I Took Me Mam To ABBA Voyage and I Loved It
When ABBA Voyage was first announced, I like many, sniggered and baulked at the thought of thousands of people packing into a purpose-made arena to watch a show performed by digital recreations of Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad; the four members of one of pop’s most successful outfits.
I thought at the time that it pandered to an increasing cohort at the top of the music industry that wanted to drive unnecessary technological change, ultimately changing the fan experience and how we interact with music daily. I sounded a bit tinfoil hat, and that’s because I was wrong. Bank that, I don’t admit it much.
It all changed after I was offered a press trip to ABBA Voyage, the so-called “revolutionary new concert” that sees the band performing digitally with a live 10-piece band at the ABBA Arena in South London. It doubled up as the perfect opportunity to challenge my preconceived notions and cater for my mother’s birthday, all in one fell swoop.
Stepping into the ABBA Arena, situated a stone’s throw from West Ham’s Olympic Stadium, you’re immediately immersed in the ABBA experience; the sounds of Eurovision’s 1974 winners boomed around the half-open air concourse, lighting up an area already adorned with aesthetic lighting in the colours of the band.
As the show began, seats were immediately discarded for standing positions as the four ‘avatars’ of ABBA entered into an insane amount of fanfare. It was like they were really there, and that’s when they had me in the palm of their digital hands.
The 95-minute concert, directed by Baillie Walsh and produced by Svana Gisla and Ludvig Andersson, sees ABBA’s digital versions play some of their greatest hits; the concert includes songs from the band’s historic back catalogue, as well as ‘Voyage’, the quartet’s first album in 40 years.
It’s really a sight to behold; as the show comprises a slew of classic, perfectly choreographed on-stage performances with out-of-this-world visual accompaniments, it also takes you seamlessly through the smorgasbord of costumes that made the visual identity of the four-piece so iconic. Kudos should go to B Åkerlund, who visually crafted the garments in collaboration with Dolce & Gabbana, Manish Arora, Erevos Aether and Michael Schmidt.
Leaving the performance, we made our way over to Snoozebox, the bar situated so perfectly opposite the venue, that it’s almost like it’s there on purpose; the sounds of ABBA dragging us in as I pontificated over the other historic artists I’d love to see digitally created (The Beatles, surely?). Despite, admittedly, being a technological convert, I still danced the night away, analogue style.
Tickets are available now, you can grab yours here! Extra performances have also been announced throughout the festive season.
Main Image: Johan Persson
