Current:Home > MarketsIs there a better live sonic feast than Jeff Lynne's ELO? Not a chance. -MomentumProfit Zone
Is there a better live sonic feast than Jeff Lynne's ELO? Not a chance.
View
Date:2025-04-25 20:13:59
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! (94)
Related
- Global Warming Set the Stage for Los Angeles Fires
- Félix Verdejo, ex-boxer convicted of killing pregnant lover Keishla Rodríguez Ortiz, gets life sentence
- 'I thought I was going to die': California swimmer survives vicious otter attack
- Man, 23, arrested in slaying of grandmother found decapitated in California home
- Paula Abdul settles lawsuit with former 'So You Think You Can Dance' co
- Who was Muhlaysia Booker? Here’s what to know after the man accused of killing her pleaded guilty
- Broadcast, audio companies will be eligible for Pulitzer Prizes, for work on digital sites
- A climate tech startup — and Earthshot Prize finalist — designs new method to reduce clothing waste
- Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
- Japan and UK ministers are to discuss further deepening of security ties on the sidelines of G7
Ranking
- At site of suspected mass killings, Syrians recall horrors, hope for answers
- Dawn Staley gets love from Deion Sanders as South Carolina women's basketball plays in Paris
- Priscilla Presley Shares Why She Never Remarried After Elvis Presley's Death
- Maine man sentenced to 15 years for mosque attack plot
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- Youngkin and NAACP spar over felony voting rights ahead of decisive Virginia elections
- Nevada high court postpones NFL appeal in Jon Gruden emails lawsuit until January
- A month into war, Netanyahu says Israel will have an ‘overall security’ role in Gaza indefinitely
Recommendation
Taylor Swift Eras Archive site launches on singer's 35th birthday. What is it?
Matthew Perry Got Chandler’s Cheating Storyline Removed From Friends
Hezbollah and Hamas’ military wings in Lebanon exchange fire with Israel. Tension rises along border
Ex-gang leader to get date for murder trial stemming from 1996 killing of Tupac Shakur
The Best Stocking Stuffers Under $25
Children who survive shootings endure huge health obstacles and costs
Law and order and the economy are focus of the British government’s King’s Speech
Video shows forklift suspending car 20 feet in air to stop theft suspect at Ohio car lot