The Flaming Lips have been known to stray away from the norm. The band has been known for their psychedelic tunes, the vivid imagery in their lyrics, and their extravagant live performances , which includes lead singer Wayne Coyne traveling on top of the crowd inside a large plastic bubble.
The Oklahoma City group are a high concept band filled with fanfare and fun, in not only their music and live shows, but how they release the music as well. Their 1997 album, Zaireeka, consisted of four discs and was intended to be heard by playing all four CDs in four separate CD players at the same time and last year, they pressed a limited vinyl run of their album Heady Fwends that included samples of the band members’ actual blood inside of it.
Their latest release though, The Terror, marks a new direction for The Flaming Lips, a direction that is much more dark and sinister. The Terror deals with falling out of love. With lyrics like, “Love is always something/ Something you should fear/ When you really listen/ Fear is all you hear,” in the album’s opener, "Look... The Sun Is Rising." The track “Try to Explain” continues the somber lyrics, “Isn't it wise loving someone /They telling lies, they get insulted.”
Even though The Flaming lips are moving in a different direction with The Terror, it fits well with their music canon. The Flaming Lips live to evolve as a band; they aren’t the eager to please type. The Flaming Lips will move back to their fun roots soon, with a cooperative album with pop star Ke$ha coming this fall, but for now they are accepting the darkness.
You can hear The Flaming Lips on Sound Waves from 10 a.m to 2 p.m. on WFIT 89.5 fm.
