Ayreon - Actual Fantasy (1996)
Tracklist front / back album covers
1. "Actual Fantasy" 1:33
2. "Abbey of Synn" 9:34
3. "The Stranger from Within" 7:40
4. "Computer Eyes" 7:27
5. "Beyond the Last Horizon" 7:35
6. "Farside of the World" 6:20
7. "Back on Planet Earth" 7:04
8. "Forevermore" 7:16
1998 reissue bonus tracks
9. "The Dawn of Man" 7:32
10. "The Stranger from Within" (Single version) 3:38
Ayreon Band Members / Musicians
Okkie Huijsdens – vocals
Edward Reekers – vocals
Robert Soeterboek (Cotton Soeterboek Band) – vocals
Cleem Determeijer – synth solo on tracks 3 and 4; orchestral and string arrangements on tracks 1, 3, 7, and 8
Rene Merkelbach – Hammond, synth solo on track 2
Floortje Schilt – violin
Arjen Anthony Lucassen – all other instruments
David Bachwitz – 'little boy' on track 1
Kiki Holleman – 'baby' on track 8
Actual Fantasy: Revisited
Ed Warby (Gorefest) – drums
Peter Vink – bass guitar
Ewa Albering – flute
Astrid van der Veen – vocal sample on "Back on Planet Earth"
Arranged and produced by Arjen Anthony Lucassen
Recorded, engineered and mixed by Arjen Anthony Lucassen and Oscar Holleman
Actual Fantasy is an album released in 1996 by Dutch multi-instrumentalist Arjen A. Lucassen and is the second album of his Ayreon project. It is the only Ayreon release that does not feature a single overarching story concept, but instead draws on science fiction and fantasy films for inspiration, as well as stories written by Arjen himself.
In 2004, Arjen moved to a new record label, Inside Out Germany. With this move came re-issues of all previous Ayreon releases, including Actual Fantasy. The re-issue came with a bonus DVD featuring a 5.1 remix of the entire original album, a video clip for "The Stranger from Within," and a video featurette showing the 2004 recordings of drums, bass, and guitar for the remix.
