Flaming Lips lead singer Wayne Coyne greets the Bluesfest crowd in an inflatable bubble. (Darren Brown, QMI Agency)

OTTAWA - Frontman Wayne Coyne stepped out of his giant inflatable bubble amid a fanfare of confetti cannons, streamer guns and costumed dancers, wailing into a megaphone, and with that, the Flaming Lips' travelling freak show returned with a vengeance on the opening night of the Ottawa Bluesfest on Tuesday.

Ever-ebullient , Coyne and crew delivered on their promise to make their 8 p.m. side stage set "a very special Canadian psychedelic sunset moment.

"Even though it's the first night of the festival, everybody will say, 'That was the best ... night to be there.' I hope so anyway," Coyne continued.

With a giant screen for a backdrop and an enormous mirrorball hanging overhead -- which Coyne regularly used as a target for his streamer gun -- the fantasyland stage setup also included a horde of Wizard of Oz-themed dancers, with the gals dressed as powder-blue Dorothys and the dudes decked out in lion outfits. There was probably a tin man or two hidden among the giant catfish and inflatable sunshine head as well.

Perhaps it was the early time slot -- the Lips headlined last time around -- but the show was a bit subdued in comparison to last year's all-out spectacle.

Coyne made light of the handicap as he stared out at a purple and orange sunset, saying, "We don't get to play while the sun is out very often. Oh well, it just adds to the beautiful light show."

A tamer version of a Flaming Lips show still packs plenty of punch, with confetti-filled balloons bouncing across the crowd, strobe lights, and even a mini fireworks display at the show's seven-song climax.

Things got off to a raucous start with She Don't Use Jelly, the first, and probably the weirdest, college radio "hit" the group had from breakthrough album Transmissions From the Satellite Heart, and continuing with the Yeah, Yeah, Yeah Song -- a pointed criticism of former president George W. Bush, with Coyne at his most political.

"You sing about these things you can't control because it makes things a little less scary and it makes you feel like you have a little bit of ... power," said Coyne.

The show closed with a stripped-down acoustic rendering of the lovely Do You Realize?, with Coyne urging the crowd to invite the band back every year for the festival. "If you did that, you'd definitely be the coolest place in Canada," Coyne said.

Maybe for as long as the Flaming Lips are on stage. Just maybe.