ABBA’s state of the art virtual concert recently premiered in London with rave reviews from fans and critics.
“I was there at the opening night. One of the best nights of my life. Seeing the future, intertwined beautifully with the past. ABBA is truly a legend,” said one fan.
“Nothing can prepare you for being there and experiencing it. The lighting, the sound, the atmosphere and of course ABBA! The creativity and production around the whole show is beyond anything I could have imagined and hoped. The 43 years wait was worth it,” wrote another.
You can find many more fan reviews on the ABBA Voyage YouTube Channel. Below is the official trailer for the ABBA Voyage concert.
The concert series is staged in the new ABBA Arena in London, which was five years in the making.
…and here’s how we made the ABBA Arena.
We sped it up for you, thank us later. pic.twitter.com/DcsBB3IGhk
— ABBA Voyage (@ABBAVoyage) June 1, 2022
Critical reviews are overwhelmingly positive, with the holographic representations of band members said to be totally lifelike. All four members of the band appear on stage digitally alongside a live 10-piece band.
“The effect is jaw-dropping – the avatars move, talk, and sing like real people” said The Rolling Stone.
“What the producers, and the band themselves, have done with the show is groundbreaking, and will likely transform live music (though whether that’s for better or worse is still up for debate). Last night, though – and for the rest of ABBA’s residency – we can, once again, just be thankful for the music.”
“I was cynical about the technology ahead of the show, but the effect is mystifyingly realistic. It needs to be seen to be believed,” said The BBC.
For now, and at least through May 2023, the concert is available only in the ABBA Arena in London. Find out how to get tickets on Ticketmaster at:
ABBA’s Voyage Album
ABBA’s first new album in 40 years was released last November and is available on all major streaming services, plus on CD or vinyl.
You can also find the same songs on Spotify and other streaming services at:
You can find the Voyage album on CD or Vinyl at Amazon, Walmart and other retailers.
There is also a new Album Box Set of 10 CDs or Vinyl records now available:
Two singles from the album, “I Still Have Faith With You” and “Don’t Shut Me Down” are are available for free streaming on Youtube at:
ABBA’s “I Still Have Faith With You” on Youtube
ABBA’s “Don’t Shut Me Down” on Youtube
ABBA Online
You can read more about ABBA and connect with ABBA fans at these websites.
About ABBA
ABBA is a Swedish pop group formed in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group’s name is an acronym of the first letters of their first names. They became one of the most commercially successful acts in the history of popular music, topping the charts worldwide from 1974 to 1983.
During the band’s main active years, it consisted of two married couples: Fältskog and Ulvaeus, and Lyngstad and Andersson. With the increase of their popularity, their personal lives suffered, which eventually resulted in the collapse of both marriages. The relationship changes were reflected in the group’s music, with latter compositions featuring darker and more introspective lyrics. After ABBA disbanded, Andersson and Ulvaeus achieved success writing music for the stage, while Lyngstad and Fältskog pursued solo careers.
Ten years after their disbanding, a compilation, ABBA Gold was released, which became a worldwide bestseller. In 1999, ABBA’s music was adapted into the successful musical Mamma Mia! that toured worldwide. A film of the same name, released in 2008, became the highest-grossing film in the United Kingdom that year. A sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, was released in 2018. That same year it was announced that the band had recorded two new songs after 35 years of being inactive.
They are one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with sales estimated at 150 million records worldwide.
On 27 April 2018, all four original members of ABBA made a joint announcement that they had recorded two new songs, one entitled “I Still Have Faith in You”, to feature in a TV special set to air later that year. The other new track is called “Don’t Shut Me Down”. In September 2018, Ulvaeus stated that the two new songs, as well as the aforementioned TV special, now called ABBA: Thank You for the Music, An All-Star Tribute, would not be released until 2019. In January 2019, it was revealed that neither song would be released before the summer. Andersson hinted at the possibility of a third song.
In June 2019, Ulvaeus announced that the first new song and video containing the Abbatars would be released in November 2019. In September, he stated in an interview that there were now five new ABBA songs to be released in 2020. In early 2020, Andersson confirmed that he was aiming for the songs to be released in September 2020.
In April 2020, Ulvaeus gave an interview saying that in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the avatar project has been delayed by six months. As of 2020, five out of the eight original songs written by Benny for the new album have been recorded by the two female members, and there is a new music video with new unseen technology that cost £15 million, with the release for the music video being decided. In July 2020, Ulvaeus told podcaster Geoff Lloyd that the release of the new ABBA recordings had been delayed until 2021.
On 22 September 2020, all four ABBA members reunited at Ealing Studios in London to continue working on the avatar project and filming for the tour. Björn said that the avatar tour would be scheduled for 2022 since the nature of the technology is complex. When questioned if the new recordings are definitely coming out in 2021, Björn said “There will be new music this year, that is definite, it’s not a case anymore of it might happen, it will happen.”[95]
On 26 August 2021 a new website was launched, with the title ABBA Voyage. On the page, visitors are prompted to subscribe ‘to be the first in line to hear more about ABBA Voyage‘. Simultaneously with the launch of the webpage, new ABBA Voyage social media accounts were launched. All pages show the date “02.09.21”. On that date it is expected that the site will go live and reveal what ABBA Voyage actually is. Billboards around London have started to appear. On 29 August the band officially joined TikTok with a video of Benny Andersson playing “Dancing Queen” on the piano. Music media has reported that an album of 10 songs, also titled Voyage and including the two tracks previously announced in 2018, will be announced on 2 September.
Credits: Parts of this article were derived from the ABBA Wikipedia Page.