The Flaming Lips are known for their lush, multi-layered arrangements, spacey lyrics and bizarre song titles. They are also acclaimed for their elaborate live shows, which typically feature animal suits, puppets, streamers, video projections and complex stage light configurations.
In 2002, Q magazine named The Flaming Lips one of the "50 Bands to See Before You Die". In 2006, Oklahoma City named a street Flaming Lips Alley in their honor.
The group recorded several albums and EPs for Restless Records in the 1980s and early 1990s. After signing to Warner Brothers, they scored a #9 hit on the Billboard Alternative charts (and #55 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart) in 1994 with "She Don't Use Jelly". Although it would be their only hit single, the band has maintained critical respect and, to a lesser extent, commercial viability with sonically majestic albums such as 1995's Clouds Taste Metallic, 1999's The Soft Bulletin, 2002's Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and 2006's At War with the Mystics. The Flaming Lips' 12th studio album, Embryonic, was released in October of 2009. A complete cover of Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon was released in May 2010. The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends, their collaborative album which features artists like Ke$ha, Bon Iver, Nick Cave and Erykah Badu, was released on Record Store Day, April 2012.
Their next studio album, tentatively titled The Terror, will be released in January 2013.
Their song "Do You Realize??" is the official State Rock Song of Oklahoma.
www.flaminglips.com
8. Suddenly Everything Has Changed
The Flaming Lips Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That you bought at the grocery store today
And it goes fast
You think of the past
Suddenly everything has changed
Driving home the sky accelerates
And it goes fast
You think of the past
Suddenly everything has changed
Putting all the clothes you washed away
As you're folding up the shirts you hesitate
Then it goes fast
Think of the past
Suddenly everything has changed
The song "Suddenly Everything Has Changed" by The Flaming Lips is a contemplative piece about the fleeting nature of life and how easily things can change. It opens with the image of someone putting away vegetables they just bought at the grocery store before reflecting on the passage of time and the memories of the past. The next verse sees the singer driving home and observing the sky, which seems to be moving faster than usual, and seeing the clouds form a geometric shape. This triggers a rush of memories from the past, highlighting the idea of how quickly things can change.
The final verse sees the singer folding clothes and hesitating as they do so, once again reflecting on how fleeting and transitory life can feel. The repetition of the phrase "Suddenly everything has changed" throughout the song reinforces the idea that at any moment, everything can shift and change in unexpected ways. The overall message of the song seems to be one of mindfulness and an awareness of the present moment, as well as a sense of appreciation for the moments we have while we have them.
Line by Line Meaning
Putting all the vegetables away
Finishing a task that you just completed
That you bought at the grocery store today
Items you recently purchased
And it goes fast
Time seems to fly by
You think of the past
Reflecting on memories and experiences
Suddenly everything has changed
A sudden shift or realization
Driving home the sky accelerates
Feeling like time is speeding up
And the clouds all form a geometric shape
Seeing patterns in the world around you
Putting all the clothes you washed away
Completing household chores
As you're folding up the shirts you hesitate
Pausing to reflect on something mundane
Think of the past
Nostalgia for earlier times
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MICHAEL IVINS, STEVEN DROZD, WAYNE COYNE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Anarre
This song really speaks to me. Most people live their life day to day and don't really think about the little changes that happen on a day to day basis. Even large changes will eventually just become another thing that you don't really think about.
At some point though you'll be doing some mundane task and your mind will start to wander. Sometimes that means thinking about the past and realizing holy shit, everything is so different from what it used to be, I'm different from who I used to be. Even that realization becomes just another memory until you reflect even later after more changes accumulate.
It's a really powerful feeling and this song triggers it in me each time I hear it.
Vectif
Incredible comment, and very true aswell. I coincidentially came here from sampling & working on a song using The Postal Service's version when I coincidentially came across this one, and it's honestly incredible on it's own itself. I can very much relate to the comment you've made almost everytime I look back at something, whether it's places I've been, people I hung out with, or my art and music, looking back at the progress or changes I've made, or the ideas and mentalities I had, my personality and way of being, my life overall, a very true feeling indeed, daydreaming, wandering off, drifting...
Toa Matau
Same feeling as "Once in a Lifetime".
AbusiveAntitheist
The lyrics "suddenly everything has changed" didn't necessarily have any meaning to me other than the basic concept, until ive experienced many moments in my life where out of nowhere everything changes, and when I say suddenly I mean pretty much instantaneously. Then the lyrics became pretty powerful in how I can relate it to my life.
Justin Law
yea doot
lyonslaforet
Soft Bulletin = one of the greatest albums released in 1999.
Simon James
lyonslaforet ever*
Kayla Palmieri
I love The Flamming Lips. Their style is simple, true, and always chill. It's like kids music for adults😊.
jesusluvincognito
Kayla Palmieri thats a little insulting their music is actually extremely complex it just sounds simpl4
Rebecca Steuwer
She literally said right there...simple, true, and chill