Here We Go Again! Abba is back

The iconic foursome from Sweden will always hold a special place in the hearts of Aussies, especially those who recall their 1977 tour Down Under – and the sight of the band on the balcony of the Melbourne Town Hall.

And now, Abba are set to delight fans in Australia – and around the globe – again, after reuniting for a new album and a string of shows unlike anything they’ve done before.

“There’s an old saying in the music industry – you should not leave more than 40 years between albums,” Bjorn Ulvaeus, 76, joked last week of the surprise comeback.

NEW ALBUM & TOUR

Bjorn joined former bandmates Agnetha Faltskog, 71, AnniFrid “Frida” Lyngstad, 75, and Benny Andersson, 74, to announce the news that their new album, Voyage, will be out in November, making it the very long-awaited follow-up to 1981’s The Visitors.

In a taste of what’s to come, Abba also released two singles, I Still Have Faith In You and Don’t Shut Me Down – which in time will no doubt join the band’s classic hits collection, housing unforgettable tracks such as Dancing Queen, Mamma Mia and Waterloo.

The Swedish superstars split in 1982, the marriage breakdowns of the two couples – Bjorn and Agnetha, and Frida and Benny – inevitably spelling the end of the band.

With the group dismissing any hope of a reunion over the years, the recent news has certainly been music to die-hard Abba fans’ ears. “We will never appear on stage again,” Bjorn said in 2008. “There is simply no motivation to re-group. Money is not a factor, and we would like people to remember us as we were – young, exuberant, full of energy and ambition.”

REMEMBERING OZ

But 13 years on, it seems Abba’s mindset has changed and they’re more than willing to give fans what they want.

Last week in London, Benny referenced the band’s long and fond association with Australia, describing their first gig in the country in March 1977 as their most memorable

concert to date. “It still sits in my mind,” Benny said of the Sydney show, which saw thousands of fans waiting outside in a storm for a chance to see their idols.

“It was pouring down, mud all over the place, and 50,000 umbrellas. It was a wonderful sight. You see all those umbrellas and you know you have to go out there and perform.”

Four decades is a long time to wait for new offerings from the band, but with their new album just weeks away and a run of state-of-the-art concerts to follow, they’re certainly delivering for their fans.

And it seems coming back together was as nostalgic and joyous for the band members as it will be for their fans, with Abba’s plan to record just two new singles quickly turning into a full album. “It all came rushing back in a matter of seconds,” Bjorn said. “It was like no time had passed.”

It will also seem as though time has stood still when a virtual version of Abba, dubbed “Abbatars”, take the stage for a series of concerts in London next May, the “de-aged” band members performing as they looked back in 1979.

With the help of Star Wars creator George Lucas’ special effects company, the group has been busy creating the live show, using motioncapture and other futuristic techniques, all of which will culminate in “the strangest and most spectacular concert you could ever dream of”.

It took five weeks and 160 cameras to capture the band’s performance. “We’ll be able to sit back in an audience and watch our digital selves perform our songs,” the band said of the shows, which will feature 22 songs and a greatest hits compilation.

Thank you for the (new) music!

‘Abbatars will take the stage for a concert series in 2022’