Concert: Ace of Base

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Ace of Base

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Ace Of Base is something as uncomplicated as a pop band, that doesn't try to be, appears to be anything else than that. They want to make their listeners feel good when hearing their music. They don't have any heavy messages, even if the songs obviously have become better crafted and substantial over the years. Simplicity isn't easy. The fact that Ace of Base has sold over 30 million albums and 15 million singles proves that they know what they're doing.

In the early autumn of 2002, the band returns with a new album, Da Capo - They're first with all-new material since "Flowers/Cruel Summer" (1998). The new album combines the group's classic pop sound with new, more thoughtful dimensions.

"Ever since our last original album was released, we've had our minds set on making this album. People may have thought that we have split up, but those things rather apply to the rest of the music business", Jenny smiles, referring to the last few years' acquisitions and mergers among the major labels. Something that without a doubt has slowed down the process of finishing the album.

"The lion's share of the album has been finished for quite a while", main songwriter Jonas "Joker" Berggren confides, but you tend to come up with more stuff as time passes, and some mixes tend to feel a bit old when you've lived with them for a couple of years. Making pop music is a little bit like painting, you can keep adding stuff forever, but at some point you have to decide that you're done with it. A lot of time is spent working on details that the general public usually don't notice anyway".

In order to find the right balance of styles, quite a few producers have been enlisted: Swedes Jonas Von Der Burg, Harry Sommerdahl at Pile Studios and Pontus Söderqvist, Martin Hedström and Nick Nice at LaCarr have produced as well as co-written with Jonas Berggren. Other producers include German producers Axel Breitung and Thorsten Brötzmann. During the four years it took to finalize this album, the band wrote more then 150 songs, of which the 11 strongest songs plus the cover song "Wonderful Life" was chosen to become the final album listing. Jonas has written a few songs himself and a few with the band. "It was a great way to rediscover each other as people and writers after a long break from writing together" says Jenny Berggren.

The album showcases the band's variety within the accessible pop format. The strength of the band's song writing shows in the first single, "Beautiful Morning", a slice of pure, classic Ace Of Base pop. "Ordinary Day" is a classy, harmonious tune with a laid back quality that Jonas's wife helped him re-discover when he played her some older songs. The album titled "Da Capo" is a fun up-tempo tune and remains Jonas's and Ulf's personal favourite. The ballad "The Juvenile" is a slow, dramatic thing that was initially written for a James Bond movie. However, the band's then record label in America persuaded them not to be involved. Instead, a new lyric was written. "I really like its message, Jenny concurs: "Basically it says: if you don't take care of the young now, they're not going to care for you later on".

Ace Of Base consists of four distinct personalities. Jonas is the family man, married with two children. Apart from being a typical songwriter, he loves domestic life and interior design, preferring old furniture to modernity's. Jenny is the more extrovert of the Berggren sisters, she loves dancing in clubs as much as singing in choirs, Linn tries to live a normal life outside of the limelight and is the band's most low-key member. Both Jenny and Linn see themselves as singers first and foremost and constantly try to evolve by injecting their experiences to their craft. Since Ulf and Jonas wrote the first album, the girls started to show their strengths as songwriters on the band's second album. They want to inspire everyone to have a go at song writing.