You went deep on this one! And that’s one of the songs I can’t remember from that album, which is definitely their best. Will listen soon and remind myself how it (if not civilization itself) ends…
I don't want to be that guy who says, "Oh, man, their early stuff is way better." BUT... I saw the Lips *countless* times pre-'Soft Bulletin,' and my god, they were incredible! I still rate Ronald Jones as one of my generation's greatest, unsung guitarists. The sounds he could pull out of the guitar were beautiful, mind-blowing, scary, disturbing, and absolutely majestic, all at the same time! I love all of their albums before 'Soft Bulletin', but it is with Ronald that they hit that sweet spot, for me.
Back then, I often saw the Lips at bars where it was just me and maybe 9 others. They filled the space with a fog machine, projected weird films through the thick haze onto the ceiling, and completely eviscerated the place. They would almost always close the sets with "One Millionth Billionth..." (from 'Oh My Gawd1") and it was total sonic, light, and fog mayhem. Afterward, they would humbly have beers, chat, joke, and play pool with us!
The first time I saw them with a significantly larger audience was on their 'Transmissions' tour. I had moved to London and was excited to see them in a different country. It was still a small gig someplace in Angel, Islington, but the crowd was definitely now in the hundreds. The last time I saw the Lips live was on their 'Clouds Taste Metallic' tour, and it was also not long after that Ronald left the band.
Unfortunately, when 'Soft Bulletin' came out, it just didn't work for me, and that is when I jumped ship. That said, Wayne and Michael thoroughly deserve their success. They have worked exceedingly hard for every bit of it. I will also say that 'Soft Bulletin' and 'Yoshimi' definitely ushered in the orchestrated pop-psych sound of the '00s. Without it, bands like Tame Impala wouldn't exist.
You went deep on this one! And that’s one of the songs I can’t remember from that album, which is definitely their best. Will listen soon and remind myself how it (if not civilization itself) ends…
I don't want to be that guy who says, "Oh, man, their early stuff is way better." BUT... I saw the Lips *countless* times pre-'Soft Bulletin,' and my god, they were incredible! I still rate Ronald Jones as one of my generation's greatest, unsung guitarists. The sounds he could pull out of the guitar were beautiful, mind-blowing, scary, disturbing, and absolutely majestic, all at the same time! I love all of their albums before 'Soft Bulletin', but it is with Ronald that they hit that sweet spot, for me.
Back then, I often saw the Lips at bars where it was just me and maybe 9 others. They filled the space with a fog machine, projected weird films through the thick haze onto the ceiling, and completely eviscerated the place. They would almost always close the sets with "One Millionth Billionth..." (from 'Oh My Gawd1") and it was total sonic, light, and fog mayhem. Afterward, they would humbly have beers, chat, joke, and play pool with us!
The first time I saw them with a significantly larger audience was on their 'Transmissions' tour. I had moved to London and was excited to see them in a different country. It was still a small gig someplace in Angel, Islington, but the crowd was definitely now in the hundreds. The last time I saw the Lips live was on their 'Clouds Taste Metallic' tour, and it was also not long after that Ronald left the band.
Unfortunately, when 'Soft Bulletin' came out, it just didn't work for me, and that is when I jumped ship. That said, Wayne and Michael thoroughly deserve their success. They have worked exceedingly hard for every bit of it. I will also say that 'Soft Bulletin' and 'Yoshimi' definitely ushered in the orchestrated pop-psych sound of the '00s. Without it, bands like Tame Impala wouldn't exist.