GIG NUMBER NINETY-TWO
Who
I met Nick, and by a combination of leaving possessions at work and having dropped off my bag with him on the previous day, I wasn't carrying the excessive stuff that had so distracted me at my last Flaming Lips show, and we were able to go straight to the venue. We dropped in at the chip shop then jumped on a very quiet train, feeling very excited, and finding ourselves singing Bucovina (the anthem of the Reading festival). We had to ask for directions but found the NIA in reasonable time and got indoors, which was a relief as it was a rare cold night in 21st century globally warmed Britain. Doors had opened at 6:30pm so I was concerned that there would be a massive crowd, but my fears were unfounded. The NIA was poorly organised with no clear sign telling us how to get into the downstairs bit: If the staff are so sick of having to tell people where to go, maybe they should try putting some notices up! Our tickets were taken off us at the entrance in exchange for a paper (bright pink) wristband. It was a large venue, bigger than I'd remembered from seeing Bottom Live 4 a distant five years ago, with a very high ceiling. The small crowd who'd already arrived were all sitting down, and were an interesting mix of the old and the very young, plus a few were in fancy dress costumes, including someone dressed as Superman. We sat down and chilled out as far forwards as were practical, speculating about the show and what the band may play, and maintaining our excitement levels. The band had a typically cool stage, which featured a proper television screen rather than a cinema screen - the guys were splashing out!
Everybody simultaneously got to their feet stimulated by an unknown cue after a bit and we surged forwards, jostling for position. The balloons were released and then the fun commenced, so much so that it was a disappointment when the support band came on. Amongst the standard balloons were a few whoppers that were a particular delight to hit! We also noticed a few glitter balls randomly placed on the ceiling and an old couple in front of us who predictably left after one song - why do the old come to such gigs when they're incapable of enjoying good music? At 7:45pm, support band Deerhoof took to the stage for a most unusual slot. They featured a crazy Japanese singer who seemingly couldn't speak a word of English and a crazy start-stop musical style. The singer just seemed to make random noises and all the strange crunching sounds made by their guitars stopped whenever she opened her mouth. They were very loud and, when the singer bent away from the mic, another member introduced the band, their name sounding very much like Duracell! It all got a bit boring to be honest as it was quite samey and went on for a while, but stimulation was provided by all members of The Flaming Lips hanging around stage-left. Kilph (wearing a very creditable Welsh Rare Beat t-shirt) joined them to play some drums and, in an even more surprising twist, Steven took to the stage to contribute some demented guitar sounds to the mix, and the band even started singing "properly" later on in the set. I was further distracted as one of the roadies looked very much like my legendary friend Tom, but when he came closer I realised it wasn't him. The video screen was simply showing camcorder footage taken from behind them whilst all of this was going on, which did draw attention to just how much jumping around they were doing!
I had been hoping that Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly was supporting, and seemed to have got the idea into my head that he was. However, time was now getting on and Deerhoof answered my question by saying that The Flaming Lips were next. No big deal as I'd be seeing Get Cape in the new year, and anything that sped up the arrival of the main attraction was to be welcomed, even if it did mean we'd had very little support for such a big show. Wayne waved at everyone and let off a massive party popper but for once he could take a back seat, as there were roadies setting up their stuff! Normally the Lips do it all themselves, but either they'd finally found people they trust to do it for them or it is a symbol of their success that they don't want to do it all anymore. I looked behind me and suddenly the venue looked fairly full, and I couldn't help but sneer at the people who'd chose to sit completely isolated at the back! We saw a guitar that appeared to have an Ipod built in appear onstage as the time approached 9pm, and excitement was now reaching fever pitch. The introduction was the "standard", as Wayne seemed to be debating the logistics of the balloon stunt with the roadies. The balloon was inflated, Wayne stepped inside, and the introduction music started up. Wayne was then launched into the crowd, and I don't think I could ever tire of such an incredible stunt - why don't Radiohead do things like this? Nick couldn't quite believe what he was seeing and was instantly converted, and the only downside was that the bubble never went over us and that once again I didn't see exactly what the introduction message on the screen was telling us. It was the same as the last show but what an entrance! By the time Wayne made it back to the stage, it was swarming with aliens and Santa's (the motive of which they didn't explain this time around), plus a super sized Santa and alien to lead them, and some additional superheroes who seemed to be overseeing everything, including Captain America. Also Michael had ran off to get changed and was sitting down in his traditional skeleton outfit.
The set kicked off with the standard (and unbeatable) Race For The Prize. There was an amazing moshpit, tons of balloons were released, glitter cannons and smoke guns were set off and Wayne was swirling his amazing swirly thing. It was amazing as usual, the only problem being the crowd moshing to the wrong bits! Wayne introduced Free Radicals with an undeserved tribute to Birmingham, saying that when they'd played it last time in town the crowd were singing it back at them and since that show they've been trying to create the same crowd reaction. I have a tape of that show and refuse to accept that the Birmingham crowd sung it anywhere near as well as it had been done in Manchester, so perhaps Wayne had got slightly confused. The way we said "FUCK!" after the "fanatical" bit was amazing though, and I have never been in such a good Birmingham crowd, so much so that I was now really starting to love this song. Chit chat continued with talk of their previous show in Blackpool where they'd decided not to have balloons in case they broke the chandeliers and killed the audience, which is a strangely amusing thought, and how they were compensating by having twice as many balloons tonight! Wayne also goaded the people sitting at the back to join in, but in this cavernous arena it's difficult to imagine them getting into it, so the more fool them. I correctly predicted that the band would launch into Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt. 1 next and once again the intro didn't quite sound up to scratch, but the song was delivered in usual manner and was most enjoyable. I'd anticipated that the Scientologist vs. Christianity (aliens vs. Santa's) speech would precede Yoshimi 2 but it wasn't done, so I "just" had to make do with some amazing lasers, crazy music and the fog machine, so effective I started to wonder where the band were! Vein Of Stars was next up and a glitter ball was added to the mix. There was a nice background but, just as last time, this song doesn't deserve any place in a Flaming Lips set and soon got boring.
The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song though was fantastic on every level, and tonight took its place alongside the very best of the Lips, as Wayne got us to scream the "yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeahs!" just as before, and then they launched into a hyperactive version of the main song, with Steven adding excellent distorted vocals. To top things off, I grabbed hold of a green balloon and successfully managed to deflate it, so I now have an "official" Lips balloon with At War With The Mystics artwork on it! By now everyone was very happy and Wayne spoke (again!) about everybody at their gigs being happy and that miserable people just don't watch them. He also added that Deerhoof had praised us as a fantastic crowd before starting up Fight Test. This was in fact the first deviation from the set played in Manchester, and was certainly more welcome than In The Morning Of The Magicians, which had been dropped at last. Wayne made a particularly profound comment about them not knowing the answers to the world's problems, but how singing about the questions seems to help. Things really then took a sideways step with what was introduced as an "old one". I couldn't work out which song it was at the time but I knew it was either from Oh My Gawd or Telepathic Surgery thus was far and away the oldest thing I've ever heard them play. It was a short and sweet moment, tailor-made for the obsessive fans like myself, and I later confirmed it as Ode To C.C. (Part II). The W.A.N.D. was outstanding, and despite hardly comparing with Lightning Strikes The Postman it finally sounded like the massive hit it never was. Things continued to get weird with an unknown new song that turned out to be My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion, and I could only scratch my head in confusion. Wayne produced the Waitin' For A Superman bird and a colourful video screen literally spelled out every lyric in the song. It may have been overlong and a bit mediocre compared to what they could have done, but it was nice enough and made a change.
Proceedings returned to standard-but-welcome with the ever-awesome She Don't Use Jelly. Having seen it five times, I'm now quite sure it's Hugh Grant who introduces the song, and they once again showed the original video to go with it. For some bizarre reason they seem to play it worse every time I hear it but I still love it and enjoy Wayne blowing up the Largest Balloon Ever at the end. After the typically rousing Do You Realize?? it was the end of the main set and we debated why they still play Jelly at every show. It should be one of the highlights, but the Lips seem to have reached a point where most of their new songs go down better with the crowd, so they are no longer obligated to play it. I captured and pocketed two pieces of confetti, determined to take home as much of the experience as possible. I wondered what they could play next. A cover version seemed likely but they had time for something else too. I was really hoping for The Gash. Captain America tried to motivate us by pointing at either side of the crowd faster and faster and getting us to scream, but after so much stimulation it wasn't enough to keep our concentration. When the band returned, it was to the unexpected highlight of the evening. When they started off Bohemian Rhapsody there seemed to be a subconscious yawn, it being such a famous song. However, they relentlessly drilled the lyrics on the screen to us and by the time they reached the head-banging bit the most spontaneous and delightful moshpit of perhaps all time kicked off. It was just about the best combination of frenetic activity and musical brilliance ever, as even Queen in their prime couldn't deliver a full live version of Bohemian Rhapsody! The set then closed with a welcome return of A Spoonful Weighs A Ton, as Steven wiped the insane amounts of glitter off his keyboard. As amazing as the song is, the crowd seemed criminally ignorant of its brilliance, and the Teletubbies video was tragically missed, being replaced by a nice but inferior collage of people hugging. The song still maintained its power though, even if the crazy drug-induced vibe of old had been tragically played down.
It was a rousing end to a fantastic set, which had nudged ahead of the Manchester show thanks largely to Bohemian Rhapsody. Lightning Strikes The Postman and The Gash were devastating omissions, and it was a surprise that current single It Overtakes Me and Waitin' For A Superman hadn't made the cut. The show even made me rethink what the definitive Flaming Lips set would be, and it's a good sign that such familiar songs could still surprise me. As expected, Nick had been fully converted and wants to see them again, keeping up the 100% conversion rate of people I take with me to see The Flaming Lips. It was also the most energetic Lips moshpit I'd experienced by a long way, yet thankfully without any crowdsurfing. They say only death and taxes are certain, but I confidently add over-priced band merchandise to that select list. It was in that spirit that I'd hoped to see some cheap T-shirts outside and was shocked to see none. Either the venue is strongly policed or maybe the 10:30pm finish had taken the vendors by surprise. Although the pub was tempting we went for the train instead, stopping off for a Mars drink and packet of Rolos first. I was surprised that my ears weren't whistling as it had seemed like a loud show, but my ears rarely seem to whistle after gigs now anyway. On a positive note I did get a gig ticket back on the way out, which is nice, and we had a conversation with some stoners on the penultimate train back who had taken an amazing film of Race For The Prize I implored them to put on YouTube, and one of them had got THREE official T-shirts! I have to make do with the utterly reasonable photos Nick took which appear at the top of the page. The next day I was so tired I got lost on the way to work and I was so busy I didn't have a chance to write any notes about the gig for a few days, and I'm only writing up the review four months after the event. You can see I've found a lot to talk about though, but that's The Flaming Lips Experience in a nutshell!
Mark: 9.5/10
The Flaming Lips
Support
Deerhoof
Where
Birmingham NIA
When
9th November 2006
Price
£20.00
Who with
Nick
Position
In the moshpit
Comments
This was the sixth time I'd seen The Flaming Lips, hence making them my second most viewed band of all time, trailing the SFA who I'd seen twelve times, and overhauling the previous second place of the somewhat-less-great Shed Seven! After years of persuasion, Nick had finally agreed to come along to see what he was missing and we'd got tickets months in advance: As we'd committed to a mediocre run of gigs before this it was inconceivable to not see the finest live band of the lot! It's a shame I still couldn't get anybody else to come along, but I still feel I'm several years away from cultivating universal good taste to everyone within a 20-mile radius of me! It is a foregone conclusion that anybody with an iota of taste would adore The Flaming Lips live, and my only concern was whether personally I'd enjoy it as much, or if they'd stick to a near identical set and make tonight a nice but redundant exercise. There was much organising to be done, as I had a day of work to get through, then I was staying overnight in Wolverhampton, then I had another day of work followed by an evening out watching the ultra-gory Saw III. At no point was I to go home and "refuel" nor did I want to be carrying an excess of stuff around, particularly not at the show. Thankfully my planning worked out pretty great. I'd also lent Nick my definitive 2CD greatest hits compilation of The Flaming Lips, which makes me wonder what their actual greatest hits will be like when it comes out, and if it will dare to try and span their career in full. The band had finally graduated to a medium-sized arena tour and more fool the people who didn't come and prevented the evening from being a sell-out. This was yet again another trip to the dreaded Birmingham I had to endure and their fuck-awful crowds, and also on the negative side I still hadn't really listening to At War With The Mystics, although I'm not really sure why.
Setlist
Intro (TaDa!)
Race For The Prize
Free Radicals
Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt. 1
Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt. 2
Vein Of Stars
The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song
Fight Test
Ode To C.C. (Part II)
The W.A.N.D.
My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion
She Don't Use Jelly
Do You Realize??
Bohemian Rhapsody
A Spoonful Weighs A Ton
