New songs and plans
Doing
nothing is not something Jonas, Ulf, Malin and Jenny enjoy. Especially
Jonas is always busy with new song ideas and puzzles over new hits
all the time. He is a real workaholic when it comes to the career of Ace
Of Base. Music is simply his life. "I spend my time at the
computer as often as I can. I also have a dictating machine so I don't forget
a spontaneous idea. A third of my old ideas are already forgotten, you
know", he confesses. It's inconceivable how many potential hits of
the pop scene got lost because of that. Fortunately, little sister Jenny
recorded some of the brilliant ideas of her brother in the past. Because:
"At least I learned how to note melodies. In the beginning when we
were en route in Norway, Jonas often said: 'Jenny, quick, I sing something
to you, write it down.'
Those problems don't exist anymore: For
the second Ace-Of-Base-Album Jonas had already been pretty far in December
1993 what concerns songwriting. Moreover, he is very happy about the fact
that all the members could bring themselves in on the successor Happy
Nation: "We have finished twelve new songs until now. This time,
we all contributed a few song, this way the songs are very personal. But
we still have to sing them, produce and mix them. In the end we want to
have about 20 songs at our disposal". And already then Jonas revealed:
"The songs are a lot calmer. We will have many ballads on the
new album. We won't have songs like Münchhausen (Just Chaos).
That's too hard".
Jonas shows self-criticism: "Indeed, I like
this music, but the first album was too diffused. We wanted to show everybody
what we can do, but maybe we carried it a little too far." Jenny
agrees with him: "Before we had our contract, everybody said
that you can only do Rock music or something else, something specific.
With this music, no one can do something with it, that's next to nothing.
But they also told us that we would not have a chance with Rock. However,
if you have success with it, it would be giantic, but that's too difficult
for us."Jonas has the same opinion. The cold constructed concepts out
of some studio, just like it is common with Techno nowadays, don't have a
chance among the fans when it goes after his estimation.
"The people need groups again.
They've had enough of some producers who feature somebody. We work with
this classic model: verse, chorus, verse and so on. And we build the music
around the singing. Many have the music first and then think: 'Maybe we
should let somebody sing to it...' That's not the same with us. It's a
closed circulation".
Despite all euphoria, which rules over the
new song ideas in the camp of Ace Of Base, all the participants are aware
that a panic action wouldn't do good for the band. Fans and critics expect
quality of the four Swedes. Jonas doesn't fool himself and confesses:
"Yes, we are under big pressure. Everybody wants to give me tips and
says how to do it". Jenny is more unconcerned: "We just do our
best. We don't have a choice. If the people like it, good, if not, at
least we gave our best. It is very difficult to find out who it would be
good to work with together and who is just a 'wannabe', who wants to
earn with our success - we don't have that much space anymore... We are
four musicians and we have to stick to our own ideas". The least
concern of Ace Of Base is that their ideas stay away. Slowly but for sure,
the successful quartet developes to a good working hit fabric. "There
are still a lot of good ideas in the computer", tells Jonas.
"After all, we worked like crazy for one and a half years. We could
open a shop with it".
We don't have a choice. If the people like it, good, if not, at least
we gave our best. It is very difficult to find out who it would be
good to work with together and who is just a 'wannabe', who wants to
earn with our success - we don't have that much space anymore... We are
four musicians and we have to stick to our own ideas". The least
concern of Ace Of Base is that their ideas stay away. Slowly but for sure,
the successful quartet developes to a good working hit fabric. "There
are still a lot of good ideas in the computer", tells Jonas.
"After all, we worked like crazy for one and a half years. We could
open a shop with it".
A
good outlook for a rosy future with a bunch of hits and supersongs from
the Gothenburger idea-fabric.
* Click on the pix to enlarge them
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