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Why aren't The Flaming Lips on prog archives?

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scouser14 View Drop Down
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    Posted: July 27 2023 at 20:37
With albums like Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (especially) and their 2020 album 'American Head' - not to mention an entire reworking of Dark Side Of The Moon, surely the band deserve the honour of being listed in prog archives? They're brilliantly creative and I would suggest many of their tracks are prog/psych - or at the very least prog related.

Thoughts? 


Edited by scouser14 - July 27 2023 at 20:47
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Hrychu Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 27 2023 at 20:38
Because they're not really prog? I dunno.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote scouser14 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 27 2023 at 20:59
When I see bands such as Talking Heads, Muse, Radiohead, Be Bop Deluxe, Talk Talk etc. etc. listed, I think... surely the Flaming Lips deserve their spot? I'd argue that they're more 'prog related' than most of the aforementioned and about on a prog-par with Radiohead. 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote siLLy puPPy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 27 2023 at 21:18
If i remember right i think someone suggested a few years back but i'm not sure what happened to it. Obviously it didn't lead to them being included. Tags on RYM do include progressive pop on many of their newer albums. I agree that they definitely were out of the box thinkers but i think most consider them a form of chamber pop, dream pop and neo-psychedelia without enough prog elements or prog connections to warrant inclusion. That's just my take. I do like their albums since their early noise rock stage.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Necrotica Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 27 2023 at 21:33
Originally posted by siLLy puPPy siLLy puPPy wrote:

If i remember right i think someone suggested a few years back but i'm not sure what happened to it. Obviously it didn't lead to them being included. Tags on RYM do include progressive pop on many of their newer albums. I agree that they definitely were out of the box thinkers but i think most consider them a form of chamber pop, dream pop and neo-psychedelia without enough prog elements or prog connections to warrant inclusion. That's just my take. I do like their albums since their early noise rock stage.

Pretty much, yeah.

They occupy a similar space to Melody's Echo Chamber, in which - yes - there's a lot of psych and neo-psych in the sound, but there's just often just as much of a pop and indie sensibility, as well as an alt-rock slant. Still, great band! Smile

Edit: granted, Melody's Echo Chamber doesn't do the noise rock stuff, but yeah LOL


Edited by Necrotica - July 27 2023 at 21:34
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote richardh Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 27 2023 at 22:04
There are a lot of bands that are not on PA that could be and a lot that probably shouldn't be. It's often down to the whims of the admin team quite honestly and not an exact science. Growing up in the seventies ''Prog' was ELP, Yes and Genesis of the most popular bands but now it's just a whole bunch of stuff. Stick around and you can enjoy the endless discussions about what is prog and what isn't. It's often hilarious and not at all illuminating!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Manuel Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 28 2023 at 06:18
I guess it's up to the administrtors of this site to include them or not, as well as any other band. I'm not really familiar with their music, so I don't think I can have a complete, educated and honest opinion.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Nogbad_The_Bad Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 28 2023 at 06:41
Looks like they were reviewed by Crossover and Psyche back in '09 & '10 and got moved to Related. I can't find any discussion of them there. I don't think there's any reason why we couldn't review them again.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Psychedelic Paul Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 28 2023 at 07:31
The closely-related band Mercury Rev are listed here under Prog Related, so it seems only right and proper that The Flaming Lips should be included here too. The two bands even share some of the same members and they also have the same producer, so let's hope Yoshimi will soon be battling the pink robots on ProgArchives too. Smile
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote siLLy puPPy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 28 2023 at 08:23
^ true but the argument is that bands like Mercury Rev and similar acts SHOULDN'T BE HERE in the first place. With so many truly progressive rock bands in the world of yore and present, i tend to agree that these types of bands aren't prog related enough by modern standards.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote bardberic Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 28 2023 at 18:26
Quirky and unorthodox, sure, but I don't think prog is the correct way to describe them...

Although I'm not too familiar with their output, tbf.

Nevertheless if you feel like they should be here, by all means suggest them in the suggestion thread.

Edited by bardberic - July 28 2023 at 18:27
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote chopper Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 29 2023 at 08:20
You can suggest them for inclusion via the Suggest New Bands section of the forum.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote AFlowerKingCrimson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 29 2023 at 11:34
They are more like modern psych or alternative. I don't hear much prog in them.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote dr wu23 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 29 2023 at 11:50
Well......to me they certainly are as 'proggy' as many of the bands that are in Prog Related but as someone said above we already have some questionble entries... so maybe we should be dumping some instead of adding more?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Gordy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 29 2023 at 21:27
The Lips have been a prog-related band since their inception, and became eligible for Prog-Related by The Soft Bulletin and Yoshimi.

2009's Embryonic showed them adopting krautrock elements like never before, and to me is their first full-fledged progressive rock album. Their full-length reinterpretations of Dark Side and Crimson King are fun and show their influences, but in terms of future evaluation one should take note of their material from 2009 and beyond, which includes two kraut/psych-on-steroids tracks which run six-and-24-hours respectively.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote siLLy puPPy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 29 2023 at 21:33
^ i would vote them down. Krautrock itself is often prog related. A lot of it isn't prog at all really. Prog related was never meant to be an all encompassing category. Artists have to have some relationship to the prog world as well as showing some prog characteristics. I've heard numerous albums by the Flamers and although i love a bunch of them, i wouldn't call them prog related really, just super psychedelic at times. All psychedelic rock isn't progressive. As for the comparisons that so many make about other bands on this site, i wouldn't mind seeing some of them deleted honestly. I think the bar for P.R. has been raised since many of those acts were included. Just my opinion. If they do get on the site it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote Saperlipopette! Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 29 2023 at 23:13
Originally posted by Gordy Gordy wrote:

The Lips have been a prog-related band since their inception, and became eligible for Prog-Related by The Soft Bulletin and Yoshimi.

2009's Embryonic showed them adopting krautrock elements like never before, and to me is their first full-fledged progressive rock album.

I've never been the biggest fan really. I've heard various bits from most of their career and they've always been extremely hit or miss for me. Mostly miss actually. But that's got little to no relevance in this context. To my ears TFL got an undeniable progressive edge to the Psychedelic Rock they make on the three albums I've heard by them in full (which is in fact Yoshimi, The Soft Bulletin and Embryonic). My favorite song by them is actually their stunning take on - or interpretation of Grateful Dead's live epic Dark Star. My only complaint is that it should have lasted much longer:


Admittedly I only listened to about one out of the thirty hours of "kraut/psych-on-steroids tracks" (which I was previously completly unaware of). What I've heard so far was progressive on another level than I already knew by them + quite intriguing and really awesome. I listened the most to the six hour long track though. If their earlier discography isn't enough (which I think it is), this undoubtly qualifies them for inclusion imo. Not only for Prog Related, but for Psychedelic/Space Rock - their natural place on PA... Actually skratch the imo part: Having heard 1/6th of Strobo Trip alone (I'm currently at 1:14, as I've been actively listening while I'm writing. Still amazing) objectively qualifies them for PA.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote zeb1981 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 25 2023 at 06:25
they are prog
their side project electric wurms (steven and wayne)
even did a cover of "Heart of the Sunrise"

They covered the entire Court of the Crimson King, Dark Side of the Moon

and, c`mon isnt these albums more prog than 90% Inside Out/ K-Scope Bands:
Embryonic, The Terror, Zaireeka, Soft Bulletin, Yoshimi, American Head, Oszy Mlody, Kings Mouth, Clouds Taste Metallic ect ect ect ?!?!?!?

Seems the Americans can deceide what is or what is not prog
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote suitkees Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 25 2023 at 10:24
Always liked what I've heard of The Flaming Lips, but I've never associated them with prog rock. I'd catalog them under indie rock or pop rock, with some psychedelic influences. However, I may not know them good enough, so I'm on a learning curve. But the arguments that they are prog have to be better than this:
Originally posted by zeb1981 zeb1981 wrote:

they are prog

This is a statement that you let follow by information that they, or a side project, covered prog music, which - honestly - doesn't say anything about their own music.
Then you state they are more prog than their label stablemates, of which non is present here in the PA database. So, more prog than zero prog doesn't say much either.

I'd be happy to be convinced... For the moment, I'm not.


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Logan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 25 2023 at 10:43
I supported The Flaming Lips for PA after Embryonic came out as I thought that album was appropriate for this site partially due to its Krautrock qualities and I had felt that albums like Zaireeka, The Soft Bulletin, and Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots would not be out of place. I don't know the later material. I would have thought the Psych category, but it has been along time since I listened to the band. I seriously would consider it for Prog Related as long as sufficient Prog connections (not just how it sounds) are spelled out, and that I feel like a reasonable case has been presented that ticks off the Prog related boxes re the subgenre description and CLICK A lot of people have disagreed with the Flaming Lips being in PA over the years and the lack of consensus is a big part of why it is not in. I am more wary when it comes to controversial additions and it is all the more reason for really compelling arguments with lots of details justifying the addition (would want such things in the bio). Compelling arguments do matter for Prog Related and Proto Prog as well as divisive as prog bands generally.
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