Trust me #90
Race for the Prize by The Flaming Lips
Trust me #91
Waitin' for a Superman by The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips are one of the best bands I have ever seen. Their live show is a truly heart warming, spine tingling, life affirming experience!
I remember the first time I caught them at The Barrowland, singer Wayne Coyne was setting up his own equipment on stage. Dressed in a linen suit, he'd later be covered in fake blood, singing his heart out, leading the audience on a trip. One other memorable show was at the Academy around the release of their collaboration with The Chemical Brothers and they played a blinding version of The Golden Path, it was sensational. Then ... there was the time Coyne rode a unicorn around the Barrowland! Check my blog on that HERE
Coyne is a fearless psychedelic punk warrior. A heartfelt leader and singer, full of empathy and soul, constantly pushing and breaking boundaries, challenging himself and his band.
The Lips formed way back in 1983 and had released 8 albums before their breakthrough with 1999's The Soft Bulletin. What a truly heartfelt and beautiful album.
I remember reading about their previous album, 1997's Zaireeka in the music weeklies. The band held an event with Ghetto Blasters playing each of the four CD's that made the album so they would produce a harmonic or juxtaposed sound.
At one stage the band conducted a series of Parking Lot Experiments with 40 cassette tapes. Each person/car who attended was given a tape with instructions on when to press play. The result was a 20-minute sound composition. The Lips were out there, far out there.
The Flaming Lips somehow transitioned to a major label in Warners, a label who believed in them and invested in their madcap ideas. This was largely on the success of 1993's single She Don't Use Jelly.
Six years later, The Soft Bulletin, stands as a testament to the band's evolution, blending lush orchestration with introspective lyrics. For me, this is The Lips masterpiece. I do have two favourite songs ... two songs that the band obviously rated particularly highly as well as they both feature twice!
Race for the Prize and Waitin' for a Superman were both remixed (to my untrained ear it was mainly softening the drums - probably for radio and promotion) and these Mokran Mixes were added on to the CD album which I bought.
Race for the Prize
Album opener, and also usually their opening song when playing live, Race for the Prize is a wonderful, weird and wild whirlwind, telling the story of two scientists locked in heated battle for the cure that is their prize.
Live, Wayne Coyne fires confetti cannons, flashes lights and conjures an Alice in Wonderland type scene as the orchestral score swirls around him. It's a sensory explosion with crashing drums, cinematic strings and Coyne's voice beautifully strained is achingly fragile ... it connects.
Two scientists are racing for the good of all man-kind
Both of them side by side
So determined
The emotion is heightened when almost everything drops out, leaving Coyne singing over heart tugging strings and gentle beats;
Theirs is to win, if it kills them
They're just humans, with wives and children
The beats kick back in hard, the strings soar with beautiful flourishes over the top. Race for the Prize is a kaleidoscope of emotions; joy, despair, hope, determination, describing two scientists pushing themselves to the limit for the good of all man-kind. Coyne's voice is captivating, pure, raw and vulnerable. He seems locked in the story, in awe of the scientists.
Waitin' for a Superman
Coyne and his band are on fire across The Soft Bulletin, telling stories, reflecting on love, life, death and the universe and doing so in their own unique lysergic tinged style with soul, warmth, empathy, love and care. Coyne melts my heart, especially on this song as he urges people to hold on the best they can.
There are a couple of excellent hooks in Waitin' for a Superman, particularly when Coyne asks the question is it getting heavy? and then comes back to it just a couple of lines later, with an answer. It's so clever, so catchy and effective.
I asked you a question
I didn't need you to reply
Is it getting heavy?
But then I realised
Is it getting heavy?
Well I thought it was already as heavy as can be
There are only a couple of verses, each ending with a similar bridge that leads to a chorus;
Tell everybody, waitin' for Superman
That they should hold on, the best they can
He hasn't dropped them, forgot them, or anything
It's just too heavy for Superman to lift
Oooffttt, it packs a punch. Things are pretty f**king heavy right now. Too heavy, even for Superman, but we've all got to hold on the best we can.
Hang in there folks, stay positive, believe in the light side of the force and look out for family and friends in these troubled times we are living in.
In the end, cowards are those who follow the dark side - Yoda
Both Race for the Prize and Waitin' for a Superman are added to my Trust Me playlist; search for Everything Flows - Trust Me on Spotify or CLICK HERE
1 comment:
Yes! Two of their very best songs. I'm not much of a fan of some of their more experimental stuff (although I commend their artistry), but The Soft Bulletin is one of the great albums and those two are the best tracks on it.
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