British band concerned about China quake

ABBA Arrival members (L-R) Pete Smith, Sarah Cherry, Natalie Brigham and Mark Pemberton pose for photographs at a press conference in Hong Kong on Wednesday, June 11, 2008, promoting their June 14 concert. [Photo: Tungstar/ent.sina.com.cn]

ABBA Arrival, a British tribute band to ABBA, will donate part of the proceeds from its Hong Kong show on Saturday to quake victims in Sichuan Province, Chinese media reported Wednesday.

From each ticket sold, 50 HK dollars (6 US dollars) will go toward quake relief, China News Service reported, citing band members at a press conference in Hong Kong on Wednesday.

Tickets for the show at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center are selling for 380 and 580 HK dollars.

ABBA Arrival will dedicate a soft, soothing piece to quake victims, said the report. This slow, gentle song is rare for the band, band member Sarah Cherry says, because the band usually focuses solely on energetic ABBA music.

The four-piece band, composed of Cherry, Mark Pemberton, Natalie Brigham, and Pete Smith, has been covering ABBA, the phenomenally popular Swedish pop group, since 1995. Their spot-on renditions of ABBA songs have won them rave reviews.