THE FINAL EXPERIMENT (SPECIAL EDITION)

I have listened to Arjen Lucassen's (AKA. AYREON) music from present day back to his first step into the realm of rock operas. "The Final Experiment", originally released in 1995 is another lost prog-rock classic. This was a huge step forward in Arjen's career. It was risqué at the time for him to release this album but as all of his followers know, it was the beginning of a long string of strong albums with a thematic concept and AYREON as the main character.

This special edition remastered 2 CD set does the legacy of this recording fairness and then some. Listening to the bonus disc was like hearing "Human Equation" revisited, obviously due to that fact that the people involved on that project contributed once again. The bonus disc is all-acoustic, unplugged if you will, recorded right from scratch because Luccassen believed it should be a two-disc set just as its predecessors were. As much as I enjoyed "The Final Experiment" I have to be honest, the bonus disc was so wonderful I could not get enough of it.

I feel my sojourn into the catalog of "AYREON" is complete, for now. I now understand how this fine artist has developed as a musician and storyteller. It all makes perfect sense now why he chose to continue his Ayreon epic with so many albums. First, it is a brilliant concept to take from start to finish, and an open-ended storyline that leaves room for more great albums, another stroke of musical genius I must say.

This how Arjen Lucassen began to build his "Electric Castle", it is indeed the foundation to the monument of his recorded works.

© Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck-http://www.muzikreviews.com

Rating - 9/10

May 27, 2005