ABBA announce new ‘Voyage’ tour dates and share footage from avatar gig
The footage comes ahead of the release of ABBA's new album 'Voyage'
By Emma Kelly
ABBA have released never-before-seen footage from their upcoming hologram tour alongside more dates for their London residency.
More than 40 years since their last album, the Swedish pop superstars are staging a tour, ABBA Voyage, after being transformed into digital avatars.
The avatars of Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, made to look like the musicians in their 1970s heyday, will perform in a specially built venue alongside a 10-piece live band.
A trailer for ABBA Voyage was released this morning (November 4) and shows a taster of what fans can expect from next May.
Described as a “concert 40 years in the making”, the digital band members are seen dancing, interacting with each other and playing instruments.
The footage was revealed to mark the release of new tickets for the residency at the ABBA Arena in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London.
Bookings are now being taken for up until December 4, 2022 on the ABBA Voyage website, including for weekend dates.
The shows kick off on May 27, 2022, and will be directed by Baillie Walsh and produced by Svana Gisla and Ludvig Andersson.
ABBA Voyage is expected to feature the band’s avatars performing classics like ‘Dancing Queen’, ‘Mamma Mia’ and ‘Waterloo’, as well as songs from ABBA’s new album ‘Voyage’, which is set for release this Friday (November 5).
‘Voyage’ is the band’s first album since 1981’s ‘The Visitors’, and is slated to be their last.
Three singles have been released from the record ahead of its release – the double A-side of ‘I Still Have Faith In You’ and ‘Don’t Shut Me Down’, and ‘Just A Notion’, which was previously recorded for ABBA’s 1979 album ‘Voulez-Vous’.
Speaking about their new music, Ulvaeus told The Guardian: “We decided early on that we’re not going to look at anything else. We’re just going to do the songs, the best songs we can right now.
“That meant writing lyrics I could get some of my thoughts of these past 40 years into, and add some kind of depth that, hopefully, comes with age and that makes it different from the lyrics I wrote 40 years ago.”