Finally facing my Waterloo
I didn’t expect to enjoy the Abba museum in Stockholm as much as I did. Well, that’s probably understating it a little, I really loved the Abba museum.
I’m not a huge fan of Abba. I grew up with their music, and you can’t deny that they produced some of the best pop ever, but it wasn’t until I was in Stockholm that I fully appreciated the power of these Swedish icons.
More than just a museum
One of the things that makes the Abba museum particularly enjoyable is that it’s a very interactive experience.
While there is plenty of exhibits and information describing the backstory of Abba, how they met, how they got started, and the early days of their career, you quickly start to begin to experience first hand the creative process.
From simple things like learning how to mix a track, creating an avatar dressed in some of Abba’s most famous stage outfits, to dancing in an Abba music video, and you can even feel what it’s like to go on stage with the group and hear the crowd chanting for you.
But the best thing for me was the chance to record an Abba song. Secluded away in a proper sound-booth, you can choose which of Abba’s hits you want to record. That is not an easy choice, but after much deliberation I went with Mamma Mia as I thought it was pretty much within my vocal range.
With the lyrics in front of you, karaoke style, the music starts and soon you’re singing. I found it amazing how familiar I was with this song that I hadn’t heard for years, how much I enjoyed really singing it, wanting to hit the notes, wanting to do the song justice.
At the end of the session you get to download your performance so that you can listen back to what you sounded like in the sound-booth. Unfortunately this was a bit of a harsh awakening and I’ll have to put my dreams of a recording career on hold for a bit longer.
Too cool for Abba
One of the interesting aspects of the Abba museum is that it’s not particularly popular with Swedish visitors. I spoke with the museum’s director and the vast majority of visitors come from international destinations. The Swedish people appear to have a bit of an ambivalent relationship with the local group that has gone on to become one of the biggest selling recording groups of all time.
In awe of Abba
Whether you grew up with their music or were born after they had finished recording and performing, one of the thrills of this museum is that it reminds you that they created some amazing music. Even though their actual recording career was relatively short, the huge volume of hits that they managed to produce is just phenomenal, and the songs still stand up really well today.
The capital of Sweden is a fantastic city with a huge range of things to experience and appreciate. Next time you’re there make a point of visiting the Abba museum and put your vocal skills to the test.
