One of the most eclectic and interesting progressive metal musicians on the current scene, who is also a composer, singer and multi instrumentalist, Arjen Lucassen (known to many from Ayreon, his main act, now celebrating their 30th anniversary), is back to reaffirm his well known love for science fiction and epic music with the grimly titled AOR album “Songs No One Will Hear”. This fairly theatric effort stands in line with comparable releases from recent years such as Michael Romeo’s “War of the Worlds”, Magnus Karlsson’s metal opera “Heart Healer”, and, of course, his own massive project from 2022, Star One’s “Revel In Time”.
The album, which could potentially be filmed, is presented as a radio show (the Mike Mills “It’s the End of The World as We Know it, and I… Don’t Feel Too Good About it to be honest” show), talking and taking us through an upcoming global crisis with the prospects of destroying humanity: a giant asteroid approaching the planet.
In these chronicles of the last five months of humanity, the plot follows the logical stages of an imminently approaching crisis: from panic, contempt and disbelief through desperation, optimism, crime and destructive behaviour, to accepting and getting to terms with the idea of the inevitable End.
With his typical sarcasm and dark humour, Arjen delivers a music opera of sorts that sparks up curiosity as to what happens next, and will the asteroid strike after all? The tracks are held together not just by the developing plot in the lyrics, but also through the narration of the radio presenter. Music kicks off in a leisurely fashion, which we soon realise is spookily (as in deceivingly) lyrical, in anticipation of the catastrophe just announced, and it starts getting tenser and gloomier – which carries on into the next track. Its catchy tune is one of Arjen’s many talents, and the use of the good old flute feels like a wink to classics like Jethro Tull.
On we go with ‘The Universe Has Other Plans’: a fantastic song, typical for its maker, with a perfect composition and track development, backing vocals and that signature epic instrumentation of his that we love from his previous projects.
Humour borderlines and crosses over with bitter sarcasm in ‘Shaggathon’ (under 18 warning of explicit content) and ‘Dr. Slumber’s Blue Bus’ (there’s a new Boss in town)… Remember the social satire of “Don’t Look Up”? That’s the vibe. There is this ‘entrepreneur’ organising bus tours to the area of expected asteroid impact: someone has to make money from the incoming disaster, right? Here Arjen is absolutely fabulous with the glaring contrast between the lyrics and music: dark humour/sarcasm at its best.
With ‘We’ll Never Know’, things get more serious and epic, with clear desperation notes in recognition of a true tragedy coming, promptly swinging into desperate optimism in ‘Just Not Today’.
The ending of the album is beautiful, ominous, and cosmic, with some beautiful riffs and truly tragic notes.
In one of the formats of the album (3 CDs), there will be a few bonus tracks that put even more flesh to the bones, exploring more ideas on how to potentially save the earth.
Vocally, Arjen exceeds himself with some fantastic singing, and you will also hear some brilliant female vocals here: Floor Jansen (Nightwish) and Irene Jansen (Ayeron and Arjen’s Star One). The entire album is a feast for your ears and a strikingly realistic portrait of a disaster that could well happen to us in the foreseeable future.
- Review by Angelina Pelova
● Songs No One Will Hear is released via Inside Out Music on 12th September 2025.
Track List:
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End of the World Show
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The Clock Ticks Down
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Goddamn Conspiracy
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The Universe Has Other Plans
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Shaggathon
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We’ll Never Know
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Dr. Slumber’s Blue Bus
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Just Not Today
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Our Final Song
Bonus tracks (Disc 3):
Our Weary Soldier
Listen to Sabbath
Mr M’s Amazing Plan
