Although the prog-power metal thing usually takes the fantasy route, people familiar with Arjen Anthony Lucassen's other output should not be surprised at the science fiction trappings of Victims Of The Modern Age. It certainly fits in with the previous album Space Metal, as well as most of the recent albums from his main project, Ayreon.

Neither should those familiar with his previous output be surprised at the guest cast. Lucassen himself handles a number of the instruments other than bass and drums, although Joost van den Broek (formerly of After Forever) and Gary Wehrkamp (of Shadow Gallery) contribute a number of keyboard and guitar solos respectively. He also hands over the vocal duties on all but one track to a collection of well-known vocalists: Symphony X's Russell Allen, Headspace's Damian Wilson, After Forever and ReVamp's Floor Jansen, and too-many-bands-to-name Dan Swano. All of the vocalists work well in their respective roles, although Jansen was the vocalist who most often stood out to me. Swano takes sections of two of the songs in a heavier direction with his growled vocals, with 50/50 results: they work well on "Human See, Human Do," but less so on the title track.

Lyrically and thematically, the songs draw from a variety of science fiction works. Sadly, I'm totally unfamiliar with half of the inspirations, so I can't say much about how well some of the songs flow with respect to their source material. "Digital Rain," inspired by The Matrix, works well and has a particularly catchy chorus. Firefly-inspired "Earth That Was" fits more generally with the idea of a space western, but doesn't mention anything that specifically ties it to Firefly. I've never seen Planet Of The Apes, but I'm familiar enough with it to follow "Human See, Human Do." And, while I wasn't particularly a fan of Children of Men, the lyrics of "It's Alive, She's Alive, We're Alive" fit well with how I remember that story. The remaining songs are inspired by A Clockwork Orange, Escape From New York, 12 Monkeys, and Blade Runner; a bonus disc adds songs inspired by The Road, 1984, Logan's Run, and Gattaca.

Musically, the album is everything you would expect from this sort of prog-power metal. Spacey, synth-driven instrumental intro "Down The Rabbit Hole" hints at the chorus melody for "Digital Rain." "Digital Rain" itself is mostly riff-driven with ambient keys as a verse backdrop, and then ends with layered vocals by Allen and Swano. "Earth That Was" has a heavy, slower groove. "Human See, Human Do" is fast-paced and urgent with a bluesy signature guitar riff. "Cassandra Complex" stands out from the others with a poppier chorus, although all of the songs have big sing-along sections that will get hooked into your brain after the first or second listen. Conspicuously absent is any kind of ballad; the closest is "24 Hours," which takes the doomy approach of a heavy slow groove instead of having the slower tempo send it into the realm of sappy ballads.

The only possible drawback to this CD is the large presence of synthesizers, which may turn some listeners off. Although Swano does contribute some death growls on two songs as mentioned earlier, they're not major parts of the song and shouldn't be a deal breaker for anybody who's put off by growled vocals. All told, this should be on your list of CDs to grab if you're at all in to this style of prog metal.