Here's the deal
The complaints about the mistakes in the equalization are not without merit. If you're an audiophile you will not want this album. However, if you are just a casual listener using low to mid-fi audio gear, this is definitely worth purchasing. It has the crisp digital sound some people like.
It ain't rock, but that's okay...
Not if you listen to this. I've heard other people say that the Move's last album, "Message From the Country", is really the first ELO album. Other than "10538 Overture", you'll be hard-pressed to find an electric guitar on the album (okay, CD. . . ) I hear no similarity between this and "Message From the Country".
This is a moody little set of tunes, filled out by Roy Wood, sawing away at cello and viola. Gone are some of Wood's shrill attempts at vocal acrobatics that had a tendency to sabotage his efforts with the Move. He's toned down quite a bit here.
When I say moody, I mean it. There are no light pop songs to be found. An almost gothic atmosphere pervades most of the CD. The one major exception would have to be "First Movement," which is uncomfortably reminiscent of "Classical Gas".
A melancholy mood for a Victorian drawing room. . . and yet somehow satisfying and enjoyable.
belligerent cellos, metallic vocals, and 70s drama
the first ELO record is a strange mix of the two and it caught my ear immediately the other day when a couple of dandified clerks at my local video store cranked it up. i'm rather a fan of 70s glam and i can absorb vintage prog in conservative doses.
i heard the first cut, "overture 10258" once a while ago and i always wondered who it was. it's a pretty shocking track. it sounds like a lost beatles cut from "magical mystery tour" gone completely wrong. a majestic pop melody is there and a dense layering of exotic instrumentation is there, but the voice sounds mechanical, as if someone tried to program a robot to croon and emote a rock song. then you listen to the drummer, and while he's basically on time, he sounds a little clumsy and lethargic, and then you hear to the string arrangment, which sounds abrasive and not entirely unlike humpback mating calls. however, because i like wierd s*** i was pretty excited by this track. the strange appeal of it is undeniable.
so when the two video store dandies put on this cut i ran to the desk to find out who was responsible for producing this masterpiece/trainwreck. it turns out it was ELO from their debut album. WOW! i've enjoyed some of the move's music and i appreciate (though not without a wee bit of irony) ELO's decadent pop concept rock, but this was some pretty wacko vintage ELO that i'd never known about and it seems that it is generally obscured by what came before and what came after.
i went out and got the album immediately and i've been listening to it often. i must say that it is about 47% laughable, 50% gorgeous 70s rock, and 3% something totally ineffable. i enjoy that this is the same ELO as on the "xanadu" soundtrack doing this awkward and dissonant string quartet prog pop, but it simply cannot to be listened to all through in any seriousness. i don't think it is possible to ever understand what could motivate someone to write some of these arrangements. i don't think drugs is the whole story, because even the strongest drugs could not inspire someone to have a belligerent sounding string quartet highlighting the melody to "god rest ye merry gentlmen" during the instrumental middle section of a dramatic elton john-esque power ballad, which is exactly what happens on the third track. it sounds like elton john gone "autistic avant garde" and collaborating with anton webern's worst student from "serialism 101. "
the whole album runs on in this clunky way. the "magical mystery tour" elements never blend effectively with the avant garde marching band type element and the result is charmingly abrasive. this makes for a curious listen. put this on at a party to make your guests confused, concerned or bummed out.
Audacious and melodic
I don't consider it the BEST, mind you, but I do love the risky, experimental nature of it. In many ways, this is my favorite ELO album. For instance, "10538 Overture" really connects, despite it's lumbering, at points out of time, rumbling rhythm. The rough strings and horns highlight a great melody and compelling story. Other great songs here include the lovely lilt of "Mr. Radio," the urgency of "Look at Me Now," two cracking instrumentals ("1st Movement" and "Manhattan Rumble") and the gorgeous "Whisper in the Night. " There's never a dull moment here, even when the band slips around a bit walking on their high wire. This is not the ELO of 1975-1980, a sleek pop hitmaking machine. This is more akin to The Move muscially and sonically(actually, it really IS The Move) under a new name. On "No Answer," Roy Wood, Jeff Lynne, and Bev Bevan lay the groundwork for what would become an amazing decade for all three. . . albeit in different directions. .
AN AMBITIOUS DEBUT . . .
In general, Lynne's songs tend to be more expansive and rock-oriented; Wood's songs are more intimate and chamber-like. Half the album is composed by Roy Wood, the other half by Jeff Lynne. Lynne's most interesting song is probably "Nellie Takes Her Bow", which sounds like a precursor of many ELO ballads to come (with the notable exception of a rather bizarre instrumental passage). While Wood's purely instrumental writing is even more archaic, his songwriting-particularly on "Whisper in the Night"-ranks among the finest of this era; it is a pity he departed the group shortly after this album was released.
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You can see a complete list of all Electric Light Orchestra discography, or go back to the Electric Light Orchestra tabs
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