Current:Home > InvestIs there a better live sonic feast than Jeff Lynne's ELO? Not a chance. -CapitalSource
Is there a better live sonic feast than Jeff Lynne's ELO? Not a chance.
View
Date:2025-04-13 03:45:39
WASHINGTON – Six years ago, Jeff Lynne delighted fans when he brought his Electric Light Orchestra to the U.S. for the first time in decades.
Never one to tiptoe out of his preferred studio confines with any regularity, Lynne nonetheless crafted an absolutely dazzling production stocked with gripping visuals (in a pre-Sphere world) and perhaps the most pristine sound ever heard at a rock show.
Guess who’s back and as aurally flawless as ever?
This Over and Out Tour – a believable farewell given his age (76) and the reality that he isn’t a road dog – is in the middle of its 31 dates and will wrap Oct. 26 in Los Angeles. At Capital One Arena in D.C. Wednesday, Lynne, still shaggy, sporting tinted glasses and mostly in supple voice, didn’t have much to say other than many humble acknowledgements of the crowd’s affection. But who needs to blather on when there is a brisk 90-minute set of lush ‘70s and ‘80s classics to administer?
More:The Eagles deploy pristine sound, dazzling visuals at Vegas Sphere kickoff concert: Review
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
ELO dropped a setlist that romped through '70s classics
Aside from the opening “One More Time” – obviously chosen for its literalness – from ELO’s 2019 album “From Out of Nowhere,” the sonic feast concentrated on the band’s ‘70s output, seesawing from Top 10 rock smashes (“Don’t Bring Me Down”) to deep cuts (“Showdown”).
Complementing these impeccably recreated gems was a slew of eye candy. Lasers and videos and spaceships (oh my) buttressed each offering in the 20-song set, with an animated witch morphing into a creepy eyeball (“Evil Woman”) and green lasers enveloping the arena like ribbons in the sky (“Telephone Line”).
Lynne’s band was loaded with familiar names from the previous tour, including the rich string section of Jessie Murphy (violin) and Amy Langley and Jess Cox (cello) and standout vocalists – really more than mere backup singers – Iain Hornal and Melanie Lewis-McDonald, who handled the heavy lifting on the giddy “Rockaria!”
One unexpected offering, “Believe Me Now,” was added to the setlist a couple of weeks ago. An instrumental album track from ELO’s 1977 mega-selling double album, “Out of the Blue,” the song, an intro to the equally moving "Steppin' Out," exhales chord changes so sumptuous, they’ll make your eyes water.
More:Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band still rock, quake and shake after 50 years
Jeff Lynne and ELO say goodbye with a smile
But that’s a feeling frequently evoked during the show, coupled with the joy of hearing these sculpted beauties one final time.
The crisp opening guitar riff of “Do Ya,” the disco-fied “Last Train to London,” the wistful dreamscape “Strange Magic,” all unfurled with precision, but not sterility.
A sea of phone lights held aloft accented “Can’t Get it Out of My Head,” a technological illumination replacing the lighters that reigned 50 years ago when the song was released.
But that all preceded the standout in a show stuffed with them – the musical masterpiece “Turn to Stone.” Between the rapid-fire vocal breakdown nailed by Hornal and Lewis-McDonald – which earned its own ovation – and the furious, frenetic build to a musical climax, the orchestral pop dazzler electrified the arena.
Close to the bliss of that corker was show closer “Mr. Blue Sky,” an anthem of optimism that still sounds like sunshine. Bassist Lee Pomeroy high-stepped through its Beatles-esque bouncy rhythm while Lynne and the band traded layered harmonies on the pop treasure.
It was as obvious a closer as “One More Time” was the opener, but really, how else could Lynne leave a multigenerational throng of fans other than with a smile?
veryGood! (57882)
Related
- From family road trips to travel woes: Americans are navigating skyrocketing holiday costs
- Prize-winning photos by Rohingya: Unseen life in the world's largest refugee camp
- Cristina Pacheco, foremost chronicler of street life in Mexico for half a century, has died at 82
- Half of Americans leave FSA healthcare money on the table. Here are 10 ways to spend it.
- Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
- ICHCOIN Trading Center: Bitcoin's Boundless Potential in Specific Sectors
- Czechs mourn 14 dead and dozens wounded in the worst mass shooting in the country’s history
- Predicting next year's economic storylines
- Krispy Kreme offers a free dozen Grinch green doughnuts: When to get the deal
- Judge keeps Chris Christie off Maine's Republican primary ballot
Ranking
- Residents worried after ceiling cracks appear following reroofing works at Jalan Tenaga HDB blocks
- Giuliani ordered to immediately pay $146 million to Georgia election workers he defamed
- Pharmacist refused emergency contraception prescription. Court to decide if that was discrimination
- Where to donate books near me: Check out these maps for drop-off locations in your area
- Who's hosting 'Saturday Night Live' tonight? Musical guest, how to watch Dec. 14 episode
- New Mexico prepares for June presidential primary amid challenge to Trump candidacy
- 2 more U.S. soldiers killed during World War II identified: He was so young and it was so painful
- Former Colorado funeral home operator gets probation for mixing cremated human remains
Recommendation
Why members of two of EPA's influential science advisory committees were let go
2 boys were killed and 4 other people were injured after a car fleeing police crashed in Wisconsin
Derek Hough says wife Hayley Erbert's skull surgery was successful: 'Immense relief'
Tesla moves forward with a plan to build an energy-storage battery factory in China
Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
Military command ready to track Santa, and everyone can follow along
'Ultimate dream' is marriage. But pope's approval of blessings for LGBTQ couples is a start
'Ultimate dream' is marriage. But pope's approval of blessings for LGBTQ couples is a start