The Greatest Show on Earth

Last Thursday the Flaming Lips invaded the Paramount Theater. It was my third opportunity to see them, and every time I’ve been blown away. It’s one of those bands that you really have to be there to appreciate. I know that’s said about a lot of bands/shows/cities. But it’s damn true for the Flaming Lips. The Stranger’s Line Out music blog has some nice pictures from the photo pit.

My first time seeing them was in April 06 in Amsterdam. I had been meaning to see them a long time ago, but it always seemed to fall through. That show more than made up for it. Andrea and I didn’t have tickets to the sold out show, so we went and waited in front of the Paradiso a couple of hours before. Wayne walked by while I was talking to a British fella. He was really friendly and shook our hands while he walked by. Later on, we had procured one ticket, but were still trying to get a second. Another guy came out with an all-access pass on his leg. I asked him if he had any extra tickets. He said he might and that, “someone had put his name on the guest list a couple of extra times.” We talked for 2-3 minutes and he said to wait here and he’d be back in 10 minutes. So we continued our quest for one more ticket at face value. It came through a couple of minutes later. We disappeared into a local pub to get a pint before the show. Turns out, that guy that had a couple of extra tickets was none other than Michael Ivins. While he was outside, he was looking for fans to dress up in santa suits and alien costumes to dance on stage. Upon further inspection, we both realized that other people looking for tickets, like us, were dressed up and getting down on stage. Damn! That would have been a thrill.

I would recommend anybody and everybody with a pulse to see them. It’s just a good fucking time.