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
Knives Out
The Flaming Lips Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He's not coming back
Look into my eyes
He's not coming back
So knives out
Catch the mouse
Throw it down
If you'd been a dog
You're the only one who drowned at birth
Look into my eyes
It's the only way I wanna tell the truth
So knives out
Catch the mouse
Thrown it down
Shove it in your mouth
The lyrics to The Flaming Lips's song Knives Out present a sense of madness and frustration. The repeated phrase of "He's not coming back" implies a sense of loss and abandonment, perhaps by a lover or friend. The singer of the song is so haunted by this loss that they resort to an act of violence and savagery, telling the listener to "catch the mouse...shove it in your mouth". This could be interpreted as a metaphor for taking control of one's own pain and anger, rather than letting it consume them. In the second verse, the lyrics take a darker turn, suggesting that if the singer's listener had been a dog, they would have "drowned at birth". This may suggest that the singer is struggling with nihilistic thoughts and sees the world and beings in it as disposable.
Overall, the lyrics to Knives Out are both visceral and abstract, leaving interpretation open to the listener. The chorus calls to "throw down" the mouse, suggesting a desire for control and a willingness to let the insanity take over. The final line of the second verse, "It's the only way I wanna tell the truth", implies that the singer has a hard time being truthful with themselves and others, and perhaps this violent imagery is their way of confessing their inner turmoil.
Line by Line Meaning
I want you to know
I feel the need to tell you something
He's not coming back
The person we're talking about will not return
Look into my eyes
Pay attention and listen to what I'm saying
He's not coming back
The person we're talking about will not return
So knives out
Get ready for a fight or confrontation
Catch the mouse
Identify the problem or issue at hand
Throw it down
Confront the problem or issue head-on
Shove it in your mouth
Deal with the consequences and take responsibility for your actions
If you'd been a dog
If you were in a different situation
You're the only one who drowned at birth
You were the only one who didn't survive the difficult circumstances
Look into my eyes
Pay attention and listen to what I'm saying
It's the only way I wanna tell the truth
I need to be honest with you, but this is the only way I know how
So knives out
Get ready for a fight or confrontation
Catch the mouse
Identify the problem or issue at hand
Thrown it down
Confront the problem or issue head-on
Shove it in your mouth
Deal with the consequences and take responsibility for your actions
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Colin Charles Greenwood, Edward John O'Brien, Jonathan Richard Guy Greenwood, Philip James Selway, Thomas Edward Yorke
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
HEDROVER
I love covers that don't try to sound exactly like the original. It freshens it up and brings something new to the table.
Graham May
Music to my ears!! ...I'd be super thrilled if you'd have a listen to my Thom Yorke tribute EP....
Listen to Thom Yorke 50th birthday tribute EP by Loci on #SoundCloud
https://soundcloud.com/loci-8/sets/thom-yorke-50th-birthday
Regina Arelio
I love Radiohead & I love The Flaming Lips... Nothing to say!!
jose campos
A mi tambien me encantan. Aunque mi banda son los Flaming Lips.
TL Bombsquad
Me too
Clif 'couch' Wilfong
Regina Arelio
QOTSARadio
this just prooves how difficult the radiohead songs are to sing live. Makes me forgive Yorke for his misstakes sometimes :)
carolineroyce
Sweet cover. Gives the song a whole new feel while still sounding unmistakably like Radiohead.
Teodor Kjell
Wayne Coyne's voice. Lovingly terrible. <3
Ir Ene
La verdad el cambio entre esta versión y la original no fue muy drástico, por allá atrás suena una guitarra eléctrica...