“Two Scientists are racing for the good of all mankind” begins singer Wayne Coyne on “Race For The Prize” with what seems to be a perfect opening statement for the Flaming Lips’ attempt at creating mastery. “A Spoonful Weighs A Ton” starts with what sounds like every Disney movie soundtrack, with twinkling orchestration and pretty vocals. This continues throughout the entire album. Although you’d have to do some real convincing to get me to truly believe that Coyne can sing, once you are paralyzed by the beautiful orchestration you don’t even realize that anyone is singing.
The album is pure experimentation. Is it ongoing? Maybe. Although this is not the second coming or the album of the year, I still want to say it’s super enjoyable. It’s as therapeutic as any of those dopey ocean albums mom listens to while taking a bath. Life, death, and mortality are all up for question. Nothing is left unsaid.
Okay, “Buggin’ ” is way cool. You’ll be singing along, “well they fly in the air/ as you comb your hair,” la la la. The song is perfect. If they made ten of these and jammed them all on a disc, then we could start talking about album of the year. This song makes me want to go out in the grass with no shoes and just dance around like a fool.
The song titles on the inside provide some interesting insight into the apparent meanings of the song. For example, “What Is The Light?” is as follows: “An untested hypothesis suggesting that the chemical in our brains by which we are able to experience the sensation of being in love is the same chemical that caused the ‘Big Bang’ that was the birth of the accelerating universe.” If that isn’t heavy, I don’t know what is. And the Flaming Lips are also wondering “Is it getting heavy” on the track “Waitin’ For A Superman”. Answer? Yes.
“The Gash” is the self-proclaimed “battle hymn for the wounded mathematician.” This song has one of the best orchestrations on the record. Maybe Disney should hire these cats for their next picture soundtrack. The song goes back to the snare of the civil war drums and rips through them with the crash of synth sounds. You’ll find yourself closing your eyes and listening closely to hear all that swishes through your thought processes.
On instrumentation alone, this album ranks high. Vocals are a bit annoying but you begin to adapt to them. A few songs flail around with no direction. And just so you know, most of the industry is touting this as the ‘album of the year’. I think they are just trying to create the all-necessary buzz since I don’t believe this is certain to be it. Although it is good, damn good, it just doesn’t blow you away. And it is certainly an acquired taste. Pop fans won’t get it. Rock fans will be partial. But if you’d like to taste something new, this is the album for you.
+ rae gun
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