All Hail The Flaming Lips!!!

I got a taste of the Flaming Lips' music when their single “She Don't Use Jelly” became a hit on a local Manila Rock radio NU107 late 1994. Because of the quirky guitars and out of its funny lyrics, it got stuck in my head. Until I was able to swap my Size 14 cassette tape to the Flaming Lips' 2 albums, namely “Transmissions From The Satellite Heart” (which includes “She Don't Use Jelly”) and “Cloud Taste Metallic” with one of our high school teachers, I know I was in a ride. The sound of the Lips was on those two albums was like Neil Young singing on Sonic Youth's music but on a happy note! Their single “Bad Days” from Cloud Taste Metallic released 1995 was a catchy tune that I always sang when of course when I am on a bad day to convert it into a good one!

Transmissions from the Satellite Heart.

Then while watching on a free UHF channel named SBN 21 early 1995, I was able to watch a re-run of a David Letterman show featuring The Flaming Lips singing "She Don't Use Jelly". Whoa! Lead vocalist Wayne Coyne got this certain smile in his face while singing their song and it got me to think that he is that really charming or just high? Their performance was really tight and drummer Steven Drozd was banging the drums in his content!

Clouds Taste Metallic Cassette :D

Then 1997, the critically acclaimed album “Soft Bulletin” was the turn around point for making The Flaming Lips an important band in the planet. With heart felt songs like “Waiting for Superman” ( I still need to check what the movie “Waiting for Superman” has something to do with the Lip's song) and the pounding “Race for the Prize.” Luckily, I was then watching re-runs of Jools Holland show on channel Studio 23 and I was able to watch Flaming Lips on that show with their performance of “Race for the Prize” I was so amazed by this frequency rod musical gadget that Wayne was using. He was like a wizard transmitting power to create music! And drummer Steven Drozd was pounding this big gong! I said to myself that this band is indeed special! Not your ordinary band! I tried to find a copy of the album Soft Bulletin but it was not locally released way back then.

After 4 years, they released another smash hit album “Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots.” The first song “Fight Test” and “Do You Realize??” was on heavy rotation on the radio back then. I was able to watch their video for Do You Realize and it looks somehow a Mad Hatter's party with Wayne dressing up like a Mad Hatter with life size Bunnies accompanying the band in the video. Whoa! This is mad cool! “Do You Realize??” was straight up sad song but uplifting in one end. It was a perfect mix. Then the Lips got legal problems with the song “Fight Test” because it sounded like Cat Steven's “Father and Son.” The reason the song somewhat disappeared from the airwaves and “Do You Realize??” got more popular, from movie and tv series soundtracks up to becoming Oklahoma's rock theme song. The next single coming out from that album was Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots pt. 2. It depicts the story of the main character Yoshimi preparing to battle the Pink Robots with her karate and drinking a lot of vitamins. Funny but very clever. It could be that the is a certain reason for this song, a reason that they are fighting for. My favorite song from the album besides the singles is “Ego Tripping At The Gates of Hell”, a melancholic trippy song with a nice song title. I believe the Lips won a Grammy for best rock instrumental for Approaching Pavanis Mans By Balloon (Utopia Planitia), also from the same album. This album is my favorite Flaming Lips album. I was able to find this album from a CD sale from the closing Tower Records then.

At War with the Mystics saw the light on 2005. I thought the first single, “The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song” has something to do with the band the Yeah Yeah Yeahs (but on the album “Embryonic” they will collaborate with Yeah Yeah Yeahs' vocalist Karen O for the song “I Can Be A Frog”). The single was accompanied with a crazy video with all the costumes and fresh meat hanging! It was all in all fun!

Then I requested my cousin from Canada to get me albums of the Flaming Lips on CD sales because their recent release were not available locally. He was able to get me “Soft Bulletin” and “At War of the Mystics.” While my girlfriend in Singapore then shipped me their album “Embryonic.”

I was able to get a news that they will be playing on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and I anticipated that day. They played a single out of Sponge Bob Sqaure Pants the movie titled "Spongebob & Patrick Confront The Psychic Wall of Energy" I was surprised that Wayne was singing and playing his guitar inside this gigantic ball. What an out of this world performance! Very unique! I found out that they used the same ball on their live concerts. I bought the movie soundtrack just because of the Flaming Lips!

I was then in the process of internalizing the album “Embryonic” then I was able to discover another Flaming Lips album release. And it was a Pink Floyd album tribute: “The Dark Side of the Moon”! Holy matrimony! They collaborated with hard core legend Henry Rollins (what a combination!) They also got help from artist named Peaches (wailing in The Great Gig in the Sky) and Oklahoma band Star Death and White Dwarfs. And because I was able to listen before to Pink Floyd's “The Dark Side of the Moon” courtesy of my father, I was hoping their have given justice on covering one of the greatest rock albums of all time. Requested my girlfriend to ship me the album. I immediately played it on our jurassic CD player the day it was mailed. And they never failed and were able to deliver! It was very psychedelic, hippy cool tribute album! 

My Flaming Lips cassette and CD collection

And when I've heard the news about the Flaming Lips coming to Hong Kong and Singapore this November, I was very thrilled! I REALLY REALLY LIKE TO WATCH THEM LIVE!!! Knowing their festive and circus act set, it will be a lot of fun to watch them live in concert! I just celebrated my birthday after Halloween – November 1 – and I hope if I won the contest  it would be a wonderful post birthday gift! It will be also a great gift for my girlfriend who is also a Flaming Lips fan. It could also serve as our celebration for our relationship will be 6 years strong .I know I could have founded the Flaming Lips Fans Club here in Manila and could have been the president but I know in my heart that I am the biggest fan of the Flaming Lips in this archipelago.

After a few days I got the update that The Raveonettes will be the front act of the Lips and I almost got a heart attack! With the ghost of Jesus and Mary Chain, I was also a fan of the Raveonettes. The single “Attack of the Ghost Riders” was very haunting catchy swing noise pop on its best! Never thought that a band will sing about one of the uncanny Marvel cartoon characters out there. I was trying to order the first album but their second album “Chain Gang of Love” came to Tower Records and got hold of it.

I will be mesmerized if I will be able to meet Sune Rose Wagner and the beautiful Sharin Foo. 

My Raveonettes CD: Chain Gang of Love

I hope I could also meet or interview my favorite band The Flaming Lips and also hang out with the Raveonettes. I hope I can have my CDs and cassettes autographed. I consider this once in a lifetime and very cool concert that I would like to experience before I die!