[imagesource: Anders Hanser Publishing]

When ABBA released their mysterious announcement about ABBA Voyage on Twitter on August 26, we thought we would be getting five songs and a hologram tour.

Well, the date to join the quartet for more about ABBA Voyage (September 2) has come and gone and now we know exactly what we can expect from the pop legends.

Indeed, fans are getting an entire 10-track album, titled ABBA Voyage, which will be the band’s first for 40 years, reports the BBC.

Also, yes, there will be a set of hologram concerts with virtual avatars mimicking all four members – Bjorn Ulvaeus, Agnetha Faltskog, Anna-Frid Lyngstad, and Benny Andersson – and playing hits like ‘Mamma Mia’ and ‘Waterloo’:

Image: Industrial Light And Magic

Image: Baillie Walsh

The band split up in 1982 but got together again for this new project in 2018.

Two songs from ABBA Voyage were premiered during a globally-streamed press conference on Thursday.

‘I Still Have Faith In You’ is an “affectionate piano ballad” about the deep bond that the four band members share:

Here’s Bjorn Ulvaeus, explaining the song’s origins:

“When Benny played the melody, I just knew it had to be about us.”

“It’s about realising that it’s inconceivable to be where we are. No imagination could dream up that, to release an album after 40 years and still be the best of friends, and still be enjoying each other’s company, and have a total loyalty.

“Who has experienced that? Nobody.”

The other song, ‘Don’t Shut Me Down’, is described as a mini-melodrama in the vein of the ABBA classic ‘The Day Before You Came’, where a woman returns to her partner years after walking out:

ABBA Voyage will be fully released on November 5.

ABBA Voyage is also the title of the band’s virtual concert, which will open next year in a specially-built arena in east London:

Playing six nights a week, it will feature digital versions of ABBA’s band members, accompanied by a 10-piece live band performing 22 of their greatest hits.

Tickets are going on sale on September 7 and the opening night will be next year on May 27.

This tweet perfectly sums it up:

ABBA building their own arena and not even having to show up to it is the ultimate flex.

— Dorian Lynskey (@Dorianlynskey) September 2, 2021

[source:bbc]