Opinion: Are Hologram Tours The Future of Music?

With ABBA announcing their hologram tour, alongside new music, is the hologram tour the future for live concert experiences?

Before now, hologram tours have only been used as a way posthumous way to see our favourite artists, such as Elvis and Amy Winehouse.

Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad have not preformed together in over 40 years.

This is the first time a hologram tour has been used by an act still alive.

The Swedish foursome will be de-aged; the hologram will show them in all their 1970’s glory.

If this is successful, will it change the live concert experience forever?

Tech Radar‘s Gerard Lynch said “In a post-COVID age, this could be a glimpse at a potential future of touring for bands.”

“But for bands entering their twilight years, it’ll let the songs keep playing long after their last notes have been sung.”

For older artists, it would make the touring experience easier.

When you’ve seen an 8 minute drum solo by Fleetwood Mac’s then 70-year-old Mick Fleetwood in the flesh, twice, it’s hard to accept age as an excuse for using a hologram tour.

At the 2012 Coachella,  Snoop Dogg and Dr Dre included a hologram of Tupac in their performance which kicked off the use of holograms.

The pandemic has undoubtedly pushed us forward to the all-tech future that has been slowly creeping up on us.

The use of hologram tours could be seen as a extreme capitalist venture to maximise profit with the least effort possible.

The ABBA tours will also only be in London, which echos the British London-centric attitude and begs the question: if it’s literally a hologram, why can’t it go outside of London?

The tickets are also not any cheaper, costing roughly £80.

I was expecting outrage and disgust. Instead, my Twitter is flooded with people hoping to secure tickets.

This suggests that maybe hologram tours do have a place in the live concert experience.

Any kind of return of ABBA was obviously going to send people into a frenzy, so would a smaller artist or an artist that tours in person get the same reception?

Personally, I cannot see it completely taking over live music, but for big acts with the means to hire the technology, it could become a staple feature in the live music experience.

Many parts of the future, especially involving artificial intelligence, are looking very dystopian.

Hopefully people don’t forget the thrill of seeing your idol belt out your favourite song live.

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