With:	Arjen Anthony Lucassen
Conducted by:	Ivor
Published:	10.07.2004
Band profile:	Ayreon
Album info:	The Human Equation

Disc I
01. Day One: Vigil
02. Day Two: Isolation
03. Day Three: Pain
04. Day Four: Mystery
05. Day Five: Voices
06. Day Six: Childhood
07. Day Seven: Hope
08. Day Eight: School
09. Day Nine: Playground
10. Day Ten: Memories
11. Day Eleven: Love

Disc II
01. Day Twelve: Trauma
02. Day Thirteen: Sign
03. Day Fourteen: Pride
04. Day Fifteen: Betrayal
05. Day Sixteen: Loser
06. Day Seventeen: Accident?
07. Day Eighteen: Realization
08. Day Nineteen: Disclosure
09. Day Twenty: Confrontation

Disc III [special edition bonus DVD]
+ Inside - Behind The Sence
+ Concept - Concept Of The Human Equation
+ Drums - Interview With Ed Warby's Drums
+ Video - Day Eleven: Love [Video}
+ Teaser - Teaser Trailer

Recorded during the interview for Metal Storm on Tuesday, 6th July 2004.

"Day one: Vigil"

It starts in a hospital. Best Friend and Wife are sitting next to his bed. And of course they are worried about the man in a coma but there's more going on. The guy is not only worried about his best friend but he is worried about something else. And Wife notices that. But we don't know what it is yet.

"Day two: Isolation"

The guy wakes up in a strange world. And he suddenly sees his own emotions and they are personified. These emotions start to speak to him. Of course he doesn't know what's going on and he feels really alone. But his emotions are there and they tell him "Listen! We are here to help you out." At least some emotions are. Of course there are emotions saying "Give it up, man! You lost it." or there are emotions like Love trying to get him out.

"Day three: Pain"

Of course his got physical pain as well. I mean, he crashed into a tree, so in a coma he still feels his physical pain. But of course there's also his mental pain.

What did Devin mean by "motion personified alpha"?

(Laughs.) I have no idea.

Have you asked Devin?

Yes! He wouldn't tell me. The first thing I did was call him and I said "Hey, you did a great job, Devin. But I have to ask you what the hell do your lyrics mean??" And he said "Yeah! They are kind of difficult, you know." I said "You're not going to explain them to me, are you?" and he said "No." I said "Well, I want to know one thing, Devin. Do you know what they mean?" and he said "Yes, I do." So I said "Well, that's enough for me." So, I have no idea what it means. And I'm very curious but he's not going to tell me. (Laughs.)

"Day four: Mystery"

Here we are back inside the hospital again. Best Friend and Wife don't understand the accident. Because it was broad daylight there was no other car in sight and he crashed into a tree. How can this happen? And here we find out that there is more going on. They are afraid that he might have seen something but still we don't know what it is.

"Day five: Voices"

The main character is still in a coma. But he hears voices around him. They are the voices of his Wife and his Best Friend who are speaking to each other. But he can't understand what these voices mean. And he's trying to understand but he can't.

"Day six: Childhood"

Emotions take him back to his childhood. We find out that his Father has been a very bad person, he mistreated his son.

"Day seven: Hope"

Here his Best Friend is trying to get him out of his coma. We are back in the hospital again. His Best Friend is telling him "Listen! Think about all the great times we had in the past. All the girls we chased. And all the nice. And there's still so much to look forward in the future as well."

"Day eight: School"

We are back inside his mind and we are going back to his schooldays. It turns out that his Father has made him very competitive and that's why the other pupils don't like him. So he's having a hard time at school as well.

"Day nine: Playground"

It's an instrumental song. The man is sitting on the playground, sitting on the merry-go-round. And he's all alone, you know, there's no one there at his side.

"Day ten: Memories"

We're back in the hospital again. Best Friend and Wife are trying to get him out of the coma by telling him funny anecdotes of what happened in the past.

"Day eleven: Love"

Telling him all these funny anecdotes helped because finally the man in the coma is getting some nice thoughts and on eleventh day he's thinking back to the day he met his Wife.

"Day twelve: Trauma"

This is a very heavy song, very dark song because his Mother dies. He remembers when his Mother dies and he remembers that he wasn't there to save her. Which has been a big trauma in his life.

"Day thirteen: Sign"

Again we're back inside the hospital and Wife and Best Friend actually see him crying. They see a tear rolling down his cheek. And they think "That's good! Finally he's thinking! So he's still alive, he must be battling with his emotions to get out of the coma." And it's strange because Best Friend is worried "What is he thinking about?" But Wife is like "It doesn't matter what he is thinking about! He is thinking which means he is still alive."

"Day fourteen: Pride"

We're back inside the man's head and we find out that he wanted to be an artist but his Father didn't let him. Because his Father wanted him to be a businessman. And his Pride is telling him "Hey! You have to be a businessman!" but his Reason is telling him "Don't do it because this is not the right way! You don't want to be a businessman. Deep inside you're not a ruthless man."

"Day fifteen: Betrayal"

He remembers the day when he betrayed his Best Friend. He betrayed him by revealing some papers which gets his Best Friend fired which in turn makes him the director.

"Day sixteen: Loser"

It's a visit of his Father at the hospital. His Father is calling him a loser, telling him "You've always been a loser! You're the same as your Mother! You're going to die because you never did anything right in your life." But it's very clear that his Father himself is a loser, because all his sons are in jail and all his wives have divorced him. So, it's very clear that he's the loser himself.

"Day seventeen: Accident"

Finally the guy is starting to remember what happened. He's starting to remember the accident. He suddenly remembers that he saw his Wife and his Best Friend. One day he had to drive home early from work and he saw his Wife and his Best Friend and they were caressing each other, they were embracing each other. And he drove away and he was like "Oh shit! My Wife is betraying me with my Best Friend!" And suddenly everything came together for him - his Father who mistreated him, his Best Friend whom he betrayed, his Wife whom he neglected. So he crashed into a tree.

"Day eighteen: Realization"

He finally realizes that he has to do something about it. He realizes now what has happened. OK, he's had an accident. What is he going to do now? Is he going to die? Is he going to give up? Or is he going to survive? Is he going to fight for life? All his emotions are battling.

"Day nineteen: Disclosure"

We're back in the hospital. Best Friend doesn't feel right, you know, he feels guilty. And he speaks to the man in a coma and he tells him "Listen! I've been with your Wife. We haven't done anything wrong. We were both lonely and we needed each other. I lost my job and you were never there for you Wife. So we had to caress each other, you know."

"Day twenty: Confrontation"

This is the best thing that could have happened to Me character. He realizes that his Wife and his Best Friend are revealing secrets to him. And now he really decides "I have to wake up. I have to tell my Best Friend that I have betrayed him as well. Finally I've been honest to myself. I've confronted my own emotions. And now I have to tell the truth to my Best Friend." So he tells his Best Friend "Listen! Remember when the position for director was open. I betrayed you then." And Best Friend says "Yeah! I know you did." Finally he's starting to wake up and his Wife is saying "Come back! Come back!" and his emotions, they agree with him now that he should wake up. Well, basically he is starting to wake up and then we get to the very end which I won't reveal.