ABBA kind of stumbled their way into Voyage, their first album in 40 years. In 2016, the group began working on ABBAtars, a virtual concert based on the bands blockbuster 1979 tour and featuring 3D renditions of Benny Andersson, Bjorn Ulvaeus, Agnetha Faltskog, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. Andersson and Ulvaeus decided they should write a couple of new songs for ABBAtars, thinking that if it was going to replicate the experience of an ABBA tour, the group would surely be peddling new material. The two new songs soon turned into three, then into the ten songs that comprise Voyage. Throughout the process, Andersson and Ulvaeus operated under the notion that if a song didnt live up to their standards, they were under no pressure to release it; they already had two songs they liked in the can for ABBAtars. Faltskog and Lyngstad were happy to participate so long as they didnt have to promote the resulting album, a compromise Benny and Bjorn happily accepted. And thats how ABBA wound up with Voyage, an album that uncannily sounds and feels like a classic ABBA album, one that couldve been delivered not long after The Visitors. Andersson and Ulvaeus wisely decided to not follow any stylistic trend or adopt any modern production technique; while there may be some digital gloss here, voices arent auto-tuned and rhythms arent sequenced. Voyage is recognizably ABBA music, a quality thats simultaneously thrilling, disorienting, and a bit corny. Andersson and Ulvaeus managed to revive the big, dramatic melodies that defined a good portion of their catalog -- the way the opening ballad I Still Have Faith in You soars can cause goosebumps of recognition -- and they do convincing nods at their lighter, danceable moments on the singles Dont Shut Me Down and Just a Notion, yet they also offer reminders of their Eurovision origins with the overheated showstopper I Can Be That Woman and vaguely ominous, vaguely disco Keep an Eye on Dan. Moments like these are quite remarkable, as it feels like ABBA have continued without missing a step, but the retro vibes are also apparent on such stilted pieces of cheese as the stately Bumblebee and Little Things, a sticky trifle made stickier by the presence of an overbearing childrens choir. Such missteps prevent Voyage from being a triumph, yet they are true to the rest of ABBAs catalog, so, in a sense, theyre welcome. If ABBA didnt have cheeseball moments, they wouldnt be ABBA, so its reassuring that the group brings the lows along with the highs on this unexpected and delightful album. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Rovi