THE FLAMING LIPS Oczy Mlody
( Warner Bros )
For some Flaming Lips fans , this will forever be the album most associated with the band ’ s collaboration with pop star Miley Cyrus , the album they released after serving as her backup band for her tour the previous year . “ We A Family ,” the last track on their latest effort ( the 14th album since 1986 ), features Cyrus on backing vocals on one of the most upbeat and optimistic tracks of the 12 . Singer Wayne Coyne , vocals heavily distorted , sings amid chirpy synth effects and overfuzzed beats , eventually letting Cyrus take over singing duties , ending with the repetitive and saccharine chorus “ we a family ... we a family .” The majority of the other tracks are slower tempo drugthemed explorations , arranged mostly with layers of electronic instrumentation ( long gone are the days of the Lips ’ analogue art punk sound ). Some song titles are more interesting than the songs themselves – “ Listening to the Frogs with Demon Eyes ,” for example – with “ How ??” and “ The Castle ” representing the band ’ s best songwriting efforts . “ One Night While Hunting for Faeries and Witches and Wizards to Kill ” is interesting for its layered percussion ( from taps to distorted kettle drums ) backed by cricket and frog night noises . It ’ s an enchanting backdrop for Coyne ’ s languid vocal delivery as he weaves his psychedelic tale . But that ’ s balanced by the more pretentious “ There Should Be Unicorns ,” featuring guest vocalist Reggie Watts lecturing listeners in a pseudo-intellectual hippie persona “... And we will be high and the love generator will be turned up to its maximum . And we ’ ll get higher , when at last , the sun comes up in the morning and we will collapse under the weight of the ancient earth ... And it will be the end of
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the world and the beginning of a new love .” It ’ s a little much , but the Lips were never about moderation .
--Jason Scales Appearing 4 / 17 at The Riviera Theatre ,
Chicago
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FRANK ZAPPA & THE MOTHERS OF INVENTION We ’ re Only In It for the Money , Lumpy Gravy Ruben and the Jets ( Vinyl Reissues ) ( Zappa Records / Ume )
Songs from The Mothers of Invention ’ s We ’ re Only In It for the Money , including “ Who Needs the Peace Corps ” find Frank Zappa taking merciless aim at 1968 San Francisco and hippie culture . In “ Flower Punk ,” Zappa sings , “ Hey , punk , where you going with that button on your shirt ?” His slacker target replies , “ I ’ m going to a love-in to sit and play my bongos in the dirt .” The album cover mimics The Beatles ’ Sgt . Pepper ’ s Lonely Hearts Club Band from the prior summer . The musical content does the same , with trippy sonics that still sound far-out today . A voice whispers secret asides into the studio control room microphone about erasing the album masters , knowing that Frank can probably hear him . Along with jazz , rock and satire about hippie kids dropping out and police violence , you ’ ll hear backward passages , sped-up vocals , psychedelic echoes and sound collage . Like other current Zappa Records / UMe reissues , the album is pressed on heavyweight vinyl and arrives in a reproduction gatefold sleeve . Inside , Zappa asks , “ Is this phase one of Lumpy Gravy ?”
The artwork for 1968 ’ s Lumpy Gravy depicts Zappa asking , “ Is this phase two of We ’ re Only In It for the Money ?” Credited to Zappa solo , the album was originally released in 1967 , but was reedited and reissued in 1968 following a record label dispute . Zappa composes and conducts a large group including orchestral players and Wrecking Crew guitarist Tommy Tedesco , but does not perform himself . The two sidelong pieces mix flowing melody , unhinged passages of musique concrète , surf , sped-up and cinematic orchestral music , Dixieland , psychedelia and spoken word . Avant garde composer John Cage is a major influence , and some passages draw comparison to Alfred Hitchcock soundtrack composer
Bernard Herrmann .
Like the two preceding albums , The Mothers of Invention ’ s 1968 album Cruising with Ruben and the Jets was part of Zappa ’ s No Commercial Potential project that concluded with Uncle Meat ( reviewed in IE ’ s Jan . 2017 issue ). Of the set , Ruben ’ s concept album about a fictional doo-wop band is the most easily digestible musically , but is no less twisted in its own way . “ This is an album of greasy love songs and cretin simplicity ,” state the liner notes . After listening to the challenging and progressive material of the prior two records , it ’ s hard to take the straightforward pop of “ Love of My Life ” or the combination of Ray Collins ’ crooning falsetto and Ian Underwood ’ s pedestrian piano on “ Anything ” at face value . Nonetheless , the liner notes continue reassuringly , “ We made it because we really like this kind of music .” The lyrics to single “ Deseri ” and b- side “ Jelly Roll Gum Drop ” include some truly sophomoric rhymes , suiting Zappa ’ s attempt to produce the most banal love song lyrics imaginable . “ I ’ m Not Satisfied ” is one of four songs from the Mothers ’ debut Freak Out ! to be rearranged for the doo-wop concept . Package inserts include helpful instructions for dance steps and setting the jellyroll hairstyle .
We ' re Only In it For The Money 9 Lumpy Gravy 9 Ruben & The Jets 6
- Jeff Elbel
RUSH Time Stand Still ( DVD Reissue ) ( UME )
The 2010 documentary Beyond the Lighted Stage revealed the Rush that diehard fans knew . Music fans at large were familiar with the Canadian prog-rock titans ’ well-earned reputation as meticulous musicians , heard on technical-yetcatchy showpieces like “ Tom Sawyer .” Behind the technique , however , was a band of brothers sharing devotion , laughs and offering the support of true family during dark days . If a band of peers like the Police could barely survive nine years in the limelight together , how had these guys managed 35 ?
That perspective makes the new Time Stand Still all the more poignant . Five years later , the hard-touring trio haven ’ t called it quits , but have decided to park the buses for good . With scant radio presence for much of its career , Rush built its formidable reputation one show at a time . Time Stand Still captures the band throughout 2015 ’ s R40 tour , a retrospective powerhouse that traveled backward through time . The set list begins with “ The Anarchist ” from
2012 ’ s exceptional Clockwork Angels and ends with 1974 ’ s “ Working Man .”
The film depicts the nervous work of preparation as the tour begins and builds inexorably toward the final show at the Los Angeles Forum . Interview clips illustrate the range of perspectives within the band . Bassist Geddy Lee is driven by his music and stage work , and would clearly continue indefinitely . Good-spirited guitarist Alex Lifeson is enthusiastic , eager to make one more triumphant trip even as he stares down arthritis ’ threat to his craft . Drummer Neil Peart is proud of the band ’ s accomplishments and wants to cap its touring legacy while he remains in fighting shape . He ’ s also eager to retire from the road for more time with his second shot at family , after losing his first one to tragedy in the ‘ 90s .
The musicians crack each other up with stories about the early days , including backstage hijinks with guitarist Ace Frehley while opening for Kiss . They also profess admiration for crew members , many of whom have supported the band for decades . Another angle is the perspective of the trio ’ s intensely devoted fans . Many in the film count off Rush shows in the hundreds . Some are shown passing the torch to children and grandchildren , alongside inspiring stories of Rush music as an inspirational force in the face of trials .
The final moments of the Forum show are touching , as Peart breaks personal tradition to embrace his bandmates joyfully before the crowd at the end of the show . The drummer has a longstanding reputation for shyness and desire to protect his personal space . Recent concert films like Time Machine 2011 and Clockwork Angels Tour conclude with Peart ’ s hearty wave behind the kit followed by a headlong sprint off stage and out of the venue . “ What a surprise ,” says a visibly emotional Lee , as the three smile and wave to their adoring fans one last time .
I Love You , Man actor and longtime Rush fan Paul Rudd narrates . Bonus content includes more than an hour of footage supporting 1989 ’ s Presto , with songs like “ Superconductor ” and “ Scars ” that were rarely played afterward .
- Jeff Elbel
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THE XX I See You
( Young Turks )
Kudos to the PR team behind The xx , when the spotlight was dim , and no other important artists dared to release their albums in the dead of winter , I See You emerged as a shining light in the darkness of Brexit and the Orange Menace .
Like flawed skin under the magnification of hi-def though , the flawless xx have blemishes . Perhaps it ' s a skin breakout due
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