A+ / Where Do We Go From Here?

Is it down to the lake (I fear)?

Good for her! If the desire is still there to make music, that's fantastic.

Trying to imagine Agnetha attempting to cover Love Plus One. Nope, I can’t! Much too low for her and not her style at all!

(Just checked the lyrics and it’s apparently “Where does it go from here?” in the Haircut 100 song. I thought it was “Where do we..” though.).

When I first saw the graphic, I thought of a posthumous Carpenters song released in the late 1980s, but that’s called “Where Do I Go From Here?” (it was a cover version).

www.aftonbladet.se/nojesbladet/a/APm93E/agnetha-faltskog-slapper-ny-musik-enligt-uppgifter


Agnetha Fältskog makes solo comeback – releases new music
Mysterious post • Fan speculation: "Crying"

Updated 19:31 p.m. | Published 18:49 PM


Abba icon Agnetha Fältskog will release new music in the coming days, according to information to Aftonbladet.

On Wednesday, she posted a mysterious post on Instagram where she hints that something is going on.

On Wednesday afternoon, Agnetha Fältskog, 73, hinted on Instagram about a new project.

The post has been posted by the verified account "agnetha_official" and next to the post it says "Where do we go from here?".

According to Aftonbladet's information, the Abba legend will release brand new music in the coming days. Most likely, the song is called "Where do we go from here?"

Artist spokesperson: "You'll have to wait and see"
Fältskog also links to a new website agnethaofficial.com, where users are greeted by a golden cross and the same text as on Instagram.

There you can also sign up for an emailer. The sender is the record label BMG Rights Management UK.


The artist's spokesperson Andreas Lindé does not want to comment on reports that Fältskog will release new music but answers cryptically:

"I don't want to comment on this at the moment. You'll have to wait and see," he says.

Now THIS is what I love about her. Going her own way and surprising everyone as she did in 2004 and 2013!

Exciting! Could be a box set of all her albums? Or a duets album?! Would be great if something new, but I'd settle for anything!

Ironically The Sun for all it's faults accurately predicted a lot about Voyage...lol

The fact that the UK press is reporting this , should mean a big promotion from ( BMG) , that should be interesting to see how it unfolds...
I'm guessing they will be aiming for a top 10 album, on the back of Voyage. It's reported they have guided her in a new direction..emmmmm

All exciting times, I still however feel that 2024 will be the final hurrah of new music, but with this announcement I'm not to sure...

Hope we don't have to wait to long....

Whoever has produced the project, I hope it's rooted in Agnetha's decisions/choices/intent. With "A", I got the impression that she was more passive than on other projects. I'm all for Agnetha exploring some new sonic styles - why not do something modern? I'm sure she won't compromise her dignity.

I just looked at the UK chart stats for A. 18 weeks in the chart...

First 6 weeks
6, 21, 33, 43, 6, 18

I guess high first week entry was core ABBA/Agnetha fans. Then it plummeted only to climb back up from 43 to #6. I think there was promotion that week.

www.officialcharts.com/artist/28429/agnetha-f_ltskog/


As for musical style/direction I don't think there will be anything too radical. Agnetha's solo albums have been a bit safe...

That was the same for most of her English albums though. The one that is perhaps the most true to her is My Colouring Book, as those songs meant something to her. She grew up with those songs and was influenced by their singers.

Frida and Agnetha lost a lot of confidence didn’t they? From interviews Phil Collins gave, it seemed like Frida didn’t know what she wanted other than she quite liked Pat Benatar. At least that was something to start from. I’m not sure Agnetha even had that much idea, but was content to go along with whatever producer she had at the time. Maybe I’m being harsh.

I think that might be a little harsh. WYAAM felt like something I'd've imagined she'd record at the time - and it's the only one that didn't lean heavily on the romantic victim stereotype. I certainly hope that was because Agnetha insisted, and not just a happy accident. ISA is very glossy but a little sterile. I think the lyrics didn't really allow her to tap into her acting/story-telling. With MCB she was involved in the production and, again, the songs seem very her. While it was great to have her back, I thought the A project felt a bit like it was stroking the egos of Elofsson and Nordahl. The way they spoke, it almost felt like they had lured a nervous creature from her nest with bits of boiled ham. It felt a little disrespectful or patronising - or both.

With regard to Frida, I get the impression that SGO was a release valve for the post-divorce tension and, as long as it didn't sound like ABBA, she was happy. And/or it could even have been a revenge record, given the tone of most of the lyrics. With Shine, she seemed to have found her creative feet, and it certainly feels more Frida than chunks of SGO. I'd love to hear the other songs she wrote, demoed/recorded for the project. 

I don't think that with WYAAM Agnetha was pushed in a direction, she didn't wanted to take. At the time it was reported that her first choice of producers were the Oliver Onions Brothers. But as they were busy with another production, she chose Mike Chapman. The Oliver Onions stood for really lightweight Popmusic, even going into Schlager.
I was a big fan of Danish Singer Gitte Haenning at that time and I only realized recently, that it was her album, which the OOB kept busy at the time when Agnetha wanted them as producer. For Gitte Haenning, it was an important Album which re-booted her career in Germany, becoming the biggest Star in Germany with a feminine but also feministic attitude. Her enduring success also rooted in a constant production team over 10 years.

With both Agnetha and Frida, it was different. Both wanted to do something outside of ABBA but with Stig hovering over them with eagle eyes, because ABBA still was Important and no specific goal in personal development as both were not "hungry" for new careers, in opposite maybe a little worn out from the ABBA years. And both had super star status, they didn't need to proof anything. Frida flew in to Shows with the Concorde while Agnetha used buses because of her fear of flying. Then she had a bus accident in Holland, resulting in a "remotely organised PR from Stockholm for her next Album "Eyes of A Woman". No problem, she was ABBA legend, so be it.
Then the time between projects took longer and longer, making music was more a kind of hobby. The same for Frida, her work with Dan Danielle e.g. even has something amateurish to it.
No offence, it is just that both ladies didn't really pursue independent solo careers in which they searched for a goal like finding a new Independent "Signature" sound or a really independent image.
And well, they didn't need it, they will always be remembered as the ABBA megastars, who did a little own music beside ABBA.

I wonder why the article mentions a HUGE new contract for Agnetha, it will most likely be a "one off" project... With as little personal involvement by Agnetha in regards to promotion as possible...

I may be wrong of course...

At the risk of sounding negative, I'm a little non-plussed by this "news" (I assume it to be true and not just a beat-up).

Whilst I'm always keen for any new ABBA-related releases, if Agnetha is willing to pursue a solo release at this stage, I believe it spells the death knell for ABBA in terms of future recording.
Of course, this was most likely already the case given Benny's reluctance, but I still held out hope for one last album (or future recording sessions).

It would seem that the two new ABBA tracks we may be getting in 2024 are most probably the now finished outtakes from 'Voyage'. I was somewhat heartened by the possibility of additional tracks, but these too may well be from the 'Voyage' sessions - i.e. no reconvening of all four members for new recordings. I hope to be proven wrong on this count.

Like many have already said, Agnetha's and Frida's solo careers have not been spectacular, but there has been a smattering of great tracks along the way.

I'm actually very fond of the 'Wrap Your Arms Around Me' album and 'A' has its moments, particularly for Agnetha at that stage of her life/career. However, I did listen to 'A' about six months ago for the first time in years and was taken aback by the amount of autotuning on her vocals. 

What concerns me about this potential new Agnetha project is that her voice may be further subjected to 'correction' measures given her current age and slight vocal deterioration - e.g. there's a noticeable discrepancy in her vocal prowess between "Don't Shut Me Down" (which is crystal clear and smooth) and "I Can Be That Woman"/"Keep An Eye On Dan", both of which reveal some cracks. Don't misunderstand me - I think she sounds great on these as well, but noticeably diminished in terms of range and power. Frida, on the other hand, sounds consistently strong throughout the 'Voyage' album, despite being older than Agentha.

The other surprise for me is that it would seem that Agnetha is up for promoting whatever this new venture may be, which would entail being photographed and filmed, both of which she avoided for much of the 'Voyage' campaign - it was only for the show premiere in May 2022 that she first appeared and that was fleeting. Of course, much of this could now be handled in remote fashion, but it's interesting that she may be willing to undertake promotion when neither she nor Frida seemed keen to do so for 'Voyage'. I realise that they didn't wish to compromise or shatter the illusion of the ABBA-tars, but both Benny and Bjorn appeared on a regular basis at their current ages. Of course, the women will always incur more scrutiny in terms of physical appearance, but it would seem that Agnetha understands that time is running out if indeed a fire has been reignited.

I'm also curious concerning the reference to the amount of time spent on developing this new project. Has Agnetha been writing/co-writing and/or heavily involved in the recording/production process or merely offering up her vocals, as seemed to be the case for much of 'A' (save for the last track)? Interesting stuff...

Of course, I blame just about all of this on that ol' stud muffin Benny - if only he would ditch the accordion and write some goddamned songs!! I can't believe he is still recording with BAO and even planning the odd live show with them. Get back in your ABBA box and please me, not yourself!!

Just to play devil's advocate here for a sec: autotune is great at correcting problematic pitching and timing, BUT it is also now a standard production flourish that's been in vogue for quite a while now. It's being applied to great singers as a standard part of the sound design (within certain genres). Getting pristine vocals the old way involves a lot of rehearsal, warming up and (often) multiple retakes. From a modern production POV, it's this era's equivalent to the gated snare (or whatever era's fad you can better name). But still, I take the point.

That Agnetha has seen fit to continue to release music - albeit at a very low frequency (three albums in 20 years) - kind of defeats the silly old "recluse" tag. As cynics elsewhere have noted, she's canny enough to hitch her projects to moments where she's already a little bit higher in the public consciousness - anniversaries, etc. I reckon every ABBA article next year will mention that "recently released" solo album. Maybe Agnetha should consider a side hustle in PR!

The material and production is the big mystery here. Her socials put out a video last night with a distorted synth sound that I imagine is meant to tease the new music. Unless it's deliberate misdirection, I think it suggests that the new recordings might not be some mumsy schlagerfest.

Maybe I'm not looking in the right places, but the reaction to all this news seems - surprisingly - far more muted than it was when A/WYRLS was teased. There's a lot of "yaasss!!!" and crying emojis on Insta, but not much of it seems to be coming from fans. Again, I could be missing what's in plain sight. Is it just that we're all a little older now, and worried about cracking a hip if we go too mad?

Who knows - when it's released, the buzz might light enough of a fire under Benny to create something new for ABBA. Right now, it certainly looks like he's the only one stopping it. Unless Agnetha has worked this so that she can have the last (creative) word!