The Flaming Lips are the greatest American band recording today.

I originally wrote that title with the phrase "quite possibly", however as I looked at it and started to think more I couldn't find another band that I would place higher than the Lips at this point. (Modest Mouse is close though).

They've had one of the most interesting careers. The Flaming Lips were making music when I could barely walk (1983). I'm going to breeze through their early career. It's not that it was bad so to speak, but when compared to their later works, well it's like comparing Pablo Honey and Kid A.

While they started in the early eighties it was well into the nineties before they ended up seeing some commercial success with the track "She Don't Use Jelly". It's a decent track from the album Transmissions From the Satellite Heart, but by no means my favorite. With the amount of radio play that song was getting I am flabergasted that they didn't shoot up into the spotlight immediately with follow ups like "Be My Head" and "Turn It On". The only reason I can think of is that none of us were ready for them yet, I guess thats the problem with always being ahead of your time.

Then there was Clouds Taste Metallic, which contains one of my favorite "older" Lips tracks "This Here Giraffe". You should all know how much I love Giraffes. However the album as a whole was not as solid as it's predecessor, causing them to slip further into obscurity.

Next they came out with what was to be known as Zaireeka. This is one of the most bizarre albums of all time. A collection of 4 discs that are all intended to be played simultaneously. I've had the privilege of hearing Zaireeka multiple times and each time it was great. Most notably was for the anniversary when they played it a the Crocodile. It's a fantastic experiment in sound whose ambition is matched only by the musical talent of the Flaming Lips. The greatest part about Zaireeka for me is more what it represents and that is a change on the horizon greater than anything that could be expected. The Soft Bulletin.

This is where I was introduced to the Flaming Lips. I believe it was 2002. The Soft Bulletin had slipped past me for 3 years, but no more. NESF came to me one day with the CD. I listened to it once. I hated it. "I can't stand that guys voice," I remember thinking. But I trust NESF's opinion and gave it another chance. It was about the fourth go around when my world came crashing down around me and I realized that "a spoonful weighs a ton" and there was only one answer to the questions "Is it gettin' heavy?", yes.

While I was still honeymoonin' with The Soft Bulletin I was introduced to a new lover, Yoshimi. "Oh Yoshimi" where do I begin. Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots is an amazing album full of violence, love and ultimately death. It was with this album that the Flaming Lips took on the concepts of death and how beautiful it can really be. "Do You Realize?" is by far the biggest hit that they've had to date, and with just cause. However that shouldn't over shadow the pure genius that is present throughout this album as a whole. There is a good reason I placed it as #3 of the decade. To quote myself, "I think that even Alfred Tennyson may agree that there has never been a finer expression of love and loss than Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots."

At War With the Mystic followed in 2006 and it was evident they weren't happy. No one was happy in 2006, however the Lips took their hatred of GW and turned it into some fine music. I will forever associate this album with the end of GW and the election of 2008. I remember walking to the school down the street from my house listening to "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song" on my way to caucus and then leaving feeling great as I listened to "The W.A.N.D." This album didn't quiet hit the high mark of Yoshimi save one track, "Vein of Stars", which may very well be my favorite of theirs.

At this point I feel I'd be doing you all a huge injustice if I didn't mention the live show that the Lips put on. It's amazing. It's a complete affirmation of the greatness of life. Anyone who has a chance to see them live HAS to do it. You'll leave with pockets full of confetti but never disappointed. Here's some shots from the most recent show I was at...





Now I've been starting to spent a lot of time with the new album Embryonic. At first I wasn't the biggest fan. The first time I heard it I sat back in my chair and said, "meh, don't love it, don't hate it." Fear started to take over. Had the Lips lost it? Would they ever produce something that rivals The Soft Bulletin? Little did I know that with that first introduction a small ova had been placed in my brain.

Over the course of the last few weeks the egg has grown. We've now reached the embryonic stage. It's starting to consume me. I have yet to discard everything else from my iPod but I have a feeling that may happen in the near future. I can't even begin to imagine what is going to happen when my incipient growth is fully mature.

Now I don't know what else I can say to convince those of you who don't already know that you need to check out the Flaming Lips so I'm going to leave you with a youtube clip from the new album...