Zoom

Classic E.L.O. music has always been stuck in its own retro-futuristic time warp of recombinant pop. Inside that image of E.L.O.'s spaceship (here updated without the 8-track docking bay), one imagines a ye olde discotheque stuffed with Beatles mannequins and powered by pump organ synthesizers. The genius of Jeff Lynne is to fuse kindergarten rock & roll, ultra-Liverpudlian choruses, and faux-symphonic instrumentation with a pop that's both sappy and supple. With only a few duff tracks, this timeless, invigorating disc is a rocking, left-field surprise. Talk about a comeback--Zoom is nothing short of a revelation for fans of this critically underappreciated group. Lynne sings on the opening cut, "Alright," that "You've got to hold onto something that you believe / Hold onto something that makes you feel alright," and the entire album bears this out with grace and wit. --Mike McGonigal