The Flaming Lips - Greatest Hits Vol. 1 (Album Review)

 

The Flaming Lips - Greatest Hits Vol. 1

(2018)


My Copy: 2018 press by Warner Bros. Records


As one might infer, Greatest Hits Vol. 1 is a compilation of singles by The Flaming Lips. As this is not a normal cohesive album, I’ve decided to rank the tracks from worst to best rather than attempt to review this record traditionally. 


11. “The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song” - This song is actual dogshit and I hate it so much. It feels like another band attempting to channel The Flaming Lips or Ween but missing the point so goddamn hard resulting in this obnoxiously corny “song.” The Flaming Lips have always been just slightly annoying but this song sounds like the result of taking the most ridiculous sounds from 30 different children’s songs and throwing them in a blender. Shockingly Wayne Coyne is pretty relaxed on this and can’t even be bothered to save it with an interesting vocal or lyrical performance. There are a couple of cool synth sounds I guess. 

10. “The Castle” - I’m not sure what’s worse: the generic movie trailer synth bass or the horribly overproduced vocals that are totally antithetical to everything The Flaming Lips have ever done. Some cool sounds save it from being utterly awful but this is a truly boring track. 

9. “Bad Days (Aurally Excited Version)” - Not a bad track by any means, but almost wholly saved by Wayne Coyne’s tongue-in-cheek lyricism and iconic vocal delivery. It picks up significantly when the heavy drums come in near the end, but something about many of the instrumental choices are all too childish. I loathe glockenspiel unless it is done in a very specific way or accompanied by a better instrument, but unfortunately the instrumental to “Bad Days”  sounds like it should play at a daycare thanks to the dreadful glockenspiel. 

8. “When You Smile” - Glockenspiel again but not quite as nauseating. A solid straightforward Flaming Lips song with slide guitar and lo-fi drums. A lot more blissful and cathartic than “Bad Days” but not on the level of the other tracks. 

7. “Silver Trembling Hands” - A tad generic from a writing perspective but the excellent half-time sections give the song room to breathe, and there’s a charming sense of restraint to this track. Synth tones hiss but don’t linger, guitars strum and every individual piece coalesces well to create a nice puzzle of a song.   

6. “The W.A.N.D.” - Heavy and distorted but still maintaining a sense of pristine production, “The W.A.N.D. is an elated groove through a shuffling drum beat and an array of beautiful vocal harmonies. The effects on the vocals allow what is ultimately a fairly simple song to truly shine; the psychedelic tricks and yells at the end elevate the track and it’s a very solid offering but not quite as complete as some of the better songs. 

5. “Waitin’ For Superman” - I guess it makes sense that the best tracks would almost all be from the same two albums. “Waitin’ For Superman” is a wonderfully relatable ballad with heartfelt lyrics and lovely piano. The heavy drumming and double-time hi-hat maintain a sense of momentum as melodies cascade. There aren’t many sonic tricks to this one: it’s just a well made collage of pleasant sounds set to Coyne’s unique voice.

4. “Do You Realize??” - Syncopated acoustic guitar, synth strings and some truly special vocal arrangements make for a beautiful trip on this song. “Do You Realize??” is a touching and emotional track that is also reaffirming and fun, when the beat picks up it’s hard not to smile and be taken by the sounds. The dramatic lyrical content fits the tone perfectly. 

3. “Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots Pt. 1” - This is a great song: the samples, the digital synth noises, the optimistic tone, layered guitar and the bright but subtle key melodies all blend together to build a journey into another world. The song is so simple but such a testament to the power of building layers with many different instruments. “Yoshimi” is beautiful, fun and even features a touch of tragedy as the progression changes in the end. 

2. “She Don’t Use Jelly” - This song is absolute madness and proof that the earlier Flaming Lips material is worth checking out. The way the heavy, distorted guitar is juxtaposed to Coyne’s borderline comical crooning is fantastic. The band excellently creates a sense of anticipation for the heavy choruses by toning down the verses with acoustic guitars and other strange string sounds. The lyrics are just as goofy as they should be, and this may be the perfect amalgamation of early Flaming Lips tropes. 

1. “Race For The Prize” - If you expected anything else then I am mildly disappointed in you. This might be the best Flaming Lips song ever. When writing The Soft Bulletin the band set out to create a psych-rock album that utilized guitar as little as possible; the results are surprisingly extraordinary. “Race For The Prize” features an addicting and distorted lo-fi drum beat as the main focus until it eventually relents to give us the airy, but tense verse passages. There are synths, strange percussive elements and quiet arpeggiated guitar all blanked by Coyne’s vocals. The song is tragic but optimistic and this is relayed perfectly by the music; if you removed the lyrics, you would still understand the exact essence of the song. “Race For The Prize” doesn’t overstay its welcome, and is a truly fantastic song with just the right amount of everything.

    This is a very easy album to get your hands on.

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