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For once, people should believe the hype- this album is fantastic. It is quintessential Flaming Lips, managing to marry Pink Floyd type psychedelia and musicality (in places, it sounds like "Dark Side" rewritten for the 21st century) with (I know this sounds a sin for music snobs) catchy and beautiful pop/rock, which would make Coldplay jeolous. The usual themes and styles are all here- simple lyrics about life/death married with lavish production, combining to create an album of incredible warmth and beauty and one which (despite the cliche) really does reward repeated listening. Most people will be blown away on first listen by the more instant tracks, such as "Yeah Yeah Yeah Song", "Free Radicals" and "the WAND" but, after a few listens, it is the less obvious songs like "My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion" and "Pompeii" that really strike a chord. I have seen a number of reviews in which this album is compared unfavouarbly with the two that preceded it- Soft Bulletin and Yoshimi. For me, "Mystics" is more organic and warm than Yoshimi (the critics who complain about the indulgence of "The Wizard Turns On" here seem to have forgotten all about "Yoshimi Part 2" and seem to think that the last album consisted of 11 tracks all like "Do You Realise?") and, whilst I would agree that it is not as great as "The Soft Bulletin" (which, incidentally, is available from Amazon for less than a fiver, an absolute steal), that is an unfavourable comparison only in the sense that "Sgt Peppers..." is not as good as "Revolver". Furthermore, whilst I would agree that it is not the most immediate of albums, you have to ask yourself whether a great album is one that you can get into straight away; after all, on that test, "OK Computer" and "Nevermind" lag- for me, at least- well behind "Back to Bedlam" and "Hopes and Fears" and I know which albums are more likely to stand the test of timeRead full review
I've always had a soft spot for bands who are a little bit different. The Flaming Lips come under that category. At War With The Mystics is on a par with their classic albums Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots and The Soft Bulletin. They mix psychedelic sounds with classic pop hooks from heaven. The singles The W.A.N.D. and The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song are great examples of this. Be warned though, it will take a few listens to get it if you are not used to The Lips and their other worldly sounds !
I love it. great tunes. I heard one of the songs from the new becks advert and thought it was pretty cool so searched for the title on a website listing all advert songs. Found the album name, looked on ebay and some nice person was selling a copy. job done.
This is a cool album, no two ways. The branding of alternative is so broad in the music industry these days. The Flaming Lips grab it by the Balls: spot on. Their sound is reminiscent of the '60 and '70s, while tracks such as Mr. Ambulance Driver give it a modern footing. Truthfully, I bought this album for one song, "it overtakes me," which is well known as the Beck's beer "four steps" music. But when you sit down and listen to the song fully, your hit by their genre spanning ability. The transistion at the end of the song, at first, I found not my cup of tea. But its grown on me. This is a album I'd recommend, but only to a friend with a sightly advanced musical taste. It just depends how alternative you really are.
The album continues the trilogy from The Soft Bulletin to Yoshimi... to this. It is an amazing record that will grace any record collection. Put simply, a must buy.
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