The Flaming Lips
Interview with Michael Ivins
Words: Michael Rabinowitz
Photos: Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Like Darwin’s Platypus, The Flaming Lips have undergone multiple incarnations.  Starting with the band’s Mad Hatter, Wayne Coyne, and bassist Michael Ivins until settling on the current lineup with Steven Drozd on drums.  Of course, instrument titles are just that: titles.  All three members contribute to the sound beyond their designated liner note roles.  Today, the Lips are recognized more for their live show extravaganza; a multimedia orgy with fake blood, Easter Bunny heads, and a human hamster ball.  

A hardcore punk band that once emulated The Butthole Surfers, The Flaming Lips scored a college radio hit with “She Don’t Use Jelly” off their catchy Transmissions From A Satellite Heart.  Destined to be a generic “alternative ‘90’s band,” the Lips took advantage of losing a guitarist to go experimental with their four disc LP Zaireeka, engineered to be played on four records players simultaneously.  This offbeat experiment was just a foundation to a series of mainstream and critical hits beginning with and the Pet Sounds laden Soft Bulletin, followed by the electronic symphony Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots, and then the 2006 Grammy winning release At War With The Mystics.  The band has, since 2005, been producing and scoring their own movie, Christmas On Mars, starring a suicidal Santa Claus and a benevolent Martian (played by Coyne).  

The tall bassist for the band, Michael Ivins, has a Lerch-like quality that can seem intimidating.  Yet, as the band’s original punk rocker, Ivins is actually a huge fan of The Who’s late bassist, John Entwistle.  The DIY punk attitude remains: Ivins is a student to the craft of sound engineering working on recordings beyond the Lips’ sessions.  While driving to their Fredonia, NY recording studio, Ivins discussed the future of The Lips, their fascination with Salvador Dali, and the pending attack of Yoshimi onto Broadway.

REAX:  So, I understand The Flaming Lips are back to recording?
Michael Ivins:  Yeah, we’ve got a whole bunch of stuff on tap.  We’re putting together a couple of live DVD’s.  And then maybe a song here and there.  Maybe. . .(laughs) we’ll even work on Christmas on Mars for a little bit.  

REAX:  That was actually my first question!
MI:  (Laughs)  I think this year we are trying to make a concerted effort to start doing some sound design and soundtrack stuff and see how we are going to put this movie together.  

REAX:  Has principle photography finally ended?
MI:  Basically, that is all done.  We are in the process of shuffling things around, seeing how the scenes work together, how it’s all going to flow, and start putting sound effects in.  

REAX:  It’s been built up for a couple of years now.  I would think finding a distributor should be easy.  
MI:  I think we are going to wait.  We have something more or less done.  And, we’re not even sure how we are going to do it really.  I think Warner Bros. is going to distribute it.  I don’t know if its strictly going to be on DVD or we might put together a small tour and go out with it ourselves.  Obviously, we have video projectors and that sort of stuff.  We can bring in a set up and do it more as a rock show.  

REAX:  Are you continuing anything beyond the movie?
MI:  Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots is actually in the works to become a Broadway musical.  Its in deep somewhere.  I’m not sure where because it takes years to bring this to fruition.  I am not sure if we are in year two or year three right now.  But, we seem to be on schedule.  In the process, we were invited to see the musical Wicked in NYC.  And I thought “Wow!”  Because I hate musicals of the Broadway variety.  I’ve seen stuff on TV or movies that have been made from musicals and usually they are just horrible.  The music is weird and contrived.  

REAX:  Also, Wicked had amazing costumes and special effects.  It would be mind-blowing to see that applied to “Yoshimi”.
MI:  And,  the other plus in my column was I actually read the book.  I thought it was an awesome book, a great story.  Of course, it goes without saying that everyone involved with The Flaming Lips loves “The Wizard of Oz.”  I read the whole series when I was a kid, all 15 books.  The movie is great but what I loved about the books was that it wasn’t a dream.  It’s a whole other world.  

REAX:  In the Lips’ documentary “Fearless Freaks,” Wayne Coyne built a spaceship for “Christmas on Mars” out of a gas tank and junk parts.  Is recording for The Lips like that, where necessity is the mother of invention?
MI:  It was like that at first, but we’ve grown into this weird entity that has worked out well with Dave Fridman (long time FL producer).  We have a whole studio at our disposal.  Its definitely not as slapped together in a recording studio.  But, we might end up doing things that are happy accidents.  

REAX:  Is there a flip side to that where you have a burden of choice?  You must get a lot of offers to try tech equipment for recording/playing.  
MI: (Laughs)  Its not as quite as easy as one would think that happens.  I don’t know why.  But, it’s not like we’re hurting either.  It’s not like we need free stuff.  It would be nice, don’t get me wrong.  I think a lot of times it doesn’t really end up being too much choice and we’re frozen by too many roads to go down.  A lot of times there is an idea and we know enough.  But, sometimes out of sheer laziness (laughs) it will be, “What microphone is handy?”  But, we try not to let that happen too much.  We’ll be dictated more by the idea that’s at hand as opposed to . . .”Hey!  There’s this piece of gear.  What are we going to with it?”

REAX:  Are you still inspired by artists of the past such as the widely known comparison of “Fight Test” on Yoshimi to Cat Steven’s “Father and Son”?
MI:  I don’t really think that was intentional to the extent that it ended up happening.  I still go, every now and then to listen to “Father and Son”.  And, yes, there is a part that is there.  But, I don’t know if the whole song is like that.  We didn’t take “Father and Son” and change the words.  It’s not that drastic.  A lot of what we listen to is built into our vocabulary.  Hopefully, little by little, we are making music that is going to be Flaming Lips music and however it gets there . . hey, (laughs) that will be our own little secret after a while.  

REAX:  Coming from the DIY era, you talked about not being able to play instruments.  But, your records are sophisticated pieces of music.  What was it like under the learning curve?
MI:  We do have the secret weapon of Steven (Drozd), without blowing too much smoke around.  He really is a great and talented musician whether he is playing drums or guitar or singing.  He just happens to be one of those guys, whether it’s the birth lottery or whatever happened, he has a gift that he can hear tones.  Because he knows how western music, at this time, is set up he . . . knows what the sounds are.  He knows a “G” when he hears it.  He knows an “F sharp” when he hears it and is able to process in his brain.  He is able to take a melody and extrapolate an orchestra.  He knows where all the counterpoints need to be.  Whereas, Wayne and I just can tell you when things are higher and lower.  

REAX:  Speaking of Steven, he was so open about his heroin addiction in “Freaks.”  Why is honesty so important for the band, even when its so personal?
MI:  There is a difference between honesty and just not talking about it.  I think we try to be, even as people, as honest and open about things.  Hopefully, even in our personal lives.  Because, well gosh, if you don’t have that there really isn’t anything.  It came up, it happened, it was part of what happened to us and who we are.  I mean people, from day one, thought we were drug addicts.  It really just wasn’t true ever.  I think we are more boring as people.  Not that I find drugs overly glamorous.  I would hesitate to think that people would still think that.  Even with the whole Anna Nicole Smith thing playing out.  Paris Hilton, Britney Spears and that kind of stuff.  It doesn’t seem that cool.

REAX:  Does that perception bother you, considering you had to live with someone who had a drug problem?
MI:  It was weird for the longest time.  We didn’t actually know because he—even in the depths of it and once we did know—would never miss a show.  He never screwed up.  He was always there when things needed to get done.  It was very obvious that this was not something you can balance, self medicate and live your life doing normal things.  I think he might have tried to do that.  He tried to quit here and there.  But, there comes a time when you are ready to stop.  And, you do.  In the big picture, Steven was just ready to stop.  One of the big things is getting yourself out of the situation you are in and the people you are with.  When he was ready to stop, we were in Fredonia, recording.  He said, “I think I am just going to stay here.”  And we said, “Please.  Stay on our couch and we’ll help you through this.”  He didn’t go to any famous person’s rehab or 12 steps.  The big thing was he was ready to stop and got to the point where he was going to land in jail or die.  As soon as he was ready, we were there for him.  

REAX:  Songs like “Talking Bout the Smiling Deathporn” and your album art cover to “Oh My Gawd!” are suggestive of Salvador Dali influences.  Is this the case?
MI:  Oh, sure.  Wayne is more the actual artist.  He can sit and down and paint.  A lot of the impetus of being in a rock band was that you can be an artist, but it would be years or you would be an old guy before anyone knows who you are or takes you serious.  So, having a rock band you need to do album cover art and flyers.  It seemed like a perfect outlet for Wayne.  When the Oh My Gawd! cover came out we decided we were going to do a big painting and get everyone involved.  

REAX:  The Lips once backed up Beck in 2002.  Is there any other artist you would want to back up again?
MI:  Oooo you know, I am not quite sure.  I actually won’t say anything bad about the experience.  It was really hard work.  We were putting on two shows.  Of course, Beck actually played for nearly two hours, sometimes longer.  They ended up being really long nights.  A lot of times we ended up driving ourselves.  There were some fortuitous things that came out of it.  We got used to having a drummer, so when we thought about adding one to our live show it was a smooth transition.  A lot of good things came out of it but I’m not sure we would do it again.  Maybe it would be kind of fun like pretend we’re The Who or something.  (Laughs).  Or back up Pete Townsend and Roger Daltry.  That would be pretty crazy.  That would be tough.  I’m not saying I could step up and be John Entwistle.  Even though, that has been a life long dream.  I am sure I could practice long and hard enough and then maybe I could fake it.  (Laughs).