Abba review: Eight things to listen out for on new Voyage album
Abba's new album Voyage has just been released.
Mamma Mia, here we go again. Abba, arguably the greatest pop group of all time, have released their first album in 40 years. And, having evolved organically out of the reunion of Benny, Björn, Agnetha and Anni-Frid for a virtual comeback tour, Voyage has something old and something new for fans.
Voyage is undeniably the sound of a band in their twilight, those famously melancholic melodies filled out with an autumnal ache that is probably inevitable when all the participants are in their seventies. There are also times when the reunion threatens to off the rails. More than once, Abba sound like they have a one-way ticket to karaoke purgatory, the teaser singles I Still Have Faith In You and Don’t Shut Me Down being particularly guilty of resembling a grainy reproduction of the quartet in their prime.
Still, there’s no need to send out an SOS. The project contains moments of pure exuberance and celebration, too. So zip up your white jumpsuits and dust down your glitter ball. Here are eight take-aways from Voyage.
Well perhaps “Irish” is a stretch. But second track When You Danced With Me has a folksy lilt that threatens constantly to stray into Celtic whimsy. Backed by parping keyboards best described as “uilleann pipes gone disco”, Abba relay the tale of a small town girl abandoned when her man runs off to the big smoke. “I can remember when you left Kilkenny, And you told me, I'll return next year” they sing, sounding like the Clancy Brothers collaborating with The Corrs. Whether that is heaven or hell is up to the individual listener.
As a song title, Keep an Eye on Dan sounds more like a Streets' b-side than a stand-out on an Abba comeback project. And yet it is the undoubted highlight, with a throbbing night-club pulse that feels surprisingly modern (Abba have stated they produced Voyage themselves so as to avoid sounding “contemporary”). “I can’t believe I’ve actually held it together this far,” sing Agnetha and Anni-Frid – and Abba devotees might agree, given that this cracker arrives halfway through Voyage.
Just A Notion, which the band have already shared with fans, is one of the stronger tracks on Voyage. And that’s probably because it sounds like a cousin once-removed of Waterloo, their 1974 Eurovision winner. Cynics might say Abba should be above recycling their past. But since when have cynics had anything worthwhile to say about Abba?
Arriving seven weeks out from December 25, Voyage is proof Abba’s commercial instincts have not deserted them. A sleigh ride together through snow-drifts of vintage pop, third song Little Things is an Xmas bauble that gives off a heartfelt twinkle.
“It’s a lovely Christmas morning…why don’t we stay in bed for a while,” sing Agnetha and Anni-Frid. “Soon enough they'll be waking from their dreams…children bursting with giggles and screams”. It’s no Last Christmas. And yet, as a seasonal gift from Abba to humanity, Little Things earns its place on Voyage.
There are lots of classic Abba moments on Voyage. Alas, I Still Have Faith In You is not one of them. It sounds like Thank You For The Music trapped in treacle and chucked down a well for four decades. As an album opener it’s a downer you want to get past as quickly as possible.
Abba songwriters Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson continue to be heralded as the line-up’s resident geniuses. Yet the true ache and emotional punch in Voyage is courtesy of the vocalists, who, together or alone, imbue the album with a powerful sadness and a rich bittersweet streak.
Decades have elapsed since Abba’s two married couples parted. And yet there are reasons to suspect that old wounds have not completely healed. Particularly wrenching in that respect is I Can Be That Woman, where Agnetha seems to be singing to her ex, Björn Ulvaeus. “You look frail as you stand before me,” she whispers. “Then you curse and kick a chair”. If Voyage has a Winner Takes It All, this is it.
Benny and Björn have confirmed Voyage is to be Abba’s swan song. After this, there will be no more music. That is spelled out on final track, Ode To Freedom, which opens with a classical waltz melody and reaches the aching crescendo of Anni-Frid singing, “this is my ode to freedom”. That freedom is, of course, the end of Abba. The band have reached closure. But will the listener similarly take comfort as the pop icons bring down the curtains on a lifetime in pop?
