GIG NUMBER FORTY-FIVE
Who
Before the show even started things got off to a top start with my purchase of a bright yellow t-shirt that looked pretty excellent until destroyed on a later night out at the Academy. Then I successfully managed to get quite close to the front although the devotion of the crowd meant I got pushed back throughout the night. Wayne also kept visiting the side of the stage to cheerful heckling from the audience (especially us!). The balloon roadies released one balloon with "get well soon" or something printed on the side and it kept everyone interested in trying to hit it as often as possible. So interested that we barely noticed British Sea Power taking to the stage after a very long video clip of a war film that was fairly pointless as we couldn't hear the words. But some humourless bastard went and popped the balloon with his cigarette hence our attention turned to the band onstage. I'd expected good things from British Sea Power and I guess I was a little disappointed. Their tunes weren't particularly engaging but the set was good to look at: the stage was covered in twigs not to mention a fake owl and herring! The Shed Seven conspiracy was perhaps proved true as the singer sure as hell could have been Rick Witter (except his singing skills weren't as good)! The guy in the hard hat provided most entertainment, occasionally wandering around the stage with a massive drum in a military-style march. Their last song was a stonking 15 minutes long and things picked up. BSP jumped around a little, the melody seemed to improve and their set reached a triumphant peak with the owl being dropped from a great height onto a band member’s head! It certainly was entertaining in parts, and afterwards I actually purchased A Matter Of Life And Death, the war film that they had screened as their opener!
Next came the excitement of watching The Flaming Lips setting up the stage and getting out all their amazing props. Cheers were reserved for the glitter balls and a demonstration of the loudspeaker/siren. Things were all set up but then it seemed like something else was going on. Then, to the amazement of everyone here, Badly Drawn Boy came onto the stage for a surprise acoustic slot! He opened with The Shining, which was very nice, and I was surprised to recognise it. Two more songs followed with absolutely none of the chaos normally associated with his performances. It was good enough to make me buy his album afterwards too! He even slipped in a reference to the passing of Joe Strummer (to respectful applause) during an excellent version of You Were Right. And then came the nightmare: the camera I'd been hoping to capture the live experience with went and ran out and I hadn't even got to the main act! Very nasty! But already I'd comfortably got my fifteen quid’s worth and Badly Drawn Boy asked us to welcome the greatest band on Earth: the wait was over! The wow-factor of their introduction on this night somehow managed to almost equal what had gone before. The video screen kicked off and Carmina Burana (you'd know it if you heard it: just about the most exciting piece of music they could possibly play) blasted out. And, in massive pink letters, the writing appeared:
HELLO!
TONIGHT YOU WILL WITNESS!
THE MOST SPECTACULAR THING!
YOU HAVE EVER SEEN!
YOUR LIFE WILL CHANGE!
FOREVER!
And, in terms of making all other live performances look redundant by comparison, this mission statement was utterly vindicated! After a few seconds of silence came the count-in to Race For The Prize and the place EXPLODED! Loads of balloons were released and Wayne spun a neon light about whilst the glitter balls were spinning as fast as they could go. Wayne then, like a man possessed, was flinging out confetti as fast as he could (and demonstrating the dry ice machine) and barely made it back to the mic in time for the vocals. The sheer intensity of noise, power of the song and mental overload of all that was going on was almost too much to take. The lighting was awesome, Wayne used his guitar to pop any balloons that came his way and, to top it all off, the stage was covered in dozens of people dressed in animal costumes dancing wildly to the song whilst waving flashlights about! Wayne was in a suit and the rest of the band (now including a balloon roadie elevated to the status of drummer) were in headless bunny costumes.
But sadly Race For The Prize didn't last forever and things were reset for the second opener Fight Test: a big shock choice so early on and inevitably a bit anticlimactic. Strange choice of the night was Lucifer Sam by Pink Floyd, which I assumed was a new song by the Lips. It was quite good but excitement had now reached its depth before ascending towards infinity! Then-current single Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt.1 was given an amazing reception. The intro was awesome and the black belt in karate line was delivered with a suitably powerful bit of kicking noises! As in Birmingham the video was showing Battle Royale. The song was bizarrely extended with a further slow-motion repeat of the chorus where Wayne produced a nun glove puppet (with fangs of course) and dueted with it. The image was glorious since a close-up appeared on the video screen thanks to the bands traditional camera on the mic: that image has been captured in the pic above!
Things then went up to eleven and beyond with the mind-blowing Lightning Strikes The Postman that could possibly qualify as the most intense performance ever. The song was delivered through a loudspeaker with accompanying sirens at inhuman volumes whilst Wayne was wearing his strobe light vest (along with two more strobes fixed on the stage). You couldn't see a thing amongst the light (and smoke) and could only glance at the stage briefly without being blinded whilst this wall of noise was going on in front of you. The only response was to gasp and rub your eyes (with pain and disbelief). Things were then somewhat slowed down with Happy Birthday. Wayne wisely pointed out how their shows resemble the excitement of a child's birthday party and that the band had this much fun every night, then asked if anyone was celebrating their birthday today. At least two people were and the song was sung and dedicated to them in a very nice touch.
Things then returned to "normal" with a rendition of In The Morning Of The Magicians, which sounded so much better than the record, it was obscene. Wayne waved two flashlights about in time to the tune and it provided the perfect accompaniment. Proceedings were halted again as Wayne told us not to look towards the future all the time but to embrace the moment since the future may never happen. He pointed out how this COULD be the Lips last gig (it wasn't) and it was quite clear the band were not in any way holding back and were truly going for it. All We Have Is Now followed this before things got even better with the glorious She Don't Use Jelly. Last time this song was slightly disappointing but here it was released with almost all its potential. Sadly the glitterballs had at this point broken (after possibly spinning a little too violently early on) which prevented Jelly from being perfect. Things were started off with the chat show intro where we were asked to "give a warm welcome to the Flaming LIPS LIPS LIPS LIPS LIPS LIPS!" It even incited a moshpit, which was rare for a Lips gig, as the crowd are usually too stunned to move!
Waitin' For A Superman followed with as much power as it has every time you hear it. Then it was Do You Realize?? Although my memory fails me due to sensory overload, I think it was almost as amazing as the previous time when they'd opened with it. The main set was then closed with the astonishing A Spoonful Weighs A Ton and the deepest bass that the venue had probably ever heard. As usual, the Teletubbies appeared interspersed with shots of a drummer for the chorus. Excitement had reached its peak and Badly Drawn Boy couldn't resist running onstage to tell us again that the Lips are the best band on Earth: something nobody in that room could possibly take as an overstatement since no-one else is capable of putting on a show that feels worth witnessing after this. The sheer joy of it all made me wonder: was even Jesus half this inspirational?? It truly would have taken a miserable person to not be amazed since The Flaming Lips were as exciting as Christmas must be for someone who still believes in Santa Claus: in other words pretty hard to dislike!
The band reappeared for What Is The Light? and The Observer before Wayne was dragged offstage by a band mate. He just didn't want it to end and neither did we. It's a shame they didn't play How Will We Know? and we didn't get to meet Wayne afterwards but this was no time for negative emotions! Everyone I was with agreed it was the best gig they'd ever seen which says all you need to know. In summary, the Lips fan base seemed to have doubled in devotion since the last time I saw them (but that could be just down to lame Birmingham crowds ruining it previously) and, with the word of mouth off the back of performances like this, small-scale shows had to be sacrificed in future which is tragic since the intimacy of this party could never be the same in an arena venue or outdoors at a festival. So let's pray the greatest live act on earth remain a relatively well-kept secret so the show isn't spoilt for all. I suppose that idiotic Radiohead fans at Glastonbury were the last people on Earth who deserved to see the band, somehow managing to try and ignore them! Yelling as hard as they can, the doubters all were stunned. Heard louder than a gun. The sound they made was love.
Mark: 10.0/10
The Flaming Lips
Support
Badly Drawn Boy
British Sea Power
Where
Manchester Academy
When
16th January 2003
Price
£15.00
Who with
Matt, Jim
Position
Towards the front
Comments
Their army of admirers must surely now number in millions. The Flaming Lips crowned a glorious visit to Britain with a TOTP performance (featuring Justin Timberlake of all people!) which, although hardly showcasing their full talents, was just about the most likeable thing ever broadcast on TV. But the general public would be shocked to learn that, beneath the surface of a band that just raised a smile for most, lies the beating heart of the most astonishing live act this planet may ever see. But, for the lucky few who were crammed into Manchester Academy, a truly momentous occasion was witnessed. Even I myself can sometimes barely believe just what they do since you'd never guess from many of their records. The visual spectacle of the show was, amazingly, more than matched by the music. The level of excitement ranged between high and heavenly. But perhaps in order to see beyond the visuals and appreciate the music, knowledge of their tunes is essential: otherwise you'd come away underestimating the musical excellence of this event! For example, the last time I saw them I didn't know the Yoshimi album songs and I enjoyed them far less. But I knew my opinion would change on them with better knowledge and so it did.
Setlist
Carmina Burana
Race For The Prize
Fight Test
Lucifer Sam
Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt.1
Lightning Strikes The Postman
In The Morning Of The Magicians
Happy Birthday
All We Have Is Now
She Don't Use Jelly
Do You Realize??
Waitin' For A Superman
A Spoonful Weighs A Ton
What Is The Light?
The Observer
