Apparently satisfied with their overt political statements – and guitar strums – on their last album, 2006’s War with the Mystics, The Flaming Lips have returned three and a half years later (really, did anyone see Christmas on Mars?) with an outstanding double album that ditches all emphasis on the guitars, poetic tales, and politics that could be seen in their last few efforts. Fans of “The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song” and Yoshimi’s tale will find traces of their oddity left, but instead of upbeat acoustics and whistles we get epic psychedelic freakout jams, heavy, melancholy beats, and overbearing themes of fear, evil, and helplessness.
Uninterested in getting its listeners settled, Embryonic’s seemingly mindless changes in rhythm and pace throughout the album make for a fantastic ugly duckling. Intense instrumentals such as (the terrific) “Aquarius Sabotage” and “Scorpio Sword” lose themselves in distortion, chaos, and noise before making sudden shifts into beautiful, sweeping melodies. But because it all just sounds so damn good, these transitions go unnoticed.
If you’re looking for a song with a beat as lighthearted as “Do You Realize”, you won’t find one here – songs like “Evil” and “Powerless” hypnotize with their trance-like guitar riffs while the lyrics are as spacey and mysterious as the song titles. In fact the lyrics are a complete 180 from the politics of War With the Mystics, giving way to mystery and wonder about life, morality, and the universe. “Those people are evil” lead singer Coyne exclaims early on, in between repeated wishes to go back in time. There’s no letting up from there.
The funky music, whimsical lyrics, and brilliant pace of Embryonic makes it an album that is far more satisfying to go through from start to finish, and those looking for a song that changes things up a bit in the overall tone will be disappointed. But let it be said: this stuff is every bit as catchy and intelligent as a Flaming Lips album is expected to be, it just happens to be dazzling in psychedelic insanity as well.
Does the phrase “double album” even carry weight anymore?
T00 MAINSTREAM
An overall interesting and accurate review. Really enjoyed it.
You’d be a great (and much needed?) addition to the “Music” department of the quad.
Keep it coming!