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
Headache
The Flaming Lips Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On the ground
No, it never takes you very long [Repeat: x2]
Sometimes I come home and there's a monkey
's puttin' down
He's makin' love to the hole in my head [Repeat: x2]
The Flaming Lips's song "The Magician Vs. The Headache" is a complex and enigmatic narrative about the internal struggles of the human psyche. The opening line "Sermon's over, but can you feel it now?" captures the sense of isolation and uncertainty that the singer feels after experiencing a moment of spiritual reflection. The reference to "On the ground" implies a sense of being weighed down by the burdens of life, and the repetition of "No, it never takes you very long" adds to the sense of hopelessness and despair.
The second half of the song introduces a surreal and disturbing image of a monkey making love to a hole in the singer's head. This bizarre metaphor symbolizes the ways in which our internal struggles and conflicts can manifest themselves outwardly, creating a sense of chaos and confusion in our lives. The repetition of this image underscores the persistence of the singer's inner turmoil and the difficulty of finding a way to resolve it.
Line by Line Meaning
Sermon's over, but can you feel it now?
The time for preaching has ended, but are you experiencing the emotions associated with it?
On the ground
Literally or figuratively, the singer is currently situated on the ground.
No, it never takes you very long [Repeat: x2]
The singer implies that something they are referencing could happen quickly or easily, though it is unclear what that thing is specifically.
Sometimes I come home and there's a monkey
At times, the artist returns to their place of residence only to find a monkey present.
's puttin' down
The monkey is engaging in some form of activity.
He's makin' love to the hole in my head [Repeat: x2]
The monkey is engaging in sexual activity with a hole in the singer's head, which may be interpreted literally or figuratively.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JONATHAN DONAHUE, MICHAEL IVINS, WAYNE COYNE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Firguy the Foot Fetishist from 4chan
Grunge is just neutered noise pop. Clouds Taste Metallic runs circles around Nirvana's Nevermind and I also love how unapologetically upbeat, cheerful, and quirky it is in comparison the shameless wallowing in drug abuse and self-pity that permeates Kurt Cobain's music.
Distortion Dude
ok, wiseguy
Fenn Glordd
Yep, lo-fi Scooby-Doo dirtier than grunge lands cleaner. Knew what they were doing and it shows.
TheMAKeleven
One of my favorites from this album.
mwilliams333
only 300 views??? I can't believe that even though their newer stuff is relatively well known that this album is still so underground.
CavsterXII
How's the last 11 years been?
javajoelovesyou
Great song and album!!!
MiuNya
once they are not high anymore after writing this song, do they not play back this song and think.......... wtf.. did we just create...
mstech1
f--kin' love this song! best song on the album--except kim's watermelon gun--i think--there's prob others on there i like a lot too---screw it i love the entire album there i said it! flaming lips--cut another one as good as this one dang it!
paul wright
Definately my Fav Flips album.My Fav track,thats easy,its the one i happen to be listening to,at the time.