ABBA’s Avatar concert “ABBA Voyage” is being held at the newly built ABBA Arena in London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park from May 27, 2022. This concert, in which the four members of ABBA from the past appear as holograms of such quality that you could mistake them for real people, accompanied by live music, has continued to be performed seven times almost every week since its inception, and has received rave reviews. The performance has now been extended until January 2025.
This article was written by Yuichi Masuda, a music critic who experienced the concert locally.Also uDiscoverOfficial X (Twitter)Mr. Masuda is also running a project to give away official goods purchased locally (deadline is May 3rd).
・[Many photos]“ABBA Voyage” opens in London
・A box set of CDs, LPs, and video works covering ABBA’s career will be released on June 1st.
・The creative director of ABBA’s “digital concert” talks about its innovation
ABBA Voyage, only at the ABBA Arena, London, UK | ABBA Voyage
Closest stations and venues
Last March 22nd, I saw “ABBA Voyage” in London. Well, maybe I should say I experienced it. This is a virtual concert using cutting-edge motion capture technology, and has been performed continuously since May 2022 at a dedicated venue set up near Queen Elizabeth Park in west London. It has already been almost two years since the first performance, but the praise that has been received since its release continues to this day, and performances continue to be held five days a week (on Saturdays and Sundays, there are two performances, day and night). ing.
When I actually visited the venue, I was first struck by the sense of completeness. This was my first time getting off at Pudding Mill Lane Station, which is the nearest station, but when I exited the ticket gate, I found that the ABBA Voyage box office and merchandise sales office had been set up inside the station, and it was just one road away. An arena with a giant neon ABBA sign stands just across the street from the venue.
In other words, as long as you can get to this station, you can arrive at the dedicated venue, ABBA Arena, without getting lost, even if you have a severe sense of direction, and if you have a same-day ticket left, you can arrange admission on the spot. What’s more, the products lined up inside the shop are all pop and attractive, and I can’t help but stimulate my desire for things even before I see the show.
When I stepped into the venue already feeling a little excited, I found the spacious lobby filled with people of all ages, young and old, all eager to have fun. There were not only people who seemed to have had the same original experience with ABBA in the 1970s as I did, but also their children and grandchildren. Moreover, some teams were cosplaying in outfits reminiscent of ABBA’s stage costumes from yesteryear, others were wearing so-called hikarimono, and others were dressed up formally.
However, I didn’t stand out too much in my T-shirt and jeans, and I even saw people wearing T-shirts from Judas Priest, who had performed in London the night before. These people enjoy their time before the performance by eating, drinking, and shopping. There are quite a few groups that empty bottles of wine and champagne one after another. By the way, many venues in Japan and overseas prohibit the bringing of bottles and cans, but all wine bottles and glasses sold here are made of plastic. A vegan menu was also available for snacks.
A live show and immersion that mesh perfectly
And, of course, the same thing happened even after the show started. The main characters in the approximately 90-minute performance are not the current ABBA, who are all in their 70s, but avatars that look like the four of them when they were younger. However, their appearance is so realistic that they look like real people, and the performance is performed by a 10-piece live band.
The songs that were played in such a large audience were hit songs that even if you weren’t an avid ABBA fan, you’d have heard of. Moreover, since it is being held at a special venue, all elements such as lighting, video, special effects, and sound have been carefully thought out for this special show, and all work together perfectly.
ABBA Arena has a capacity of 3,000 people, and the floor and stand seats are spread out in a fan-shape, making it easy to see the stage from anywhere in the venue. The arena floor is not overly crowded with spectators, and there is enough space for a dance floor.
I myself was watching from the stands in front of the stage, and what I experienced there was a different feel from what you might expect from a rock concert, a musical, or a live movie. After all, the entire venue was used for the production, and the acoustics were very good (after checking out past articles on this site, I found that there were 291 speakers and over 500 moving lights throughout the venue). ), the immersive feeling is incredible. That’s why I said “I had an experience” at the beginning of this article, and I can say that I was able to spend 90 minutes unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in my life.
A concert like no other
The popularity of “ABBA Voyage” has permeated the local scene as a matter of course. In fact, during my stay in London, I saw advertisements for it in almost every subway station, and it was often seen on the bodies of double-decker buses, one of the city’s symbols. And I felt that the advertising slogan, “A CONCERT LIKE NO OTHER” (a concert like no other), was neither a lie nor an exaggeration.
There is no doubt that the biggest factor that has made this success possible is the existence of ABBA and the high popularity of their music. This year marks exactly 50 years since the release of the group’s first iconic hit, “Waterloo.”
It was in 1974 that this song won the Grand Prix at the Eurovision Song Contest, making ABBA’s presence known to the world. In recent years, it is still fresh in our minds that mannequins have spread around the world from this contest, and many people were probably reminded of ABBA’s success in the past.
Since then, ABBA has continued to gain strong support for their appealing songs that appeal to music fans with various tastes. Of course, their history has come to an end once, but in 2021 they released their first original album in 40 years, “Voyage.” This work was not of the nature of riding a time machine and returning to the past, but was a delicious work with a natural sense of maturity that is suitable for modern ABBA, but “ABBA Voyage” as a stage show It truly takes the viewer on a journey beyond time and space.
Next to ABBA is KISS
Recently, KISS, who announced the end of their touring activities, announced that they are preparing to hold a show using their avatars, and they have acquired not only the publication rights of the catalog but also the intellectual property rights such as the logo. It has been reported that the company has sold it to Pop House Entertainment.
The company is an investment company whose co-founder is ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus. Based on these facts, it is predicted that ABBA’s know-how will be applied to KISS’s future, and I have high expectations for their future, but I would also like to ask those who are looking forward to it, if possible, I feel like I should try Bako’s “ABBA Voyage” first. The night in London was such a wonderful experience, and I can’t help but hope that this performance will continue its long run when the opportunity arises to go to London again.
KISS – A NEW ERA BEGINS
Another thing I felt was that this performance must be able to continue in this way because London is constantly visited by people from all over the world for sightseeing and business, regardless of the season. Here in Japan, the number of visitors from overseas continues to increase, and “shows that you can’t see unless you go to Japan” could be a reason for a trip, and “ABBA Voyage” provides hints in that sense. It also felt like it was included. Of course, if “ABBA Voyage” were to be held in Japan someday in its original form (as a side note, ABBA Arena is apparently designed to be easily dismantled and moved), that would also be great. But.
Written & Photo By Yuichi Masuda / Concert Photo by Johan Persson
ABBA box set
Released on June 1, 2022
・10CD box set “Album Box Sets”
・10LP box set “Album Box Sets [VINYL]”
*All 10 albums of all studio albums + Bonus Tracks collection
・6DVD+1Blu-ray video work “Abba Complete Video Collection”
ABBA『Voyage』
Released on November 5, 2021
CD / iTunes / Apple Music / Spotify / Amazon Music / YouTube Music
The Japanese version CD comes in the following four formats (SHM-CD specification)
① “Voyage” Standard Edition
② “Voyage” with “ABBA Gold” (Best CD)
③“Voyage” with “ABBA in Japan” (video product 2DVD)
④“Voyage” with “Essential Collection” (DVD with 36 music videos)
