Live music review: Flaming Lips celebrated 20 years of Yoshimi with three-hour spectacle at ACL Live
Oklahoma’s The Flaming Lips are a generational treasure. With front man Wayne Coyne and his trusted associates going 40 years strong as of 2023, the band has nothing left to prove. The Oklahoma City act embodies rock and roll longevity. For the band’s latest tour, Coyne and company has been treating fans to a full-length presentation of their 2002 record Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots last Wednesday at ACL Live.
Despite a predictable structure for the show’s first half, The Flaming Lips also treated fans to a second set of music, making the singular band bill in Austin, a three-hour spectacle that featured every prop, entrancing visual, and crowd involvement that intensified every show of the Lips’ long, prolific career. Upon entering the venue, flyers posted around the theater said the performance would feature latex balloons, strobes, and confetti. While this may sound like a kid’s birthday party, it was not.
When The Flaming Lips took the stage just after 8 p.m., the anticipation could be felt hearing the nervous chatter in the crowd. Before the house lights went down, some folks talked about how they had seen the band many times before but were stoked to see the Lips in a two-set, extended show format. For the first set, Coyne and his band of misfits led musically by sonic wizard, Steven Drozd along with members, Derek Brown, Matt Duckworth Kirksey and Nicholas Ley launched into the Yoshimi overture “Fight Test.”
The opening notes made the crowd pop off without hesitation, confetti blasts and cheers included. The inflatable blobs on the stage began to rise, revealing enormous “Pink Robots” to accompany the band for their impending full-album quest. The stage’s backdrop was also illuminated, with captivating LED-screen visuals that featured the lyrics for each track, karaoke style. After both parts of “Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots” concluded, Coyne greeted the crowd. Even though it’s been over 20 years since the titular album was released, The Flaming Lips felt the need to give the masses a full dose of their landmark recording in 2023. This album is formative for many music fans, and this felt like a celebration of that fact.
The record play-through continued with classic singalongs “Are You a Hypnotist??” and “Do You Realize??,” both superhits for the OKC mainstays, propelling singalongs that reached volume levels of the actual amplified band. Throughout the set, Coyne did not let up, constantly demanding energy from the crowd, encouraging them to cheer, yell, and pop the balloons full of confetti that periodically fell into the audience. It was this reporter’s first Flaming Lips experience. The unending festivities of the band’s gigs are not to be understated. Near the first act’s end, Coyne promised an entire second set of music to be played until the apparent ACL Live cut off time.
After a brief intermission, Wayne and his band reemerged for a second set of wild, psychedelic rock. The classic tune “She Don’t Use Jelly” made for an explosive restart. The metallic guitar riff is unmistakable, and it reignited the “Gasoline” of the Austin party in a luminous fashion. The arena-volumed chorus from the band went the distance, with Coyne stepping to the edge of the stage to sing to the passionate crowd. A spacey highlight came in the form of “How??” A cut from 2017 album Oczy Mlody, made for a searing synth piece that unleashed a wave of psychedelia on the crowd. The ethereal notes from Coyne spoke volumes to the locked-in fans, and we watched in utter awe.
The set also included a speech about fellow musician Kacey Musgraves. Wayne shifted into storytelling mode, telling the Wednesday night crowd about a story about a time Musgraves ingested LSD before having an out-of-body experience in her home garden. Coyne told this story in a positive light, stating the story as an influence for penning the tune and collaborating with the singer/songwriter on “Flowers of Neptune 6.” It underscored Coyne’s role as a storyteller and collaborator, bringing a personal touch to the performance. To put an even more intimate (and weird) aura on things, Coyne donned a flower costume to commemorate the memories involved with shaping the song.
The Flaming Lips are a traveling spectacle. With Wednesday’s near three-hour performance, it was clearly demonstrated that rock n roll is ageless. For Coyne and his band, creative boundaries are constantly explored. The group continues to put out records that faithfully present their eclectic brand of rock n’ roll beyond the potential a 40-year act has set for themselves throughout the years. Even as the performance was winding down, Coyne didn’t stop demanding audience participation and cheers from the crowd. It was this kind of active engagement that kept fans on their toes until the night’s end.
Flaming Lips wrapped their tour in Dallas last week before heading to San Diego to the VetsAid benefit, featuring acts like Jeff Lynne’s Electric Light Orchestra, Lucius, The War On Drugs, and Joe Walsh.
Featured photo and Wayne Coyne close-up by Michael Maly. Other photos by Case Cockrell
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