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
My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion
The Flaming Lips Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Only a fool believes that he is different from the birds in the sky
All those birds go chasin' some better sunny days
You can't hear them singing 'cause they've all gone away
But this one bird didn't leave you
It stayed through the wintertime
You can't hear it sing but you can hear it as it flies
They'll destroy you with their lies
They only see the obvious
They see the sun go down but they don't see it rise
This one bird didn't leave you
You can hear it as it flies
It's not very loud but you can hear it if you try
So don't you believe them?
Yes it's true someday everything dies
We won't let that defeat us
We can't hear them singing
But we can hear it as it flies
"My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion" is about the cyclical nature of life and the inevitability of death. The lyrics paint a picture of autumn, a season traditionally associated with decay and death, approaching and reminding us that everything around us will eventually die. The song cautions against believing that we are different from the birds in the sky who, like all living creatures, are subject to the laws of nature and must go wherever the seasons take them. The birds in this song have gone away in search of better days, leaving a sense of emptiness and silence in the air.
However, there is one bird that has stayed through the wintertime, a symbol of hope and perseverance. Although it may be difficult to hear its song, it is still flying and fighting to survive. The song suggests that we should not believe those who try to destroy us with their lies and instead focus on the subtle beauty that surrounds us amidst the chaos and uncertainty of life. The final lines of the song remind us that someday everything will die, but that we mustn't let that defeat us. Even in the absence of the birds' singing, we can still appreciate the sound of their wings as they fly overhead.
Line by Line Meaning
The tell us autumn's a comin' and soon everything around us will die
Autumn is approaching and everything around us will die soon
Only a fool believes that he is different from the birds in the sky
It's foolish for one to think they are different from the birds in the sky
All those birds go chasin' some better sunny days
The birds fly away in search of better sunny days
You can't hear them singing 'cause they've all gone away
The birds are silent because they have left
But this one bird didn't leave you
One bird stayed behind
It stayed through the wintertime
The bird stayed even during winter
You can't hear it sing but you can hear it as it flies
The bird cannot be heard singing but it can be heard flying
So don't you believe them?
Don't believe them
They'll destroy you with their lies
They will destroy you with their lies
They only see the obvious
They only see what's obvious
They see the sun go down but they don't see it rise
They see the sunset but not the sunrise
You can hear it as it flies
The bird can be heard while flying
It's not very loud but you can hear it if you try
Although not very loud, the bird can be heard if listened for
Yes it's true someday everything dies
Everything dies someday
We won't let that defeat us
We won't let that bring us down
We can't hear them singing
We can't hear the others singing
But we can hear it as it flies
But we can hear the lone bird flying
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: WAYNE COYNE, STEVEN DROZD, MICHAEL IVINS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@chrisbeerguy1489
“Only a fool believes that he is different from the birds in the sky.”
Sounds a lot like Matthew 6:26: “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.”
I know that Wayne Coyne is an atheist, but he uses a biblical metaphor to spread a cosmic message of hope. It’s beautiful. In a nutshell, “everything is going to be OK.” Don’t listen to the doomsayers. The universe/God/whatever you want to call it will provide.
“Yes it’s true some day everything dies, but we won’t let that defeat us...”
Matthew 6:27: “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?”
No matter what you believe, I think the message of this song is universal. We need to hold onto hope in these crazy times when it seems like the world is going to shit.
@thesprawl2361
That chorus is a mountain, that chorus is a galaxy, it's a valley, it's an impact crater. So huge you can see it from space. Each chord is a mile-long suspension bridge and each line is sung through an alien ship's tannoy system. If you look down at the great wall of China from space you'll see it's actually a giant, stone tabulation of the melody from this song. The chord change that killed the dinosaurs.
@jacksontreece4673
The Sprawl , while eating supper with the head alien.
@pamelajord4181
Beautiful.
@brownjenkin715
Sprawl, it is all. Lowe you!
@lunalaguna6173
When I spread my cat's ashes on a mountain at sunrise, this is the song I played.
@awnaur0no919
fck u ma, makin me een more emotional & shit 😭😭😭 i didnt ask for them feels
@RaouleDuke9
"...they only see the obvious...they see the sun go down...but they don't see it rise..." Some of the most beautiful lyrics ever written. When Wayne sings it comes straight from his soul!!!
@zimbraundertone4075
This is about sacrifice, giving everything you’ve got for maybe nothing, but does it matter ? When you stay and give it all, you may find some peace, this is powerful and poetic, let’s all be that bird ✨😢
@colonialwaster6978
Is to love just a waste? How can it matter? (c)
@Wiwwih2b
When anyone I know tries to bring me down with negativity, I just think of Wayne's lyric "so don't you believe them they'll destroy you with their lies......" and it makes everything better.