Star One, Revel in time

Considering how much I love anything Arjen-related and how stupidly excited I was about this album, it’s a real wonder that it took me almost two months to finally review it. You can thank my perpetual state of exhaustion and poor inspiration for that. But the fangirl in me could not leave this record un-reviewed, nor keep her mouth shut for long when it comes to one of the greatest artists of our generation, and as soon as I had some time to myself and could actually hear my thoughts for ten seconds, the words started pouring. So, Star One, Revel in Time. Take 2084.

For Revel in time, our dear space-traveling hippie put the concept albums aside and instead went for a thematic approach. All songs are inspired by a famous sci-fi movie, such as Terminator, Interstellar or Back to the future, and if we’re being honest, it sounds like they’re inspired by the lead singer on them as well. Seriously, I’m always commenting how Arjen Lucassen can make each vocalist shine, sometimes even more so than his own band does, and Star One’s release is no different. Each artist’s individuality transpires in their track and it absolutely sounds like Arjen wrote the tune with that particular musician in in mind (which of course we know is not exactly true since there are two versions of the songs with different vocalists). And this is where I must stop and mention that I’m reviewing only the first CD, which I consider to be the main one, with the second being more of a B-version.

Arjen has never taken himself very seriously and Star One is where he lets the most of his goofy side out. So when Revel in time started with the cheerful, fast paced and full of energy Fate of man, I thought I knew what I was in for. And for the first half I was right: a super catchy record, with just the right amount of cheese and playfulness to make it fun, but enough musical complexity to prevent it from being shallow and unengaging. Now you’re wondering about the second half, we’ll get to that in a minute.

But first, let’s talk about Russell Allen singing about Donnie Darko. That was obviously bound to be a treat and of course 28 days delivers, moving through different rhythms and moods and alternating between strangely upbeat for a song about the weight of the world on your shoulders and sensible and haunting, thanks to Sir Russell Allen’s powerful vocals.

Prescient starts off in a rather cheesy way, with tonalities taken straightly from the poorer side of The source, but by the time we get to the duel between Mike Mills and Ross Jennings of “Who cares if every moment isn’t perfect”, I’m hooked. It’s such a simple, yet effective tune that I’ve had stuck in my head for days on end.

Back to the past is an old school hard rock track, full of powerful vocals, melodic tunes and a catchy bouncy chorus. And just as I was enjoying a lively cheesy song, I’m unceremoniously thrown into a more aggressive bridge with dramatic choirs, then back to the cheesy stuff and so on. I’m not sure what to make of it. I enjoy each part taken separately, but they don’t quite work as a whole.

You know what I do love? Revel in time, the song. It also has an old-school vibe, but it’s so cool, infectious and engaging. I can just picture all the artists involved just having a ton of fun while recording this.

The year of 41 is less memorable, but much like the tracks before it, it’s elevated by Marcela Bovio and Irene Jansen’s presence. I really like the backing vocals those two provide. And of course Joe Lynn Turner gives a masterclass in singing at the young age of 70. Yeah, the man is 70 years old, and sounds like that. How?

Now enough of the campy stuff, here comes the second half where I feel like we’re no longer in classic Star One territory, but start going in a more sombre and refined direction. It all starts with that voice. That completely mesmerising and unmistakable voice. And that epic other-worldly atmosphere. Bridge of life is one of my favourites and as I said, it marks a break in the album and a switch to a more serious and steady sound. Despite its apparent simplicity, it carries so much weight and emotion, thanks mostly to Damian Wilson’s impressive delivery. This guy pours his entire soul in every performance, and he’s also the kindest and most charismatic artist I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing, I just love him.

Today is yesterday is a lot heavier than the rest of Revel in time and at the same it’s so infectious with its “poor poor Billy has a bad day” verses. It reminds me a lot of The human equation and once more I have to say I love Irene & Marcella’s playful interventions. And yes, it’s about The groundhog day.

How is it that out of the gazillion bands and composers Floor has worked with, Arjen is consistently the one who brings out the best in her? A hand on the clock is a decent song on its own, but it’s elevated with about 10 classes by Floor Jansen’s incredible voice that is raspy, powerful, gentle, intense and emotional all over the course of 5 minutes. I’m sorry, I have trouble focusing on much else when the brilliant Floor opens her mouth.

Beyond the edge of it all is just to die for. So intense and epic, steady and intriguing, and with those long notes and the melodic choir it reminds me a bit of Into the black hole (one of my favourite Arjen songs). It’s by far one of the best tracks of the record.

And finally, the crown jewel, Lost children of the universe. I think I’ve mentioned before that Roy Khan could sing the Alphabet song and I would still sit in awe and listen to him. And combining his warm buttery voice with Arjen Lucassen’s genius results in an absolutely epic track. So far away from the simple fun beginning of Revel in time, it has epic choirs, changes of pace and atmosphere, intensity, emotion, melody, amazing vocals, it’s just everything a song after my own heart should be.

At the risk of stating the obvious, Star one ain’t Ayreon, and it was never intended to be. That’s exactly why Arjen has all his different projects, so that he can freely write whatever he feels like, without having to bother with stylistic unity or fan-pressure. For the most part SO lacks the nuance and complexity of its bigger sister, but with Revel in time, what starts as a campy proggy space-themed album evolves with each piece and culminates in an epic and complex ending. Even though I always expect greatness from Arjen Lucassen, I have to admit this time I was surprised. Pleasantly, of course. So I once more declare my undying love aaaand, I’m out. No, 14 years later and I still don’t know how to write a proper ending, that’s all I have.