The Flaming Lips
Words: Marshall Dickson
Photos: Marshall Dickson

Appeared:
April 14, 2007
Jannus Landing St. Petersburg

To call The Flaming Lips triumphant return to the area after 13 years (has it really been so long?) a concert would be short of a shame.  Was it the legal answer to a heavy hallucinogenic experience, an artistic stimulation of the highest order, or just a pure celebration of love, life & spirituality?  Standing in the courtyard of Jannus Landing amongst a bevy of lucky revelers, it was obvious that any of the above descriptions would suffice.

A multi-sensory carnival of sights, sounds and textures, a Flaming Lips show is something to behold.  This year’s model of the spectacle has evolved from their earlier presentations of smoke machines, Christmas lights, fuzzy animal costumes and mirror balls.  The stage was framed with purple skirted dancing girls in emerald green alien masks and jolly boys in full Santa duds, both groups equipped with battery powered hand held searchlights.  This added an organic element to the performance and complemented the laser beams, cascading confetti, avalanches of three foot yellow balloons, untold numbers of popgun streamers, manic strobes, and a constantly changing stage spanning video screen.

Without wonderful music, the circus would be just another collection of props paraded out like a clown & pony show at your kid brother’s birthday party.  Mixed with melody and musicianship, the madness becomes genius.  The ephemeral energy of Wayne Coyne and his band of merry makers effortlessly radiated forth from the stage in cosmic waves, and was reflected back by the immensely appreciative sold out crowd.  To cull a line from one of the band’s divine inspirations: “How I wish, how I wish you were (t)here…”