Is Elysium the Pet Shop Boys’ worst? No, that doesn’t sound right. After such a long career, it’s nice to see Pet Shop Boys taking a new direction, which in this case is that of the ambient pop variety. They do an acceptable job at it, not a great one. Elysium is excellently produced, as any good ambient pop album should be, and is very relaxing, but the individual songs have trouble standing out. I didn’t find any of them particularly moving. Also, Neil Tennant’s vocals are mixed too high, they sound too strong when compared to the calm atmosphere of the music.

The value of Elysium exists for a Pet Shop Boys fanatic who may want the duo’s recognizable sound but in the calmest format possible, which would be this album. It’s a good change of pace, I would much rather have Elysium than an album where the band does their usual sound and creates a bunch of totally average forgettable tracks with it, like Release, in which case you’d just go for another one of their better pop albums. If you want something ambient by Pet Shop Boys, Elysium is your one and only option, so it’s a good thing that it exists. But if you’re simply looking for a great ambient pop album, then look elsewhere because there are others that are catchier and/or create better atmosphere. A respectable and very acceptable release, but not an amazing one in general.