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DISCID=a60ce50c
DTITLE=Flaming Lips, The / At War With The Mystics
DYEAR=2006
DGENRE=Rock: Alternative
TTITLE0=The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song
TTITLE1=Free Radicals
TTITLE2=The Sound Of Failure
TTITLE3=My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion
TTITLE4=Vein Of Stars
TTITLE5=The Wizard Turns On...
TTITLE6=It Overtakes Me
TTITLE7=Mr. Ambulance Driver
TTITLE8=Haven't Got A Clue
TTITLE9=The W.A.N.D.
TTITLE10=Pompeii Am Gtterdmmerung
TTITLE11=Goin' On
EXTD=Originally Released April 4, 2006\nCD+DVDA Edition Released Octob
EXTD=er 24, 2006\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Since 1999's The Soft Bulletin,
EXTD= the Flaming Lips have issued an album once every three or four y
EXTD=ears -- roughly once per presidential term, making At War with th
EXTD=e Mystics the second album they've made during George W. Bush's p
EXTD=residency. While Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots' themes of seizi
EXTD=ng the moment and accepting mortality could easily be read as a r
EXTD=eaction to 9/11, At War with the Mystics is a more overtly timely
EXTD= album for the mid-to-late 2000s, dealing with the motivation beh
EXTD=ind the war in Iraq and Bush's presidency. By grappling with heav
EXTD=y subjects like these, it could seem like the Flaming Lips are ta
EXTD=king their role as one of America's most prominent and beloved al
EXTD=ternative rock bands too seriously, but Mystics' light touch show
EXTD=s that they can still be important without being self-important. 
EXTD=In fact, the album's most pointed tracks are the most playful. As
EXTD= they did on Yoshimi's "Fight Test," the Lips couch their aggress
EXTD=ion in bouncy melodies and playful production tricks. With its ro
EXTD=botic doo wop vocals and strummy acoustic guitars, "Yeah Yeah Yea
EXTD=h Song" -- which asks its listeners if they could do any better i
EXTD=f they were handed all the power in the world -- sounds oddly lik
EXTD=e a Paul Simon song updated for the 21st (or maybe even 22nd) cen
EXTD=tury. "Free Radicals," which sounds like Prince via Beck with a d
EXTD=ash of Daft Punk, and "Haven't Got a Clue," which boasts the refr
EXTD=ain "Every time you state your case, the more I want to punch you
EXTD=r face," get their points across emphatically -- almost too empha
EXTD=tically, actually, for as catchy as these songs are, they don't r
EXTD=eally expand on their thoughts or sounds much. However, the middl
EXTD=e section of At War with the Mystics is expansive and intimate at
EXTD= the same time, like many of the Flaming Lips' best moments have 
EXTD=been. "My Cosmic Autumn Rebellion" and "Vein of Stars" play like 
EXTD=updates of The Soft Bulletin's effortless, weightless beauty, and
EXTD= "The Sound of Failure" is a reminder that it's OK to be sad some
EXTD=times (while getting in digs at the teen pop platitudes of Britne
EXTD=y Spears and Gwen Stefani) set to a gorgeous backdrop of soft roc
EXTD=k flutes and guitars and twittering electronics. This stretch of 
EXTD=songs plays almost like a suite, which ties right in with At War 
EXTD=with the Mystics' prog rock leanings. Pink Floyd is a major influ
EXTD=ence on the entire album: "The Wizard Turns On..." is a spacey, l
EXTD=ate-night instrumental that could easily be synched to The Wizard
EXTD= of Oz, while "Pompeii Am Gtterdmmerung" also taps into Floyd's
EXTD= elaborate, epic power. These trippy moments make At War with the
EXTD= Mystics the most psychedelic and least immediate album the Flami
EXTD=ng Lips have done in a long, long time, and the way that Mystics 
EXTD=bounces back and forth between its ethereal and zany moments give
EXTD=s it a disjointed, uneven feel that makes the album a shade less 
EXTD=satisfying than either Yoshimi or Soft Bulletin. Still, as stando
EXTD=ut tracks like "Mr. Ambulance Driver" and "Goin' On" show, the ba
EXTD=nd is still fighting the good fight and confronting the bad thing
EXTD=s in life with hope, optimism, and just the right amount of (magi
EXTD=cal) realism. -- Heather Phares\n\nAmazon.com Product Description
EXTD=\nDouble-disc special edition version of the Flaming Lips' cosmic
EXTD=, mind-shattering album. Includes bonus DVD featuring the album i
EXTD=n 5.1 surround sound plus outtakes, several radio sessions, three
EXTD= music videos and even Wayne Coyne's 2006 commencement speech at 
EXTD=hometown Oklahoma City's Classen High School. Expand your conscio
EXTD=usness of the Flaming Lips with the At Wat With The Mystics limit
EXTD=ed edition. \n\nAmazon.com Editorial Review\nAfter two expansive 
EXTD=yet winsome epic albums like The Soft Bulletin and Yoshimi Battle
EXTD=s the Pink Robots that dealt with the inevitability of death in t
EXTD=he face of life, the Oklahoma City art provocateurs have abandone
EXTD=d the concept album approach and done an about face. They've retu
EXTD=rned to their earlier canon, channeling their messy psychedelica 
EXTD=through a 70s funk scrim, and yet again figured out a way to elev
EXTD=ate the ordinary to the sublime--even out-weirding Syd Barrett-er
EXTD=a Pink Floyd on a track like "Pompeii," and precariously balancin
EXTD=g out on the astral plane on "Wizard Turns On." And while you mig
EXTD=ht be tempted to believe that this band is just about their carto
EXTD=onish space bubbles on pink rabbits, it is at your own peril. At 
EXTD=War With the Mystics is an intelligent and searing indictment of 
EXTD=George W. Bush, his administration, suicide bombers, superficiali
EXTD=ty and undeserved stardom--branding them all sinners of similar s
EXTD=tripe. A song like "Sound of Failure/It's Dark...Is it Always Thi
EXTD=s Dark?" boldly calls out pop culture princesses Gwen Stefani and
EXTD= Britney Spears, but not without first giving them a wet kiss goo
EXTD=dnight. "Free Radicals" is a precious soul romp that sounds like 
EXTD=Prince in his prime, but instead was oddly inspired by a dream ab
EXTD=out Devendra Banhart, and is an sharp arrow aimed straight at the
EXTD= heart of would-be terrorists. Major domo and head Lip Wayne Coyn
EXTD=e is a shrewd observer of human nature, and an even shrewder song
EXTD=writer and this album stands as his greatest and most varied work
EXTD= yet. --Jaan Uhelszki \n\nAmazon.com Product Description\nCosmic,
EXTD= consciousness-expanding and mind-shattering, At War With The Mys
EXTD=tics, the highly anticipated follow-up to The Flaming Lips' Yoshi
EXTD=mi Battles the Pink Robots brings together the expressiveness of 
EXTD=recent albums with the heaviness, volume and intensity of the ban
EXTD=d's earlier work. At War With The Mystics is personal, political,
EXTD= psychedelic and powerful pop. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\n
EXTD=Cliche? The Lips?, October 4, 2006\nReviewer: J. Schneider "JimDa
EXTD=ndy" (Philly, PA)\nI'll give this 4 stars for a Lips album, as so
EXTD=me of the songs sound like they were tossed off rather than craft
EXTD=ed (Free Radicals, for instance). Compared with anything else cur
EXTD=rently being made, it'd have to be a 5. But what I really want to
EXTD= say is that anyone who dismisses anything the Lips have done as 
EXTD=cliche doesn't understand the band. Go back through their entire 
EXTD=oeuvre for long, repeated listenings, and you should discover tha
EXTD=t the Lips have never done anything based on industry or fan expe
EXTD=ctations, or genre pigeonholes. They do what they want, and it's 
EXTD=almost always a combination of undeniable tunefulness, outright g
EXTD=oofiness, and masterful musicianship (well, at least in the last 
EXTD=decade), with some element of okie (guitar) noodling usually lurk
EXTD=ing underneath. They can sound like a drugged-out heavy-metal ban
EXTD=d, Prince, or Floyd, but they're always just themselves. \n\nBy t
EXTD=he way, there are at least three songs that I think should've mad
EXTD=e the album, but didn't. They can be found as b-sides on the sing
EXTD=les for the Yeah Yeah Yeah song and the W.A.N.D. (you have to loo
EXTD=k at all versions to find them). "Why Does It End," "The Gold In 
EXTD=The Mountain Of Our Madness," and "You Got To Hold On" -- and eve
EXTD=n "Time Travel... YES!!" -- all could have helped make AWWTM a to
EXTD=p-notch Lips album.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nSuch a Let D
EXTD=own, September 17, 2006\nReviewer: One thing... (TM :) United Sta
EXTD=tes)\nI write from the perspective of a life-long fan. This was o
EXTD=ne of the first modern bands that I loved and I followed their ev
EXTD=ery release from my preteen years onward. They seemed to never mi
EXTD=ss the mark creatively or sonically, and the increasingly strong 
EXTD=imagination and coherence behind each record was only matched by 
EXTD=the increasingly complex production. But on this release, they se
EXTD=em to have run out of ideas and melodies and passion. That hurts 
EXTD=to say, but it is painfully true. I'll accept this as their auto-
EXTD=pilot record. The reason I give it two stars is because it makes 
EXTD=me appreciate Yoshimi, an album I initially viewed as a disappoin
EXTD=tment in the shadow of the Soft Bulletin, as a proper album (albi
EXTD=et a lateral move).\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nThe Flaming 
EXTD=Lips, back on the block, August 21, 2006\nReviewer: Garbageman (t
EXTD=he other side of California)\nI admit it: I hated "Yoshimi". It s
EXTD=eemed so forced, so product-placed, so much a product of Wayne Co
EXTD=yne's newfound stardom, and stardom's subsequent love affair with
EXTD= Wayne Coyne. None of it was as spectacular as what everybody tol
EXTD=d me it was: it now seems so dated and "album of the moment" that
EXTD= I held it against the Flaming Lips as long as I could, refusing 
EXTD=to listen to their "next big thing". But when I actually listened
EXTD= to "Mystics", I was startled by what I heard. Startled, impresse
EXTD=d, dumbfounded as to how an album like this could be released and
EXTD= disappear so quickly. In a sense, "Mystics" is the anti-"Yoshimi
EXTD=", making good on all the promise of Dave Fridmann's esoteric pro
EXTD=duction and Coyne's once-brilliant sunny songs. \n\nMuch has been
EXTD= made in these reviews of the "clutter" of sound effects that see
EXTD=m to obscure the music, some suggesting that the gimmickry replac
EXTD=es the classic melodies the Flaming Lips made famous the last cou
EXTD=ple of outings. I disagree wholeheartedly. Anyone who thinks this
EXTD= album is all flashy sound-effects and lyrical silliness has been
EXTD= distracted and duped. Its strength is in the groove, and this al
EXTD=bum is soaking in thrills. Despite some space-age filler, it does
EXTD=n't feel the need to go very far to make its point. Underneath th
EXTD=e glitzy "themes" and spinning effects, it's a simple album with 
EXTD=powerful vocal hooks all over the place and a firm eye on the pri
EXTD=ze. \n\nI cannot understand how some critics here say that the al
EXTD=bum is deviod of memorable songs. I think this set is even strong
EXTD=er than "The Soft Bulletin". The electronic gibberish of "The Wiz
EXTD=ard Turns On" masks a full-fledged strut of "Cosmic Slop" or "Sta
EXTD=nding On The Verge Of Getting It On" proportions. "Vein of Stars"
EXTD= takes every wanna-be futurist-pop band to school in its short li
EXTD=fespan, and if I were still in a band I would pack up my whole fr
EXTD=eakin' catalog in the face of that vocal hook. From the sassy, lo
EXTD=ose Prince-isms of "Free Radicals" to the skyrocketing, ascendant
EXTD= chorus of "The Sound of Failure", I hear a looseness, a funkines
EXTD=s that is sorely missing from "Yoshimi" (in particular) and a lig
EXTD=hthearted ambition that makes up for any phony concept or story. 
EXTD=And suffice to say this about the mighty "Pompeii Am Gotterdammer
EXTD=ung": if "Meddle"-era Floyd got caught in a crashing elevator wit
EXTD=h Girls Against Boys' thundering bass and speed-freak ambitions, 
EXTD=this would be the resulting smear. \n\nThere are all kinds of hid
EXTD=den, pleasurable flourishes, from the :35 mark of "Mr. Ambulance 
EXTD=Driver", which sounds pulled from the retrogressive AM radio of m
EXTD=y youth, to the psychedelic drum catharsis of the 2:40 mark of "H
EXTD=aven't Got a Clue". These obscure little moments make for a much 
EXTD=more satisfying album on every level than what I expected to hear
EXTD= initially. And while "It Overtakes Me" might be a mediocre Flami
EXTD=ng Lips song, if it was Sweet or T. Rex, it would be simply legen
EXTD=dary. \n\nProduction-wise, you simply can't get any better, headp
EXTD=hones be damned. After mining the whole mid-70's Lennon/Bowie sou
EXTD=nd formula of "#9 Dream" and "Mind Games", it's good to hear Dave
EXTD= Fridmann turn inward instead of trying to be the next New Romant
EXTD=ic as he did on Mercury Rev's overwrought bomb. I'm more impresse
EXTD=d with the simplicity of things (see "The W.A.N.D.") than the clu
EXTD=tter so many claim is there. Sticking to the groove pays off, and
EXTD= everything feels relaxed and driving. \n\nIn a sense, I am shock
EXTD=ed at how much I really like this album. I had written off Wayne 
EXTD=Coyne as a media head-case, a guy whose face I had grown tired of
EXTD= seeing in every 'zine on the shelf despite having nothing to say
EXTD=. But I got caught napping, and the Flaming Lips have released th
EXTD=e best album of 2006 so far. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nDo
EXTD=n't Believe the Hype - I Wasted My Money on This, July 3, 2006\nR
EXTD=eviewer: J. Mahaffie "Jimbo" (Kent, WA USA)\nI enjoyed The Soft B
EXTD=ulletin and Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, but this album stink
EXTD=s! It reeks of Coyne's cloying existential death-obsession and se
EXTD=lf-congratulatory assertions of absurdity passed off as statement
EXTD=s of wisdom. I enjoy experimental music, but if the music's edgy,
EXTD= there's got to be something else there to "glue" it together. Th
EXTD=is album is like shiny cellophane packaged audio crap food from a
EXTD= discount dollar store: all eye candy, no substance, and gut bust
EXTD=ing. Anyone who thinks human beings meet with a different fate th
EXTD=an birds is a fool? Come on Wayne: a theologian YOU ARE NOT! Stop
EXTD= kidding yourself. Stupid me for falling for the hype.\n\n\nAMAZO
EXTD=N.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nuneven, but restlessly creative, with some
EXTD= tremendous highlights , June 7, 2006\nReviewer: Dave "missing pe
EXTD=rson" (United States)\nThe Lips' latest album at the time of this
EXTD= writing, 2006's "At War With the Mystics", finds the group in th
EXTD=eir usual "willing to try anything" mode. \n\nThe "try anything" 
EXTD=approach does have its downside... The first two tracks get the a
EXTD=lbum off to an alarmingly poor start. The rockabilly-styled opene
EXTD=r "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song" is so gimmicky and cloyingly-repetiti
EXTD=ve that it's virtually unlistenable. And the politically-charged 
EXTD="Free Radicals" is a disjointed mess, a misguided mock-soul numbe
EXTD=r complete with Wayne Coyne's tacky falsetto vocals. \n\nHowever,
EXTD= the boys do a virtual 180 with track number 3, instantly remindi
EXTD=ng you of why you have so much faith in them. "The Sound Of Failu
EXTD=re", the draggy coda notwithstanding, is absolutely sumptuous. It
EXTD= features effectively dissonant verses that work their way toward
EXTD= wonderfully breezy, '70s-styled choruses that make brilliant use
EXTD= of razor-sharp, harmonized electric guitar lines. Great lyrics t
EXTD=oo--kind of allusive, yet extremely moving. You'll wear your CD p
EXTD=layer on this track. \n\nYou'll wear your player out even more th
EXTD=anks to the next two songs... They are very much of a piece, and 
EXTD=find the Lips' employing their "In The Morning Of The Magicians"-
EXTD=type sound, i.e. incredibly lush and poignant. "My Cosmic Autumn 
EXTD=Rebellion" and "Vein Of Stars" are exquisite and wrenchingly bitt
EXTD=ersweet, incredibly mature and focused. The soaring verses on "My
EXTD= Cosmic Autumn Rebellion" recall "A Wizard, A True Star"-era Todd
EXTD= Rundgren and will raise the hair on the back of your neck, with 
EXTD=Wayne's vocals in great form (man has he come a long way in this 
EXTD=department). "Vein Of Stars" adds a strummed acoustic to the proc
EXTD=eedings, and Wayne's lead vocal is wonderfully vulnerable--the me
EXTD=lody of the song does recall "Psychiatric Explorations of the Fet
EXTD=us With Needles" (from 1995's "Clouds Taste Metallic"), but puts 
EXTD=it into a completely different context. \n\nThe anthemic "The W.A
EXTD=.N.D.", aka "The Will Always Negates Defeat", is another big high
EXTD=light of the album, with a huge fuzzy riff and mesmerizing beamed
EXTD=-in harmonies; the 'broken record' loop on it wasn't the greatest
EXTD= idea in the world, but it's a minor gripe. There's also "The Wiz
EXTD=ard Turns On...", a solidly entertaining instrumental that's extr
EXTD=emely reminiscent of "Dark Side..."-era Floyd. \n\n"It Overtakes 
EXTD=Me" though is one erratic song if there ever was one, hardly clas
EXTD=sifiable as merely good or bad--the beginning part is catchy, but
EXTD= frustratingly slight and repetitive, and the "Do I Stand A Chanc
EXTD=e?" section finds the group slipping over into weepy melodrama, a
EXTD=lthough the following acoustic coda is a great touch. \n\nA few o
EXTD=f the songs also find the group sounding distressingly, uh, 'ordi
EXTD=nary', for lack of a better term. The most glaring example is "Mr
EXTD=. Ambulance Driver"--no, it's not a bad song, and it features wel
EXTD=l-used Fender Rhodes piano, an instrument you're not likely to he
EXTD=ar on the next Lindsay Lohan record, but despite all that, the so
EXTD=ng is still kind of ho-hum, again finding the group veering towar
EXTD=d conventional melodrama with predictable "heart-tugging" lyrics.
EXTD= \n\n10cc are seemingly one of The Flaming Lips' biggest influenc
EXTD=es, and much like 10cc in the '70s, the Lips are just so ambitiou
EXTD=s, and in such a way that it's almost inevitable their albums wil
EXTD=l contain some missteps, perhaps colossal ones. But one thing no 
EXTD=one in the right mind can accuse the Lips of is laziness, and the
EXTD=ir ability to turn out such songs as "The Sound of Failure", "My 
EXTD=Cosmic Autumn Rebellion", "Vein Of Stars", and "The W.A.N.D." inc
EXTD=lines you to forgive them for practically anything. \n\n\nAMAZON.
EXTD=COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nDigest this small little freedom fighter, Ma
EXTD=y 24, 2006\nReviewer: Nick Fulton (Wellington, New Zealand)\nEver
EXTD=y now and then you get an album of epic proportions, At War With 
EXTD=the Mystics is one of them. Something within this album leaps out
EXTD=, enters your brain and makes you want to change the world. By at
EXTD=tacking human ignorance and the inability to control our desires,
EXTD= the Lips seek to open our eyes to the ever-widening gap between 
EXTD=culture and self-indulgence. Without being overly controversial t
EXTD=hey prove rock and roll can be fun but still deadly serious. \nTh
EXTD=e first two tracks ('The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song' and 'Free Radicals'
EXTD=) jump straight into the debate, using crunching distorted guitar
EXTD= riffs to attack George W and his world of mass consumerism. The 
EXTD=album then adopts a more sombre tone, taking you on an airplanesq
EXTD=e embryonic journey, gently drifting in and out of surrealism. Bo
EXTD=uncing round like a hallucinating beach ball, the songs jump from
EXTD= spacey acoustic rock ('Vein of Stars', 'Haven't Got a Clue') to 
EXTD=trippy electrified pop ('The Wizard Turns On', 'Mr. Ambulance Dri
EXTD=ver'), creating a psychedelic jamboree. \nIf Pink Floyd and Jeffe
EXTD=rson Airplane had a love child, then this album would be the soun
EXTD=d they'd create. The Flaming Lips continue to ask the right quest
EXTD=ions. Much like Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and The Soft Bull
EXTD=etin, At War With the Mystics will be remembered for combining ho
EXTD=ney with mud. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\ngreat at being bo
EXTD=th influenced and influential, April 17, 2006\nReviewer: M. Fulke
EXTD=rson "marblehead" (portland)\nOn a new B-side from the Lips entit
EXTD=led, "Time Travel...Yes!!", the Flaming Lips dedicate three minut
EXTD=es to the thrill of cheating time and experiencing life in anothe
EXTD=r dimension, while still maintaining the precious moments of the 
EXTD=now. Never have the Lips worn their influences more plainly on th
EXTD=eir collective sleeves and the trips you'll take to different tim
EXTD=e periods throughout the album may come as a bit of an annoyance 
EXTD=to some but an almost seamless flow to others. "At War With The M
EXTD=ystics" finally finds them coming back down to earth after the as
EXTD=tronomical success of "Yoshimi" and they have finally integrated 
EXTD=the Lips of old with the new, shiny version that has catapulted t
EXTD=hem into stardom. \nThe first two tracks, "Yeah Yeah Yeah Song" a
EXTD=nd "Free Radicals" are pure Lipsian genius and defy categorizatio
EXTD=n, as most of their inspired tracks do. I've heard that "Radicals
EXTD=" is a take on their thoughts on Beck Hansen but to me, given the
EXTD= political slant of the track that precedes it, it's more of a sl
EXTD=am against Dubya and his cronies. It's refreshing to hear the Lip
EXTD=s get political and these first few tracks are huge in every way:
EXTD= bold production, biting, sarcastic lyrics and a fist waving spir
EXTD=it that make their live shows so memorable. The albums low point,
EXTD= "Sound Of Failure", couldn't be more aptly titled. It reminds me
EXTD= of a loose b-side from the Yoshimi era and it goes on too long (
EXTD=it clocks in at just over 7 minutes) with no aim or purpose in si
EXTD=ght. It sticks out like a sore thumb at an early point in the alb
EXTD=um where we should be getting involved, not distracted. \nIt's fr
EXTD=om here on out that we discover all of those dusty albums that th
EXTD=e Lips listened to in their younger years rear their spiritual he
EXTD=ads. \n"The Wizard Turns On" echoes Portishead with its sharp, st
EXTD=accato synth stabs and slow, trippy beat while "It Overtakes Me" 
EXTD=couldn't be a more flamboyant homage to Motown soul and funk jams
EXTD= ala Chambers Brothers. \nThe album steers into dangerously medio
EXTD=cre waters again with "Mr. Ambulance Driver" and "Haven't Got A C
EXTD=lue", which owe their lives to the recent electroclash movement a
EXTD=nd the more watered down meanderings of Massive Attack. The eleme
EXTD=nts that save these two tracks from drowning are the lyrics which
EXTD= remind us of why Wayne Coyne can be so enchanting: on "Clue" he 
EXTD=talks about smashing someone's face over a acid-tinged electro be
EXTD=at. "The W.A.N.D." is the most telling moment on "Mystics" in reg
EXTD=ard to the Lips going back to their signature fuzz-rock anthem no
EXTD=ise that made them a cult favorite in the late 80's and early 90'
EXTD=s. By the time we get to the albums' finest cut, "Pompei AM Gotte
EXTD=rdammerung", we've been exposed to all types of sounds and memori
EXTD=es so it makes it all the more disorienting to hear an intro stra
EXTD=ight out of a Lee Perry dub experiement dissolve into a march tha
EXTD=t sounds, if not exactly, like "One Of These Days" from Pink Floy
EXTD=d's "Meddle" album. This is no bad thing but you could literally 
EXTD=take the guitar layers from this song and put them up against Pin
EXTD=k Floyd's version and hear no difference. It's a great mesh of tw
EXTD=o totally disparate styles and it works something fierce. The alb
EXTD=um ends on a bland note with "Goin' On" with yet another b-side t
EXTD=ype feel to an otherwise forgettable track that sloppily ties all
EXTD= of the loose ends of what went on previously into a messy little
EXTD= box. Which, ultimately, is what the Flaming Lips have always bee
EXTD=n about: mission accomplished through confusion; listener satisfi
EXTD=ed but not quite saved. \nI've listened to the album several time
EXTD=s now and I feel the same way I did when I heard it the first tim
EXTD=e: a little bit disappointed knowing that they are capable of muc
EXTD=h more but thrilled that I've heard another album from a band who
EXTD= have no rivals. The uninspired tracks on "Mystics" are only so w
EXTD=hen compared to other Lips material but still powerful enough to 
EXTD=leave their peers in the dust. It's awesome to hear them acknowle
EXTD=dge other bands and incorporate them into their own sound; it see
EXTD=ms they've reached a point where they can happily indulge in the 
EXTD=music they love and still allow themselves to shine brightly. The
EXTD= Flaming Lips have shown that being influenced can be the most be
EXTD=autifully influential gift someone can give.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUST
EXTD=OMER REVIEW\nEvery Time You State Your Case, April 8, 2006\nRevie
EXTD=wer: Scooter McGavin (Ohio)\nWho would have thought that the dude
EXTD=s who created the disturbingly catchy She Don't Use Jelly would s
EXTD=till be around making music more than a decade later? But somehow
EXTD= The Flaming Lips have made a career out of weird psychedelic mus
EXTD=ic even if Jelly remains their only true hit. But that's not to s
EXTD=ay there isn't another surprise hit hiding somewhere on their lat
EXTD=est outing At War with the Mystics. \n\nOkay, who am I kidding, t
EXTD=here is no hits hiding on this album, but to the Lips credit, tha
EXTD=t's not why they make music and of course just because there are 
EXTD=no hits doesn't necessarily make something a bad album. Sonically
EXTD=, the album I exactly what you would expect from a Lips albums th
EXTD=ey inch closer and closer to the sound of early Pink Floyd when e
EXTD=ccentric Syd Barrett was at the helm. They even throw in an instr
EXTD=umental, The Wizard Turns On, which could have made it on one of 
EXTD=Floyd's album. But they extra noise isn't always welcome like on 
EXTD=Mr. Ambulance Driver where the band utilizes a siren for most of 
EXTD=the song which made me look out the window every couple seconds t
EXTD=o make sure it wasn't real. \n\nBut it's the lyrics where the ban
EXTD=d evolves the most as they morph into a socially conscience band.
EXTD= The set the tone with the opener, The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song which 
EXTD=asks rhetorical questions like, "If you could make everybody poor
EXTD= just so you could be rich, would you do it?" Then they follow th
EXTD=ose up with the cautionary, "It's a very dangerous thing to do ex
EXTD=actly what you want." They also take aim at our government during
EXTD= The W.A.N.D. where they equate the power of fanatical leaders to
EXTD= them waving a magical wand. But it's Haven't Got a Clue really l
EXTD=ays the smackdown with the not so thinly veiled reference to Pres
EXTD=ident capped off with the lyrics, "Every time you state you case,
EXTD= the more I want to punch your face." Although I think I'd have m
EXTD=y money on Bush in a throw down with Wayne Coyne. Superficial pop
EXTD= starts are also called out on Sound of Failure/It's Dark...Is it
EXTD= Always This Dark? specifically Britney Spears and Gwen Stefani. 
EXTD=\n\nAnd Wayne's voice still remains the main problem with the gro
EXTD=up. With everything going on musically, his anemic voice tends to
EXTD= bring the songs down and is always the weak link. The only time 
EXTD=he shines on this album is when he goes all Prince falsetto on Fr
EXTD=ee Radical. But it's not enough to save the mediocre at best albu
EXTD=m.\n\n\nHalf.com Details \nProducer: David Fridmann \nAlbum Notes
EXTD=\n\nThe Flaming Lips: Michael Ivins (vocals, guitars, bass guitar
EXTD=); Steven Drozd (vocals, guitars, drums); Wayne Coyne (vocals, gu
EXTD=itars).\n\nAfter becoming the darlings of alt-rock with their two
EXTD= consecutive neo-psychedelic epics, THE SOFT BULLETIN and YOSHIMI
EXTD= BATTLES THE PINK ROBOTS, the Flaming Lips reign in their sound w
EXTD=ithout diminishing their ambitions on AT WAR WITH THE MYSTICS. Th
EXTD=ey haven't thrown out their LSD-soaked playbook entirely--there a
EXTD=re still some nods to MEDDLE-era Pink Floyd here and there--but o
EXTD=n the whole the Lips have tightened up their sound and given it a
EXTD= groove injection. Much of the album revolves around simple, funk
EXTD=y rhythm patterns, terse guitar lines, and R&B-tinged keyboards, 
EXTD=putting the vibe closer to Prince-via-Beck or LCD Soundsystem tha
EXTD=n to Lips cohorts like Mercury Rev.\nThe band has been quoted as 
EXTD=saying that listening to Black Sabbath and getting into generatin
EXTD=g power as a small unit influenced them to scale down their sound
EXTD= for MYSTICS. True enough, there are some heavy guitar lines and 
EXTD=a couple of moments of rocking out, but we're not talking Queens 
EXTD=of the Stone Age here. Overall, MYSTICS balances the Lips' airy s
EXTD=toner psych-pop with funkier feelings, keeping things fresh witho
EXTD=ut completely changing course.\n\nIndustry Reviews\n4 stars out o
EXTD=f 5 -- Many will find the clattering, demo-freshness of MYSTICS b
EXTD=racing....It's a peerless smorgasbord of brain-bending sonic deli
EXTD=cacies, food for thought and spiritual succour.\n\n\nMuch of the 
EXTD=CD is both beautiful and heartfelt... -- Grade: B\n\n\n3 stars ou
EXTD=t of 5 -- Winners like the leftist call-to-arms 'The W.A.N.D.' an
EXTD=d 'Free Radicals' brim with darting effects and Wayne Coyne's bri
EXTD=ghtly warbled melodies...
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