Ace of Base: Encyclopedia II - Ace of Base - The Music

Ace of Base - The Music

From early on, Ace of Base drew inspiration from the growing European club scene. Their earliest performances were in small clubs in Gothenburg and their first recordings were simple reproductions of their live performances. Their first recording sessions took place in a basement converted into a studio (hence the name).

Later recordings, including those of Happy Nation and The Bridge, took advantage of professional facilities in both Gothenburg and Stockholm.

The last track prepared during The Bridge era, "You and I", was recorded at Jonas' newly-completed studio, The Barn. Many later recordings, including those for Flowers and the six tracks recorded in 1999, also were prepared and mixed at The Barn.

The band's fifth released album, Da Capo, was recorded at studios in Stockholm.

The band members were strongly influenced by club music. Most of their early songs, including "All That She Wants" and "Happy Nation" were club-friendly tracks inspired by the growth of the house and techno scenes across Europe.

Later, more thoughtful studio recordings gradually replaced the "Euro-techno" sound. "Lucky Love" was the band's attempt at an acoustic sound. "Angel Eyes" and "Edge of Heaven" became sophisticated pop ballads. "Beautiful Life" was a blend of American Gospel music and the band's earlier club sound. Jonas admitted a strong influence of Whigfield in "You and I".

Ace of Base continually experimented with new sounds. For example, their Flowers album was the first to introduce a Motown flavour into Scandinavian music. Tracks with retro themes from this album include "Always Have, Always Will", "Cecilia" and "Donnie". A blend of salsa and reggae can be heard on European releases such as "Cruel Summer", "No Good Lover", and "Doctor Sun".

Individually, the four Aces drew further inspiration from different sources. This effect is most noticeable in The Bridge, with each band member contributing to one quarter of the album.

In Ace of Base's later music, the pace of the songs tends to be moderate, with more of the interest sometimes coming from the melody and the orchestration rather than the rhythm. C'est la Vie (Always 21) (1999) is a good example of this style.

Ace of Base's earlier songs were often a bit faster paced, but this change was not entirely unusual — the band has abruptly changed styles of music on several occasions. There had already been a clear trend towards progressively greater complexity both in technique and style, and for the most part an abandonment of the group's early club sound.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "The Music", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki