How To Disappear Completely

Flaming Lips: Not a Flaming Loss, But Still a Disappointment

Last night Abbie and I caught the last of our summer concert "tour." We've had some good ones. Tonight wasn't one of them. It's not that the venue Red Rocks Amphitheatre wasn't gorgeous: carved into the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, the outdoor theatre overlooks miles of plains, including downtown Denver. After the sunset, the light show from the city rivals anything the band could do. The weather was thankfully fair and gently warm, not a cloud in sight. It wasn't as if Flaming Lips disappointed us in terms of spectacle: from green balloons to confetti to dancing santa clauses to fireworks and blinking lights, the band delivered random unreality. "Abbie," I said, "It's as if I've gone to sleep and can't figure out whose dream I've waken up in." And the set list was a good mix from several of their albums, plus one tribute to Queen, a singalong version of "Bohemian Rhapsody." No, what really ruined the evening for us was the simple combination of pot and pornography. Somehow Abbie and I ended up seated in Marijuana Central. The only people not stoned were those immediately to our left. Now, I don't care if someone wants to smoke pot in the comfort in his or her room, but weed smoke is ten times more vile than nicotine. And we didn't even get the benefit of second-hand highs. We just got headaches and some nausea. Perhaps we might have overlooked this condition of general malaise, but in addition to video clips of bronco busters, Japanese racecar drivers, and frogs, the film footage that accompanied the music included several clips of naked women. Apparently these segments were quite popular with a number of (male) members of the audience, but Abbie and I just felt sick. If you have to resort to sex appeal, you really just aren't creative in my book. And so after Flaming Lips ended with "Do You Realize?", we stuck around for a few songs by Ween (who had an awesome light show), and then sneaked out of the theatre. We beat the traffic and made it home, listening to Cake in the car.

It's not as though the concert was a complete disaster: there was a lot of audience interaction and singing along. The opening band, the Go! Team, was extremely fun, with Mr. Rogers'-like decorating schemes: the band members all sported bright primary colors, and the kick drums were painted to look like traffic signals (green with the word "Go" in white lettering). The lead singer had a bright green skirt, purple top, and knee-high white boots. I loved the boots.

Unfortunately, the pot smoke really did us in. And the porn flicks were not a good addition. I'm not sure if I want to return to RedRocks. Perhaps it's best to stick to small venues. That's why I think Fiery Furnaces was the best concert experience of the summer, with Sonic Youth a close second. Flaming Lips, I may appreciate your fantastic showmanship, but I'll stick to listening to your CDs.