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The Flaming Lips
At War with the Mystics
(Warner)
Few bands have appeared more determined to bewilder their fanbase than Wayne Coyne's enduring sideshow The Flaming Lips. Two decades and counting, full of a revolving cast of Lips, strange tales of spiritual odysseys and spider bites; live performances that demanded audience members wear headphones. That Wayne is one weird dude, man.
Now, after a wait of nearly four years since Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, it's time to bask once again in the Lips' warm glow.
Thrill to The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song, the calculatedly poppy opening track that allows Wayne to get in touch with his inner crooner. All hail the wacky Free Radicals, a slab of twisted metal that is an early At War highlight. And, well, that's about it, really.
There's the rockin' The W.A.N.D. later on, but otherwise we're stuck with an album that very quickly drowns in its obsession with the studio.
A few pretty tunes; a few dazzling moments, in a Pink Floyd sort of way. Shame, really.
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Track Listing:
1. YeahYeahYeah Song
2. Free Radicals
3. Sound of Failure/It's Dark...Is it Always This Dark??
4. My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion
5. Vein of Stars
6. Wizard Turns On
7. It Overtakes Me/Stars Are So Big...
8. Mr Ambulance Driver
9. Haven't Got a Clue
10. W.A.N.D.
11. Pompeii Am Gotterdammerung
12. Goin' On