"the arc of the universe bends towards disco"

January 9, 2025 8:07 AM

A Twinge of Saudade is an essay by Norwegian-British music critic Chal Ravens about Abba, going from their beginnings, through their glittering career, and their afterlife. She discussed the band, and the cultural moment in Sweden from which they hailed, and why they were at odds with Anglophone pop culture, with Thomas Jones on an episode of the LRB Podcast.
posted by Kattullus (8 comments total)

I find myself unreasonably bothered by the lack of proper capitalization.
posted by Lemkin at 8:15 AM on January 9 [2 favorites]

‘Do you still recall the fateful night we crossed the Rio Grande?’

yes
posted by HearHere at 9:00 AM on January 9

An insightful essay, and as an ABBA fan, I can't say I disagree with any of it.

I read an earlier edition of that bio, Bright Lights, Dark Shadows, and it's... a lot. Seven hundred pages of ABBA is a lot.

And because I'll never pass on an opportunity to promote this -- Benny's solo piano album of ABBA and Chess songs is simply a delight. Stripped down to the essential, it's obvious how the band came from a more classical tradition than what else was going on in pop. These songs wouldn't have been out of place in the music halls of seventy-five years earlier.
posted by Capt. Renault at 9:01 AM on January 9 [2 favorites]

Thanks - it was lovely to read. Every time I think I've exhausted the ABBA catalogue somebody suggests another album track or B-side that turns out to be amazing.

Thanks for the tip about Benny's solo piano record, and I apologise to Swedes everywhere that I had to stifle a laugh at the final track "I Gott Bevar"
posted by YoungStencil at 9:12 AM on January 9 [3 favorites]

The podcast episode is really good: very intelligent and charming conversation. I've only just started listening to the LRB podcast, despite being a subscriber to the print edition from way back in the day - back when the personal ads meant something, dammit - and I'm kicking myself for not listening before. The previous episode, an interview with Neal Ascherson, was great too.
posted by DangerIsMyMiddleName at 11:37 AM on January 9 [1 favorite]

"Anna or Frida?" was my generation's "Ginger or Mary Ann?" Abba was at once familiar and comfortable, and foreign and exotic. I loved them. However, I bought their latter-day album Voyage and was mystified by it. I think I listened to it once. Muriel's Wedding is still one of my favorite movies.
posted by jabah at 3:23 PM on January 9

Listen, this is a fascinating read. But isn't it supposed to be a book review?

Even for the LRB, this is particularly stingy on the criticism. It kicks of with the publishing details of two books... that proceed to garner one single, shared paragraph in an essay that runs 4,300 words.
posted by yellowcandy at 9:20 AM on January 11

There’s a bit more discussion of the book in the podcast. And it did make me interested in reading Palm’s book.

As a funny aside, the first link I followed to Bookshop’s page for Bright Lights Dark Shadows took me to Kapitalismus - Ein Feindbild Fur Die Kirchen? (which translates, I think, as Capialism - A Bogeyman for Churches?)

I thought this was someone’s private joke, until I realized that the UK version of Bookshop used the same ID number for the ABBA book as the American one used for the German book.
posted by Kattullus at 12:14 AM on January 12