Into the Electric Castle (also known as Into the Electric Castle — A Space Opera) is the third album of progressive metal/rock opera Ayreon by Dutch songwriter, producer, singer, and multi-instrumentalist Arjen Anthony Lucassen, released in 1998.
Being a concept album as is every Ayreon album, it tells a science fiction story with exaggerated, flamboyant characters influenced by B-grade science fiction movies. There are eight characters (each one sang/played by a different vocalist, as is standard in every Ayreon album) from different times and locations. They find themselves in a strange place; guided by a mysterious voice which tells them that they must reach "the Electric Castle" if they want to survive. Into the Electric Castle is also the first collaboration between Lucassen and Ed Warby, who has since become Lucassen's most regular collaborator: he played drums on every following Ayreon album except Universal Migrator Part 1: The Dream Sequencer, in Star One and in his solo album Lost in the New Real.
The album was a commercial success and received overwhelmingly positive reviews from music critics. Although Ayreon has never played live, five songs from Into the Electric Castle were included in Star One live album Live on Earth and two in Stream of Passion album Live in the Real World.
Read more about Into The Electric Castle: Background, Plot, Reception, Track Listing, Personnel
Famous quotes containing the word electric:
“A sociosphere of contact, control, persuasion and dissuasion, of exhibitions of inhibitions in massive or homeopathic doses...: this is obscenity. All structures turned inside out and exhibited, all operations rendered visible. In America this goes all the way from the bewildering network of aerial telephone and electric wires ... to the concrete multiplication of all the bodily functions in the home, the litany of ingredients on the tiniest can of food, the exhibition of income or IQ.”
—Jean Baudrillard (b. 1929)