Flaming Lips Dance Contest
Have you ever seen the Flaming Lips live and dreamed of being one of the people in those huge costumes dancing on stage with a giant cartoon grin where your face used to be?
I really wanted to, until I heard the costumes are pretty gross. They're like a sponge for dancing human filth. You don't know where it's been. They don't always get washed as much as you would like (probably just cheap generic detergent and cold water) and people get crazy sweaty in those things. Knowing that, if you still dream to be one of Wayne's backup dancers, the good news is it's not about luck anymore. The Flaming Lips are now accepting applications to dance at the band's New Year's Eve show in LA with Gnarls Barkley.
It's a DANCE OFF!
Here's what you need to do:
* If you don't already own the new Flaming Lips album At War With The Mystics, go buy it, or any of their other wonderful albums, or download them from iTunes or your favorite digital retailer.
* Make a video of yourself dancing to your favorite Flaming Lips song or whatever you think will compell the Lips to choose you. (Please limit this to around three minutes.)
* Join the Flaming Lips Dance Contest Group http://youtube.com/group/flaminglips and upload your video, making sure to tag it with Flaming Lips NYE Dance Contest.
* Visit http://www.flaminglips.com/youtube_contest.php and submit an entry form (or else you'll be disqualified!).
* Cross your antennea and pray you win.
Mr. Coyne:
I thought maybe the dancers were paid serious money, but apparently they are not. You don't even get to choose which costume you get to wear. Here's what you do get:
Grand Prize is:
- Two tickets to the Flaming Lips (and Gnarls Barkley) show Dec. 31 at the USC Galen Center, Los Angeles, CA. (We won't make you go alone!)
- Space on stage w/ the lips to dance!!
Please note: no transportation or hotel accomodations will be provided. You need to get yourself to the show.
The contest deadline is December 24th, and the winner will be notified December 26th. The winner's guest also gets to dance on stage too. Here are the official rules.
I lied...I really do want to dance on stage in those costumes.
Yoko Ono: Yes, I'm a Witch
Here's an easy way to make an album, and one that will sell. The only caveat is that you need a back catalogue and a name that was made famous by your incredibly legendary husband. Ok, two caveats.
That was step one. Step two is you offer up said back catalogue to incredibly talented and hot, young artists, and ask them to rework one of your songs, and you provide them with the original vocal track.
Done. Well, then you have to release it in February on Astralwerks.
That's the Yoko Ono guide to getting your name back in to the hearts of the youth.
When Yoko picked up the phone she called Jason Pierce (of Spiritualized), The Flaming Lips, Cat Power, Antony (from Antony and the Johnsons), Polyphonic Spree, Peaches, Le Tigre... you get the idea. The results are Yes, I'm a Witch an album that walks the line of remixes, duets, and covers. It's like a venn diagram in a CD. The artists were offered the background music as well, but apparently almost all just took the vocals and reworked the supporting music. Go figure.
Oh, Yoko. You got an awesome rolodex.
01 Hank Shocklee: "Witch Shocktronica Intro"
02 Peaches: "Kiss Kiss Kiss"
03 Shitake Monkey: "O'Oh"
04 Blow Up: "Everyman...Everywoman"
05 Le Tigre: "Sisters O Sisters"
06 Porcupine Tree: "Death of Samantha"
07 DJ Spooky: "Rising"
08 Apples in Stereo: "No One Can See Me Like You Do"
09 The Brother Brothers: "Yes I'm a Witch"
10 Cat Power: "Revelations"
11 Polyphonic Spree: "You and I"
12 Jason Pierce (Spiritualized): "Walking on Thin Ice"
13 Antony and Hahn Rowe: "Toy Boat"
14 The Flaming Lips: "Cambridge 1969/2007"
15 The Sleepy Jackson: "I'm Moving On"
16 Hank Shocklee: "Witch Shocktronica Outro"
17 Craig Armstrong: "Shiranakatta (I Didn't Know)"
Still Got It
New B-sides from The Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips will be releasing their third single from their latest At War with the Mystics. The single "It Overtakes Me" disc will include three new tracks when it is released November 13th.
The EP will contain a collaboration between the band and singer-songwriter Steve Burns titled "Time Travel." Another addition will be "Crazy in Tikrit." The third new track will be the Albino New Wave Mix No 12 of Mystics' track "Free Radicals."
The group is currently on the road supportin Mystics with a few UK and Irish dates lined up for November.
10-29 New Orleans, LA - Voodoo Island/City Park
11-04 Brighton, UK - Brighton Centre
11-05 Bournemouth, UK - BIC
11-06 Manchester, UK - Apollo
11-08 Blackpool, UK - Empress Ballroom
11-09 Birmingham, UK - National Indoor Arena
11-10 Glasgow, UK - SECC
11-13 London, UK - Hammesrmith Apollo
11-14 London, UK - Hammersmith Apollo
11-18 Dublin, Ireland - Vicar Street
11-19 Dublin, Ireland - Vicar Street
Singer, Wayne Coyne, recently visited the studios of children's favorite Pancake Mountain where he participated in a duet with Rufus the puppet in their rendition of the Jefferson Starship classic "We Built This City." Enjoy.
Flaming Lips and Goldfrapp enter the Collaboratory
Collaborations are bullshit!
The Flaming Lips and Goldfrapp got in the mood this summer to do a little you scratch my back I'll scratch yours action. The result is two remixes.
Remixes are bullshit too. It's all about the mash up now.
First, Flaming Lips took Goldfrapp's "Satin Chic" and gave it the full treatment. Wayne Coyne, Lips frontman and all around incredible visionary said:
I believe we veered towards a Nina Simone meets Radiohead kind of mood. It was truly a joy to experiment with her lovely voice.
I'm not much of a matchmaker, but I'm not sure Nina and RH were meant to meet. I think after Thom busted out the laptop, Nina might have asked, "What are you doing, whiteboy?"
Anyway, the song will be available for download August 14th, and hitting turntables September 4th.
Goldfrapp is just as enthralled with the Lips. Ali G. had this to say to NME:
"I've got this big thing about The Flaming Lips at the moment,"
said Alison Goldfrapp of the collaboration. "I mean, who hasn't? I met Wayne Coyne last year and he was utterly charming of course, and their show was amazing. It's an exhilarating combination of the magical and the resolutely rinky-dink home made. I just loved it."
Goldfrapp remixed the Lips' latest single "The W.A.N.D." in what's being described as a "maypole-friendly mix" (NME's words). Phallic loving circle dancers rejoice, your time has come! The remix was released this week.
Photo Location
Flaming Lips Frontman Spits Fire at Ashcroft
Look, if Wayne Coyne, of The Flaming Lips, tells me to kick Richard Ashcroft's ass, I might do it. He didn't give the greenlight or anything, but he definitely took things to def con 4 today when he went on the record calling the former Verve star, "a pompous dick."
This is from the guy who has giant panda bears and huge smiling suns dancing to his music while he looks on happier than a 4 year old who has just gotten a goddamn Dora the Explorer backpack. What the fuck is up with those backpacks?
In a recent article Yahoo! Music spoke on the trouble feelings Wayne had toward Ashcroft:
In a new interview, Wayne Coyne suggests Ashcroft recently pulled out of an appearance on Top Of The Pops because he "sensed a punch-up backstage" with his band.
Coyne claims "a lot of people would have jumped in and helped" had he come to blows with Ashcroft, who he says is a "worthless twat."
Hear that Richie? You could have a posse of plushies on your ass if you don't step off. That's no way to go, dude.
Wayne might be talking this trash due to an event last week where Ashcroft had a few too many and decided he might be just the guy to help his local youth group. Read it.
Wayne had heard of Ashcroft's recent change of heart, but might be a little fed up:
The Flaming Lips singer told the British music paper NME this week: "People I know who've run into him recently say that he's kinder than he used to be, but from my own experience, yes, he is a pompous dick. I don't really believe in karma, but he does go out of his way sometimes to act as if he's the only person on the planet who matters."
But according to Coyne, the pompous dick can write a tune!:
"And I love some of his songs! That's the power of music--great songs can be made by such a worthless twat."
Gotta love the power of music.
Coyne vs. Ashcroft! Weigh in, who's side are you on?