ABBA 2022 — The Past is Bringing Us the Future of Performance
There is something almost poetic about an important entity from the past coming back to create something important for the future.
We could thank them for the music, however in this case it’s not their new album ‘Voyage’ that I believe will give birth to a movement bigger than ABBA themselves. It’s the way they have decided to tour it.
For those who haven’t heard (if possible, considering the blanket coverage), ABBA recently announced that after a 40 year hiatus, they are reforming to release a new album and launch a touring show, the likes of which we haven’t seen before.
It will combine a huge pop-up LED stage in London, motion capture and painstaking VFX to transport Agnetha, Bjorn, Benny and Anni-Frid back into their own 30-something year-old bodies, to once again put on a show for their legions of now very patient fans.
Ostensibly, it seems their photo real animated performances, using facial and body movement capture data for authenticity, will take place on a massive LED screen, supported by a light show to rival any major festival.
You do have to respect any band that can manage 150 million record sales — many of which actually occurred in the 40 years since they last performed together. But even more than that, you have to respect ABBA for being willing to risk their legacy on an untested concept of what a performance could be in the future.
The legacy this show itself leaves could be enormous.
Initially, it could become a blueprint for other retired bands to follow, a way to overcome the stresses and rigours of touring today. It could also pave the way for a completely new type of tour — using technology to scale a performance, rather than having to replicate a show night after night, city after city. This is especially true now that Covid has changed the touring landscape forever.
If this show turns out to be successful, it would be great news for the hard hit live music industry — and fans.
However, while this gigantic project is undoubtedly the perfect treatment for the perfect world-renowned musical reunion, the same model isn’t really all that helpful for the wider industry.
Why?
Well building a massive, pop-up, LED-fronted stadium in the centre of London isn’t going to be all that economically viable for the majority of acts. And what if you can’t travel to London, due to Covid risks, or cost?
Then there is the pre-production cost itself. The promotional material points out that up to 1000 very talented VFX artists from Industrial Light and Magic will have a hand in bringing this show to life. Just the motion capture part of this process took some 5 weeks, not to mention the countless hours of cleanup and animation work still ahead before go-time next year. The economics of this business model don’t really stack up unless you are literally ABBA, so thankfully they have absolutely nailed their choice of subject.
But how would this work for everyone who isn’t ABBA — all 7.899999996 billion of us?
Well there is still a lot of value and opportunity around this exciting concept. In the near future, it’s entirely possible you will see a lot more acts in this way. Here’s how I believe it could happen.
Let’s start with the venue itself.
The amazing thing about a digital performance is that it can be replicated an infinite number of times. So if you’ve gone to all the trouble of creating an incredible show, why not play it in New York and Rio and Singapore and Sydney, not just London?
In fact, by having smaller venues in a large number of markets, it would give far more people a far more intimate show. The smaller footprint also opens up other possibilities, like wrapping the whole venue in LED screens, instead of just featuring one big one at the front. By wrapping the LED screens right around the audience, you could give them an immersive view into a vibrant digital world, completely crafted to suit each show and the band. It also means the band isn’t stuck performing on a stage at the front, they could move around the audience as they perform, giving everyone the best seat in the house.
By using real time environments for the show’s setting, there is nothing to stop each space also reacting dynamically to the movements and sounds of the individual crowd in front of it. Each venue could feel like it comes alive in a completely new and different way each time it’s run.
But why stop at just a live setting?
If you think back to the performances that really stick in your mind — what is it that made them stand out?
It’s often the unique, unguarded, spontaneous moments between the performer and the crowd — the dynamic energy that comes from the knowledge that anything could happen at any time. Live music thrives on this energy. It’s why tens of thousands will pay a huge amount to see a star’s stadium gig, despite knowing that they’ll end up mostly watching it on a screen 50m away. Because anything can happen when it’s live.
But as soon as you start watching a pre-produced show, you instinctively know that possibility is gone. Nothing will be unpolished or raw. Instead, you will see a perfect showreel of incredible animation and sound.
Of course, in this case, going live isn’t really an option for ABBA. After all, avoiding the strenuousness of a live performance is probably exactly why the bandmates signed up. But for artists still strutting the stage today, live is modus operandi. So with a large network of immersive venues showing real time environments as stages, why not add a live 3D performer into the mix, too?
One venue could host the live performer, playing in front of a real time environment and a real crowd, while the other venues get both digital assets, mixed together and broadcast dynamically on the screens surrounding them.
Then every city gets the best seat in the house.
Okay now for accessibility. What if I still can’t get to any of those cities for my favourite performers show? Is there any other way I could watch the same show live?
This is where the benefits of a real time environment really come in. Why not host the same show online too, meaning I could log in from any desktop, mobile or VR headset to explore the same digital performance? While we’re at it, let’s blend the physical and digital crowds, by letting digital avatars appear live on the screens within the show, enjoying the same thing at the same time in the same world — just not in the same place.
All of a sudden, one live show in front of a network of smaller crowds physically, is potentially seen by millions digitally.
That is a world scale performance that completely negates the need to travel and tour. Throw in digital merchandising opportunities and you are left with a pretty healthy model for music to follow in the future.
There is one more revenue stream that we can throw into the mix on top of all this, though.
A big space, wrapped with LED screens, happens to be in demand within another industry right now, too. Film and TV use Virtual Production, or in-camera VFX, to create incredible, dynamic backgrounds, without the need for location travel or complex set construction.
Entertainment offerings are unlikely to run 24/7 in most markets, so outside these windows, short form virtual production for TV and advertising could help fill the gaps and ensure each location is generating revenue all day, every day.
This is the model we’re working to bring to life at Light.
The future of music doesn’t have to be watching alone at home on a screen. And it doesn’t have to be produced in one location, with huge ticket prices to recoup the massive pre-production costs incurred.
Performances could soon be both digital and live, physical and virtual, social and scaled.
We love for you to join us for the ride.
And in the meantime, I’ll see you in London in 2022 for ABBA. I’ll thank them for the music, then I’ll thank them for paving the way for much, much more.
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