ABBA have welcomed the one millionth customer to their Voyage present, with Björn Ulvaeus telling NME about what the longer term has in retailer for the formidable reside expertise. Watch our video interview with Ulvaeus above.
Final evening (Monday April 17) noticed younger ABBA fan Josie Felix chosen because the winner to the one millionth customer to see the present on the purpose-built ABBA Area in London. She had been chosen from scores of competitors entries for writing her personal track about how her dad would play ABBA on the varsity run when she was a toddler.
After their assembly, Ulvaeus sat down with NME to mirror on the present’s success.
“It’s wonderful – it has surpassed any dream I might have ever had,” he mentioned of reaching the milestone of entertaining a million individuals in lower than a yr for the reason that Voyage first opened. “We’ve in some way reached new generations by some miracle. I don’t understand how, however there you’re. [2008 musical movie] Mamma Mia, I suppose performed a task in that. There are new generations coming alongside.”
The present sees CGI reincarnations (or ‘ABBA-tars’) primarily based on the actions and efficiency of the residing Swedish pop legends. These are then painstakingly introduced to seem like enjoying reside with the looks of the band of their ’70s prime, backed by a full reside band current within the room.
The success of Voyage has kicked off a debate about which artists might undertake the format subsequent, with members of the Intercourse Pistols and Spice Women responding to the decision.
“That feels good – to be within the entrance line of know-how,” mentioned Ulvaeus of the dialog the band have began, “however know-how is only one a part of it. There are such a lot of different transferring elements. Typically there’s expertise, there’s good songs, there’s all of that behind it – however there’s additionally luck. It’s a must to be fortunate when one thing works in addition to this, in addition to having the sources artistically, financially and so forth.”
He continued: “We don’t know precisely what it’s that we’ve carried out, which makes it arduous to duplicate. I don’t understand it’s only for one other band to do the identical factor and anticipate the identical type of emotional impact that this has had. Not robotically – it’s not that simple.”
The ABBA Voyage digital live performance sequence is at present set to run in London into 2024, with plans reported for the expertise to be taken on a world tour.
Requested about what the way forward for the present entails, Ulvaeus replied: “We hope to remain on this venue for so long as we are able to. We hope they’ll have us for a few years, and we’d construct different replicas of this somewhere else: Asia, Australia, North America. There are tons and promoters and cities that we’re speaking to in the intervening time about that.
“Each would take at the very least two years to construct, however there will probably be bulletins in the direction of the top of this yr or the start of subsequent about the place we truly are going. That’s if we’re going someplace, which we are going to.”
And what about Glastonbury? Is there the potential to do a cell model of ABBA Voyage that would pop up at Worthy Farm?
“I don’t assume that’s doable, but,” he replied. “It may be sooner or later. As it’s, it’s too sophisticated as a result of the lighting, the sound, the visuals, all the things is built-in and it’s so sophisticated.”
Whereas the setlist for ABBA Voyage has remained the identical because it first opened, Ulvaeus revealed to NME that they did work on extra songs that would work their manner into future iterations of the present. “We did movement seize extra songs that we’ve on this live performance,” he mentioned. “There are songs within the pipeline which may be animated and ‘ABBA-tarred’ sooner or later. Who is aware of? There may be a brand new track from time to time someplace – however I can’t provide you with any particulars as of proper now.”
- READ MORE: The story of ABBA in 15 basic songs
The final new music from band got here on the 2021 accompanying ‘Voyage’ album containing the 2 latest singles ‘I Nonetheless Have Religion In You’ and ‘Don’t Shut Me Down’. Requested if there was a hope for extra new music from the band to come back, Ulvaeus mentioned “No, ‘Voyage’ the album was the final you’ll ever hear from us” – however he did stay open to the concept of the band returning for extra tasks just like the reside present, benefiting from new rising applied sciences.
“There will probably be new thrilling codecs sooner or later that we all know little or no about proper now,” he added. “AI, the metaverse, there are many fascinating and thrilling issues occurring creatively that ABBA may be concerned in as effectively.”
Chatting with NME on the premiere, the present’s producer Svana Gisla and guitarist Dom John make clear the way forward for Voyage. When requested if Voyage might be the final the world sees of ABBA, Gisla mentioned: “I believe that is the ultimate factor. They’re fairly real in that, however they’ve mentioned that earlier than. I believe that is it. It took so much to make and it was arduous work, from us and from them.”
In the meantime, John mentioned he might see the present occurring for “a number of years, possibly” when requested how lengthy he anticipated to be performing as a part of the present.
ABBA Voyage at present has dates listed till January 2024. Go to right here for tickets and extra info.
