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This Alternative-Rock band was formed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma USA,
in 1983 by guitarist Wayne Coyne, his younger brother, Mark on vocals
and bassist Michael Ivins; they made a four song demo tape and got work
on a transvestite club in their hometown, called the Blue Note. The following
year Richard English was added as the band's permanent drummer.
Their very first record, entitled simply, "The Flaming Lips"
was self-released in February 1985, they continued to play gigs in venues
all around the region and just a year later Wayne Coyne took over the
vocal duties after his brother left the band to get married.
The trio was signed to Restless Records who released their official debut
album, "Hear It Is", in 1986.
"Oh My Gawd!!!" followed a year later; by this time, the band
were building themselves a formidable reputation as a live act; they eventually
toured with The Butthole Surfers and also began collaborating with guitarist
Jonathan 'Dingus' Donahue.
In 1989 the group released "Telepathic Surgery", but the working
relationship between the two former members started to deteriorate and
English decided to quit the band.
The Flaming Lips decided to soldier on with a new drummer, Nathan Roberts,
resulting in 1990's "In A Priest Driven Ambulance", an album
recorded over a longer time than previous efforts and the first effort
to feature Donahue as a full member.
After being signed by Warner Bros. the quartet had carved out the band's
fifth LP, "Hit To Death In The Future Head", which was released
in August 1992, but shortly after the completion of the album both Roberts
and Donahue quit the group; once more, as in 1988, The Flaming Lips had
a new record and were without a complete band to tour it.
It was then that Coyne and Ivins were joined by second guitarist Ronald
Jones and drummer Steven Drozd; the new unit hit the road, touring incessantly,
but with little attention or sales in the face of the burgeoning Grunge
hype. In mid-1993 the newly revamped Lips released "Transmissions
From The Satellite Heart"; the band had been on the road for almost
a solid year and were beginning to worry about their future once more,
when salvation unexpectedly arrived. An Oklahoman Top 40 Radio station
started to play "She Don't Use Jelly" which later hit the top
10 of The Modern Rock Tracks chart and also reached #55 on The Billboard
Hot 100, they then did some more touring, including support slots with
The Red Hot Chili Peppers
and Candlebox with the album eventually
peaking at #1 on the Billboard's Top Heatseekers list and reaching the
#108 spot on The Billboard 200 Sales chart.
At this point, during the summer of 1995, the band retreated to Chicago
to work on their next record; "Clouds Taste Metallic" was released
later that year, in September, to great critical acclaim but mediocre
sales; a year of shows followed, taking in most corners of the globe,
before some final festival dates around Europe. Final proved the operative
word, as the summer of 1996 was the last time The Flaming Lips performed
as a four-piece. Then came a series of wrenching setbacks: Ronald Jones
quit, Ivins crashed in a car and nearly died and Drozd was severely poisoned
by a spider bite.
The Flaming Lips resurfaced in October 1997 with their highly experimental
set "Zaireeka" which came on four discs to be played simultaneously
on four CD players.
Released in the early summer of 1999, "The Soft Bulletin" had
evolved over the best part of two years and was a record born of turmoil;
the album was a massive critical success and the sales were sufficient
to justify the large amounts of money Warners had supplied for it to be
made.
After a three-year break that included soundtrack work and experimental
recording projects, the Lips' re-emergence in the summer of 2002 was met
with great anticipation; the band delivered "Yoshimi Battles The
Pink Robots", an album that peaked at #50 on The Billboard Top 200
chart; during the autumn, they acted as backing band for Beck
on his "Sea Change" tour and their “conventional”
ninth LP found them at the peak of their craft and success; to prove it,
they won a Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance for "Approaching
Pavonis Mons By Balloon".
In April 2006 The Flaming Lips returned with a new full-length CD , "At
War With The Mystics", which features the singles, "The W.A.N.D."
and "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song... (With All Your Power)".
The Flaming Lips biography is an exclusive of 100xr.com
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