse. These guys took the torch from the '70s prog legends, and they ran with it, becoming modern prog legends in their own right. And who knows what the kids who are growing up hearing this phenomenal music, AND the original prog from 40+ years ago, will come up with? I can't wait to see!
and yet Arjen would tell you he could only aspire to the greatness we attribute him!! He seems like an amazing guy :D
He has been doing this for over 20 years.. lots of projects.. all of them amazing. His music is my favorite music of all time.
Agree!!!
The eye of rah live show and the age of shadows live show featuring Floor Jansen and Marco from nightwish as guest singers and Intergalactic space crusaders live live shows, awesome 😎
The singers in order of appearance are:
James LaBrie from Dream Theater
Tommy Karevik from Kamelot, Seventh Wonder
Tommy Rogers from Between the Buried and Me
Simone Simons from th most epic Epica
Nils K. Rue from Pagan's Mind
Tobias Sammet from Edguy and here mentioned Avantasia
Hansi from Blind Guardian: Bard's song & Valhalla Wacken 2016. Mirror mirror, And the story ends, Bright eyes, all studio versions.
Told you you would love this 😄
The mastermind behind Ayreon is Arjen Lucassen, he writes rock opera’s en then invites musicians from all over the world that he admires to join the project.
To proceed, check out the songs from the ‘Universe’ concert by Ayreon following up this song.
Great ones are:
Age of shadows
Everybody dies
Merlin’s Will
Dawn of a million souls
Valley of the queens
Star of Sirrah
The eye of Ra
You can’t go wrong because the whole concert is epic! 🙋🏼♀️
Its no new band Ayreon exist for 3 decades. Now you survived the intro you may proceed to Ayreon Universe
-"I didn't want that to end"
Thankfully, there's a while album for that.
Cant count the times I've watched / heard this song and its just an eargasm everytime. So beautifully done by everyone involved. I play this in the car and on everything else lol. The album is amazing too.
Avantasia is Tobias Sammets version of a metal opera, most songs feature guest singers and musicians from all over the world, people Tobias had always wanted to work with.
Among those are names like Alice Cooper, Klaus Meine (Scorpions), Dee Snider, Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation), Marco Hietala (Nightwish), Hansi Kürsch (Blind Guardian), Jon Oliva (Savatage), Geoff Tate (Queensryche), Ronnie Atkins (Pretty Maids), Jorn Lande (Masterplan), Biff Byford (Saxon) Michael Kiske (Helloween), Bob Catley (Mangum), David DeFeis (Virgin Steele), Candice Night, Amanda Somerville and many more.
Their live shows are an experience on their own - usually lasting about 3-3,5 hours of pure awesomeness.
Zero and one...its THE cosmic Law...the zero is the emptyness...and the one reprisents the manifestation ...the beginning of All ( the zero 0 ) of All there is 💎
Enjoyed yo reaction so much ✌✌✌✌...keep on rolling that beautifull Nightwish Floor Epica Ayreon reactions ....🤗💪🎸🇳🇱🙏🏼greatings ...a Dutch fan 💜
Man this was an awesome reaction, so very satisfying to watch!
And short fingers don't have to hold you back. Have you seen Emppu from Nightwish? He's tiny and an amazing guitar player.
Tommy is the singer for Kamelot. You should definitely check out more of them. Also, just watch Empuu from Nightwish. Short fingers...shreds.
Tommys voice is more like this in his Swedish band Seventh wonder
Hey dude. Aussie here too. I'm a lover of the Aussie underground and love sharing it. Could show you hundreds of amazing bands from here
What a lovely reaction, you notice so much and I've sen many reactions to this amazing song. It's funny when you talked about the shape of your fingers, they also call it "piano fingers" when they are long and slim and have great reach but in my family it's guitar fingers. They are Indo (that's what mixed Indonesian European is called) and loads of them play guitar and the hand build is part of it, long flexible slim fingers. Indo-rock is a whole style of music full of guitar players like that. They can even play chords differently from finger flexibility. That coupled with a love for guitar music means my family is full of people who play guitars and play or have played in bands.
Arjen is an absolute beast of a musician, he takes his experience and influences and melds them together to push a narrative. If you listen to how he constructs his music there are no wasted notes or "filler". He's the guy everyone wants to hang with, apparently helped give Floor her start as well. Everyone on this is a Jugganaught of their genre but they all seem to hands down acknowledge Arjen (the prog rock hippy) as king. lol
that was an appropriate reaction. thank you. I guess in the comments you´ ve already gotten all the facts on ayreon you need. there are also some mindblowing live performances to be seen and heard. it´s another rabbithole.
Tobias Sammet not only Avantasia. Also Edguy!!!
Yeah, well... Edguy has turned more and more into Avantasia over the last years 😉
@@ShadowhispersBand When I first heard them I liked Edguy. Now I like Avantasia more than Edguy. Go figure.
Avantasia: The scarecrow live, Seven angels live, Ravens child lyrics video, Moonglow video. His other band Edguy: The piper never dirs, Vain glory opera
They're fantastic as well! And I love The Scarecrow! 💕🙏🇺🇸
Definitely check out Toehider, I have their last two CDs and am in awe. So much variation in style and tone, but still distinctly Mike. I broke down and bought the remainder of his discography that was available, but it won't arrive via post until late May early June. It is so hard to pick a favorite! (I do have a least favorite due to my general dislike of harsher vocals, but even then I never skip it, as it does have one super funny part that makes it worth while). I have see a few reactors checkout 'Whatever Makes You Feel Superior'. Each of the two albums that I have so far have a "Saga" song which are really fun, 'Concerning Lix and Fairs' and 'Meet the Sloth'. If I had to pick a favorite (which like for Nightwish is almost impossible), I would say 'How Much For That Dragon's Tooth' and 'The Ultimate Exalter' are good candidates.
“What is this” sir welcome to the wonderous mindblowing universe of Ayreon. Get ready for a journey through space and time and the best vocalists you can think of. Have fun!
Michael Mills is a legit musical genius. He must have the biggest vocal range of any male singer I've ever heard.
Loved watching you freak out have been listening to this for years and it still amazes me.
True!
That was a wonderfull reaction, love to see you in awe in the present of such awesomeness.
Haha talking about fingers on guitarists. When you check in Ayreon Universe (live) keep an eye on Marcel Coenen who is one of Europe's best guitarists: D
Trying to keep up with this is like visiting a sports pub with 1000 screens of different matches being played, and following each one flawlessly. Or a conversation with my late mother, you'd get whiplash from the direction changes, MID-WORD.
Finally tuned in...have seen your vids on my homepage before, but passed. Ayreon lends you some legit cred. I've now watched several of your reacts and subbed. I see you've hit some of the high points- Nighwish, Sabaton, Epica, UTA, Jinjer... So it turns out once one dives into a rabbit hole they find express lanes to so many other bands! Enjoy your journey, and keep up the fine reacts!
Here's the perfect follow-up to this: Everybody Dies, live at Ayreon Universe ua-cam.com/video/9AAXtUdM7xE/v-deo.html
Jep. That’s me over 20 years ago... who are those singers?... I discovered so many great musicians and singers through Ayreon and I saw Floor live for the first time with Ayreon / Star One. Check out the Ayreon Universe show. You can pick any song, basically. Same as in the Nightwish Wacken show. No fillers.
Wait until you listen to the live stuff, there’s not one single bad song, it’s all awesome. Arjen has kick started a few projects in hiss time, one of my faves is Stream of Passion, a fabulous band, that sadly disbanded a few years ago, with lead singer Marcelo Bovio, she is truly wonderful. Marcelo also features prominently on the Ayreon live videos. If you’d like a recommendation, I would say Deceiver/Songs of the Ocean live. There is also a fantastic video of Songs of the Ocean by Ayreon live, featuring a large cast of singers and musicians.
Marcela maybe...otherwise you might have made her a boy!! Not a 100% but I know in some languages that is the case :D
... and MaYaN 😉
Tommy Karevik is the singer from Kamelot. You should check them out too. Such good music!!!!!!! You met Simone Simons with Epica (Sancta terra) You should check out their new album OMEGA.
Loved your reaction to this. A genuine 'First Time Hearing'. Don't worry about being lost for words, I was when I first heard it.
The collaberation between Arjen Lucassen and Floor Jansen goes way back. In fact he was one of the first to recognize the enormous potential of Floor. Together with her sister Irene and Simone Simons they feature in several of the projects Arjen produced over the years. This is another giant rabbit hole you are facing. Here is link to a lyric video of the album 'The Source': ua-cam.com/video/vN-kbmQckw8/v-deo.html As it is difficult to get so much singers together at one place at the same time there are a limited number of live shows of Ayreon. But the videos that do exist of those events are a must see.
Arjen, plays all guitars all bases, all keys including the hammond (except the grand piano, played by Joost) plus wrote all music and lyrics. And he mixes and produces it all.
Nice to see a mental brake down🤯
Ayreon is my third favorite band after Pink Floyd and Nightwish.
Listen to the two live concerts:
Ayreon Universe live
The electric castle live and other tales
All the albums
See Wikipedia for everything you want to know about the musicians, albums, songs etc.
You have to listen to the whole album as a story. Its amazing.
All the music in the Ayreon discography is mind blowing and if you want to check out a masterpiece view and listen The Electric Castle Live and Other Tales. I speak of music and visuals of some of the the best live performance in this century! This is now my favorite music dvd and this musical gem will send you strait to progressive rock nirvana.
Check out Ayreons Universe live show. Absolutely awesome. Includes Floor and her sister Irene!
The only problem with his live performances is that there is always a danger having that much talent in one spot.....space time distortions all that kind of stuff.
Ends in a time loop and you must hear it again and again!😀
They dont perform live
My thinking as well seing the lineup of Eye of Ra...
@@alexwensveen8105 Yes they do!
@@alexwensveen8105 They have done a couple of very special shows every few years.
They would have done another one this year but I'm sure Covid prevented that.
Hey Jordan, glad you found Arjen Lucassen,
I'm sure that you'd love to hear a new interview,
check out "Breaking Absolutes Ep. 20 (you need the Updated Audio version).
Then on to his many other projects!
Don't forget Mike Mills Toehider :)
Promote the HECK out of this please. The current world situation is seriously impacting plans for this. Arjen has said he writes stories and would love to do a musical movie ..and talks have taken place ...but he just doesn't have the following and exposure. And it is a Shame ....he is extremely talented and he certainly has the talent working with him and many have worked with him over and over.
Im so angry that he is so unknown in our own country, and that our metal community is so small even Simone and Floor (until beste zangers) are unknown to the general public. They deserve allll the recognition.
Ayreon is an instant happiness place. 😊 You will love the live version of everybody dies. The whole Ayreon Universe live is golden.
Need to listen to this one 20 or 30 more times. He has some live concert songs out, check out ( riding the comet) it's a good one.
Hey Schnitzel :), love your stuff. A double feature of
Blind Guardian - The Bard's Song & Valhalla - Live at Wacken Open Air 2016
Would be great (Hansi Kürsch)
🤔 love watching how this hits you. Arjen Lucassen is a Dutch composer check out more of his live stuff...Btw his length is 2.03 so that explains his long fingers funny to see that Floor looks like a woman of average hight standing next to him during a live show...
Great reaction! By the way, you may want to compare your fingers to those of Marco Sfogli,.Have a listen to him and then realize that it's just about practice. Anyway, thanks for a very enjoyable reaction.
When you have the time listen to the INTO THE ELECTRIC CASTLE or Arjens sideproject STAR ONE. Love your reaction on this song btw! Cheers from the Netherlands!
Watch literally anything from Universe or Electric Castle live. Some of the best live music ever performed.
This is Tuomas's hiking buddy Tony Kakko and his Wolfpack Sonata Arctica.
Since I totally adore this band and the evolution of their sound, I will start you off with a golden oldie and the OG Wolfpack line up
Wolf and Raven
ua-cam.com/video/NPHqfYfHx7s/v-deo.html
Ayreon - Valley Of The Queens (Ayreon Universe) - Marcela, Anneke and Floor.
Anneke rocks bigtime!
@@famvanhout6346 I think they all rock...
Arjen Anthony Lucassen is the Dutch progressive metal genius and creator of Ayreon and all of the music. His music is sci fi rock/metal opera stories. The singers all play roles in the story. Tommy Karevik is an amazing vocalist from the band "Kamelot". You will soon be introduced to the amazing Michael Mills from down under. Mike plays the role of the computer TH-1. This stuff gets even heavier in live performances. Arjen is playing all of the keys (Except for the grand piano), guitars, and bass parts on this song. Arjen does not like to tour so he is a legend in the Netherlands and Germany area. But nobody know him in America and beyond. check out my link below and you will see a big man with hands like yours that will amaze you on the guitar. It is a live performance. hang on to your mind.
ua-cam.com/video/3dEHQNAZsIo/v-deo.html - Star of Sirrah -Ayreon Universe live. This song is from the same album "The Source".
Ayreon is progressive metal 😎
Progressive Space Metal
Hey from Germany! Just found your reaction, really cool! 👍
You should really do some Ayreon live because it's just so good!
You saw Tobias Sammet in there. He does in Avantasia pretty much the same that Arjen does in Ayreon! If you're interested in checking them out (which would be definately worth it) you could go with "The Scarecrow live (the flying opera)". It's one of my all time favourites! Or you could go with "Raven child" where you'll hear Hansi Kürsch from the legendary Blind Guardian (which you should get into, too 😀) again!
If you want to listen to another female lead singer( she is dutch). You should reactvto Within Temptation's The Purge, Angels or Mother Earth. I still love it after 10 times. Tarja has a new single with The .band Primal Fear and the song is I will be gone. Tarja is the 1st singer of Nightwish. Arjen is 6ft 8.
I'm so obsessed with Blackbriar at the moment that when you where talking about another Dutch band with a female lead. I immediately thought of Zora from Blackbriar oops
I recommend "Ayreon - Everybody dies"
Guess what, Michael Romeo has fat fingers too, and he plays the guitar like there's no tomorrow. You should check him out, he's the guitarist of Symphony X, btw. And two of my most favorite singers ever are here, Floor Jansen and Russell Allen! 😁🤘
Syntheziser and Guitar :) It's all Arjen Anthony Lucassen (Composer and narrator.)
The bassist, the keyboardist and the guitarist are all the same person: Arjen Anthony Lucassen, the mastermind who wrote everything
So.. As you loved this, and as you're an Aussie, you HAVE to give Ne Oblivicaris a go.
Ne Oblivicaris - And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope (live, obviously): ua-cam.com/video/rNuVdsx7qJY/v-deo.html
Anyway, have a damn good day!
My fav part is 01010101.... lol so great
Hand size can make a difference... I recall seeing somewhere that Steve Vai (maybe John 5) has a fret hand (left) that is like an inch longer than his right hand. Starting so young while his hands were still growing he actually 'grew' his hand by stretching for those long chords and notes... Insane! 😀
If you want more to the story, listen to the rest of the album... and then the rest of their albums. Most of them follow one huge comprehensive storyline :)
A Perfect Reaction!! I know you will get lots of feedback on this. My only suggestion is to watch Ayreon - The Source (Album Lyric Video). This is just a part of what is known as the "Ayreon Universe" then prepare yourself for what in my opinion is a life changing journey.
Hey, you should definitely check out Avantasia, The scarecrow live show wacken and The Raven Child lyrical video and Moonglow official video featuring Candice Night, awesome 😎
Awesome composition and performance. By the way, the binary string translates to "trustTH1". Enjoyed your reaction!
Actually the end isn't the end. This is just the beginning...
(By the way, search for Ayreon Universe, The Best of Ayreon Live and pick out any number. There are 16 singers in this concert.)
Haha, welcome to prog Rock royalty! You are following a similar path to myself after falling down the Nightwish rabbit hole. Enjoy
Welcome to the wonderful world of Arjen Anthony Lucassen. It is I, sir, that envies you! Ah to have that fresh discovery feeling!
Luca Stricagnoli doesn't seem to have very long fingers but he sure can play. Sure, he probably practices for 40 hours a day but that's expected for his playing level:
Exhibit A:
THE BEATLES (While My Guitar Gently Weeps) - Luca Stricagnoli
ua-cam.com/video/rXq1rvuN_lI/v-deo.html
Exhibit B:
SWEET HOME ALABAMA (Lynyrd Skynyrd) - Luca Stricagnoli
ua-cam.com/video/QBVyRpnyqSM/v-deo.html
There is a lyric video for the whole album "The Source" on UA-cam which Arjen himself approves of. Check it out
It is a fantastic piece of art! Pleeeaaassseee, also check out Ayreon - Valley of the queens?