Neo-psychadelic Rock/Pop
The Flaming Lips don’t exactly need an introduction. If anything, the band does it well enough during their concerts as the band emerges from garishly lit body orifices on a large screen that extends almost the entirety of the stage. Wayne Coyne, lead singer and personality, typically follows by inflating a giant plastic ball with himself inside as he careens over the sea of hands in the crowd. It’s quite the spectacle. Lights jettison across the crowd with well-placed disco balls, constant confetti showers, and sometimes a space ship.
To be sure, The Flaming Lips have been around since roughly 1983 with over a dozen releases. One of them being the alternatively driven Clouds Taste Metallic, the last album with guitarist, Ronald Jones, who left the band following the release of the album. The Flaming Lips are known now for occasionally playing entire sets surrounding one album with a setlist mirroring the order of said album.
This was the case in early 2014 when the band decided to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Clouds Taste Metallic. With songs that have not been played live before, the band dipped back into their old alternative dynamic, a sharp turn from their now spacey, psychedelic pop releases that were released after Clouds Taste Metallic. This is what makes the album such a critical moment for the band, one to be celebrated.
On November 27, 2015, The Flaming Lips will re-release Clouds Taste Metallic under a new name, Heady Nuggs 20 Years After Clouds Taste Metallic. As a bonus, the album will be bundled as a three-CD configuration or a seven-LP box set with rare songs, B-sides, a set of live songs, and another EP entitled Due To High Expectations The Flaming Lips Are Providing Needles For Your Balloons / The King Bug Laughs (Oddities and Rarities).
Most songs on the album sound so very Lips-esque with Coyne’s trademark soft, lulling voice occasionally cracking over a cacophony of psychedelic soundscapes that often feature sound clips and droning, happy chord changes. A perfect example of this is on “They Punctured My Yolk.” An infectious drum roll leads an almost anthemic melody as Coyne’s voice croons, “They never called me/up to the tower/We gave it to them/They had the power.” A song clearly staging the band towards their now constant theme of good vs. evil, light vs. dark, and love often overshadowing hate despite an empirically cruel world that surrounds us. Not to mention the bass grooves like something out of an unknown Paul McCartney release.
And yet, songs like “Lightning Strikes The Postman,” are quite heavy when considering the songs the band releases these days. The most notable difference is how distorted the guitars are and how far away Coyne’s voice sounds. “Lighting” is a rock jam, sometimes with no singing just strings and drums.
After hearing what the band has released since Clouds Taste Metallic, it’s easy to see how transitional the band was during the making of this album. Songs like “Christmas At The Zoo” showcase the “happy” music the band releases now, but tailored for a rock band. Sad lyrics over two distorted guitars and alternative percussive maneuvers with the rhythm section, the band creates an interesting dynamic that’s not common with most of their newer releases. But major chord changes paired with a positive melody and a whistling section to end with tell a completely different story. They tell a story newer fans of the band are much more familiar with in regards to the band’s formula.
It’s good to be reminded of the history, or journey, a band partakes upon. The best, or classic may be a better word, bands out there have a story of transformation left in the wake. One that demonstrates experimentation in image, personality, musical character or any variety of transformations. The Flaming Lips have maintained themselves as a staple in American musical culture for decades, at least in the performance arena.
And that’s why a deluxe re-release is an exciting addition to the band’s arsenal of discography. The release reminds the old fans what they first fell in love with and it teaches the newer, probably younger fans, of where the band has come from up to this point.
But some things haven’t changed, such as the infectiously whimsical nature that surrounds every Flaming Lips album to date. This is most true by merely reading the titles of songs such as “Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots,” “Christmas At The Zoo,” or “Guy Who Got A Headache And Accidentally Saved The World.”
Maybe that’s what the legacy shows. Learning to keep the depressing, confusing parts of our lives paired with the absurdity that encases each bit and laughing about it.
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