May 2011, Tabernacle, Atlanta, Ga.
I’ve been to plenty of shows — my first concert was in 1982 — so I’ve been witness to many memorable musical moments. But I’ve never seen a beginning and end to a show as dynamic as what I witnessed in Atlanta that night.
The Flaming Lips is a band that was on my to-see list for many years — legendary for its interesting and crowd-pleasing shows, the Lips make great music as well. Wayne Coyne is as eclectic a front man as you will find, and with bandmates Michael Ivans and Steven Drozd the trio has sent out a catalog of music unparalleled in its inventiveness. One of its most-celebrated albums is 1999’s The Soft Bulletin, and on this night the Lips went about playing it beginning to end in a way that took my breath away.
The stage was dotted with funky instruments — gongs and drums and synths and guitars — in front of a massive light contraption that filled the room with the colors and shapes. Wayne came out and gave a little speech about what was about to happen — noting it was only the second time the band had played Soft Bulletin in this way, warning people to be wary of the strobe lights, and asking everyone be loud. “We haven’t done this a lot,” he said, “I don’t know what the fuck is going to happen.”
The lights dimmed, only to have the board light up the room and a door smack dab in the middle of the display open up for the band to walk out of. As Ivans and Drozd joined others out of the magic-light door, Coyne was busy blowing up a clear plastic balloon around him in order to walk across the crowd. As the band churned into a righteous groove, Coyne rolled into the audience. I’ve heard about it, but it was an amazing event to see, and makes you understand why people love this band: Coyne is willing to put himself out there for his fans. Even when he was back on stage, sans bubble, he was one with the crowd all night. How can you not love this band?
“Race For The Prize” then kicked in, accompanied by thousands of bits of confetti, large colorful balloons, and Coyne sending out streamers into the crowd with a little pump. And oh yeah, the song was wonderful, such a perfect song to start a party. Song by song the band carefully went through the album, with Coyne adding a narrative with the songs when necessary. “Waitin’ For A Superman” was done a capella (the first time we’ve done that, Coyne noted), and proved the night’s top moment. Coyne stood square center stage with his fist in the air singing line by line, joined by a crowd mesmerized by the moment. The applause following the song was loud and lasting.
After a short recess after playing Soft Bulletin, the band returned for a four-song encore, ending with an acoustic version of “Yoshimi” and a riotous, anthemic singing of “Do You Realize?” joined by more confetti and a brilliant light show. It was a long day, the band didn’t finish until a little before 1 a.m., but I never felt more energized.
Consider me a Flaming Lips fan for life.
This I realize.
