Legendary singer-songwriter and founding member of pop supergroup ABBA, Agnetha Fältskog has announced the upcoming arrival of A+, a reimagined version of her acclaimed 2013 solo album, A, due via BMG on Friday, October 13 on double CD, crystal clear double vinyl, white vinyl, picture disc, and digital download. Pre-orders are available now. A+ is heralded by today’s premiere of the fan favorite, “I Should’ve Followed You Home,” featuring duet vocals from Take That’s Gary Barlow and available everywhere now. Famously performed by the two global superstars as part of the BBC charity event, Children In Need 2013, the song is joined by an official music video/visualizer premiering today at YouTube. “It was a highlight to sing a song together with Gary,” says Agnetha. “He’s a very nice guy. It was great to hear that Gary also likes this new version. Listen when the castanets come in, it’s great.” LISTEN TO “I SHOULD’VE FOLLOWED YOU HOME (FEAT. GARY BARLOW)” PRE-ORDER A+ Written especially for Fältskog by Swedish songwriter/producer Jörgen Elofsson (Kelly Clarkson, Britney Spears), A proved a worldwide critical and popular favorite upon its original 2013 release. As the album approached its tenth anniversary, Agnetha and Elofsson began to consider what it might sound like had it been recorded today in 2023. Working alongside fellow producer Anton “Hybrid” Mårtensson (Demi Lovato, Cèline Dion), they reimagined A in its entirety, stripping away all the original music and creating fresh productions and arrangements as vibrant and thrilling as anything in contemporary pop. “When we made A ten years ago, it was a bit of a reaction against EDM and the dance music that dominated the pop world at the time,” Agnetha says. “We therefore did something that was exactly the opposite. Now, when we brought the songs into today’s music world, we were all surprised by how well it works. The songs have blossomed into the pop songs they are at their core.” “I know Agnetha’s voice and have written the songs,” says Jörgen Elofsson. “So everything is still designed exactly for her, but in new ways.” Perhaps most importantly, A+ includes one completely new song, the powerfully vulnerable “Where Do We Go From Here?,” recorded in full earlier this year and available everywhere now alongside an official music video animated by Estonian audio-visual artist Josh Twist and streaming via YouTube HERE. “It felt like it was 40 degrees hot in the room when we did the recording,” Agnetha says. “I sat on a stool in Jörgen’s home studio and sang. I was completely drenched in sweat afterward. On that song, you can hear that I don’t have the same voice as before. I, myself, think that my voice sounds a little raspy today and I might not have the same strength, but I think it works just as well. The new recordings capture a development. Without praising myself, I think it sounds great.” WATCH “WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?” OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO Hailed by The Times upon its original release as “a triumphant return to form by a woman presumed lost to music forever,” A marked Agnetha’s follow-up to 2004’s covers collection, My Colouring Book, as well as her first album of all original material since 1987’s I Stand Alone. The album – highlighted by the chart-topping single, “Dance Your Pain Away,” as well as Agnetha’s first self-penned track in nearly three decades, “I Keep Them On The Floor Beside My Bed” – earned international applause while reaching the top 10 on album charts in the UK, Sweden, Belgium, Germany, New Zealand, the Netherlands, and more. Ten years later, Agnetha – and ABBA – are possibly more relevant than ever before, their pop magnificence still influential, groundbreaking, and beloved around the world. Today, Fältskog lives outside Stockholm, far from the music industry. Surrounded by horses, dogs, her two children and five grandchildren who live within walking distance, she still listens to music all the time – though not with headphones or on a stereo. “I have music in my head almost constantly,” says Agnetha. “Songs just come up and I go around whistling them. It can be new songs, or it might be a song my Dad sang, or something we listened to in the 1950s or 1960s. Now I’m really looking forward to seeing how the new music is received. I’m not very active on social media, but I enjoy sneaking around from time to time. So many people have supported me, so now I’m giving back.” # # # AGNETHA FÄLTSKOG A+ (BMG) Release Date: Friday, October 13, 2023 | 
No comments:
Post a Comment