Out of the Blue

The other reviewers were right when they said this album was a combination of Queen and the Beatles. I'd also like to add disco and that the orchestra gives it a film soundtrack feel at times. The band really enjoyed playing with weird sounds as well. At times, this was a bit too weird for me, and I got too many 80s vibes off of it. It was just okay in my opinion, but not bad.

I'm of course familiar with some of ELO's breakout hits, and both of my parents were/are fans of the band, so I had high hopes going into this. They were more than surpassed.

This is precisely my kind of grand, larger than life prog pop; it's epic without falling susceptible to cheesiness, it's not virtuosic / overly show-off like (which I'm not against by any means if it's substantiated), it's cheerful at every turn, the vocal/instrumental harmonies are sumptuous, the orchestral arrangements are colossal, and more or less every song here feels like a vital piece of the jigsaw.

My only minuscule criticism is that there is a slight drop off towards the end of the first disc ("Believe Me Now" and "Steppin' Out" are somewhat limp compared to the banger run of tracks that precede them), but "Standin' In The Rain" onwards is a hell of a second wind. You could also argue that this very much sounds of its era, but there's nothing wrong with that in my eyes as it forms the core of Out of the Blue's character.

An absolutely stunning album. The next one I'll be purchasing.

Is this really the only ELO record in this project?

A double album full of deep cuts from my fourth favorite Traveling Wilbury? Sign me up!

-There are a few bands Gen Z has embraced that just baffle me. ELO is one. This is such *dorky* music I cannot understand why people who are younger, and presumably cooler, than me enjoy it so much.

-Yes, the Beatles are obviously the band they're reaching for. (Specifically Abbey Road-era Beatles, and I also hear A LOT of rhythmic motives pulled from the Pretty Things.) But more noticeably, most of these songs are very obvious plastic imitations of 70s r&b/soul. The synthesis of Beatles pop, prog rock, and ultra-square soul does nothing for me.

-Too pompous and overblown. This is the kinda shit that made punk a necessity.

-I have an immediate distrust of anyone who cannot take off their sunglasses. What are you trying to hide? There is a strong cocaine energy to this album. And if Lynne wasn't on coke, then he was surely manic.

-There was a moment in the late 00s/early 10s where "Mr. Blue Sky" was in a cutthroat competition with "You Make My Dreams Come True" for most TV/movie sync placements. I actually kinda like "Mr. Blue Sky," but the shine wears off after you hear it 10 billion times.

After one listen, yeah it's a really good album. I'm not sure any one song stood out. That might be a good thing that means every song is a 10/10. Maybe so. There's just so much to take in with one sitting. We'll see how I feel tomorrow.

Pretty cool album.

Jamais écouté avant.

Tout le talent beatlesque pour la mélodie pop de Jeff Lynne, mais aussi tout son penchant pour les productions boursouflées, option section orchestrale, vocoder et disco kitsch. Quelques pépites, mais ça reste indigeste.

Top : Turn to Stone
Flop : Jungle

Not impressive.

did YOU know rock can ORCHESTRA? did you KNOW orchestra can ROCK??
they try so hard to be grand and flush but they just dont have the songwriting or arranging chops for it. actively grating for a lot of the 70 minute runtime. generous 2

If your favorite thing *ever* is a well crafted pop song, you'll probably love this. On Out Of The Blue, ELO occupy the same space as something like Boston or Steely Dan, where you have a band that has gotten their studio wizardry down to a science in a really incredible way. But they just keep using that studio wizardry to make the most clean-cut, sunny, and at times, almost generic sounding pop music possible. There are some moments where they play with cool effects, but even these aren't especially interesting, considering that the experimentation here is relatively tame, all things considered. Keep in mind that I didn't dislike my time listening to this per se, its just a lit of relatively similar sounding pop songs which are all well crafted, but which ultimately have little that really excites me or draws me in. Even Mr. Blue Sky, (and fun song, for sure) is never one I've ever really fallen in love with. Compound this with the fact that this is like an hour and 10 minutes long, and things start getting a little trying. I personally think that the runtime overstays it's welcome by quite a bit and that this would have been better as a tighter experience. I can only take so much pop that's *this* big and sunshine-y. While I don't hate this, I didn't really enjoy my time all that much.

A sweeping melodious epic of an album. Probably could've made it a bit shorter but overall a really good effort. Favorite track: Mr. Blue Sky

Out of the Blue was beautiful. The first few minutes were simple fun pop rock with a unique catalog of instruments and layering. But as the album progressed, it showed emotion, complex orchestration, and beautiful arrangements that gave the album engaging variety. What a colorful album to go with a perfectly fitting design cover. Perfect 5.

Mr. Blue Sky is great, the rest of the album is okay

2 70s double albums in a row (Goodbye Yellow Brick Road was yesterdays, and quite superior to this). I dunno what it is, but I can’t show much love for this. Maybe it’s the endless falsetto, the overly intricate arrangements, or the orchestral flourishes that put me off, or the fact that it is 70-odd minutes long. Mr Blue Sky was undoubtedly a hit but the rest just doesn’t hit for me, aside from fleeting moments when a great tune cuts through.

Richtig coole Sounds, war kurz davor 5 Sterne zu geben, aber trau mich nicht ganz.

A strong opening with Turn to Stone, ELO has an awesome and totally distinct sound. Sweet talking woman, a banger. Mr. Blue Sky? One of the most iconic songs ever. How could one dislike this album?

Brilliant way to start off my journey! I sure hope the next album is just as good...

Phew, at some point I introduced my younger brother, with whom I had to share a room, to this band. He became a fan. Since then, as it was his stereo system, I had to listen to all the band's albums that my brother could afford over and over again. It haunted me even in my sleep. In the meantime, I immediately turned off the music whenever any of their songs were played. I've become a little more lenient now. Nevertheless, I still find the overall sound too saccharine. 3/5

Out of the Blue is undeniably well made. The melodies are big, the harmonies are stacked just right, and Jeff Lynne’s studio craft is on full display. It’s polished, confident, and easy to enjoy in the moment. I get why this album was such a hit.

But it never quite feels like a game changer to me. A lot of what ELO does here feels adjacent to things the Beatles and Beach Boys were already doing, and often with more emotional weirdness or harmonic bite. Even “Mr. Blue Sky,” as fun as it is, lands as Beatles-lite rather than something truly singular.

I respect the ambition and the execution, and Lynne gets some goodwill for his broader musical legacy, but not enough to push this into top-tier territory for me. This is a solid, pleasant listen, not a destination record. Good to know, glad I heard it, but probably not something I’ll return to.

A high three feels right: competent, enjoyable, and well crafted, but stopping short of essential.