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I never pass up an opportunity to see the Flaming Lips. That's why I lined up early at an overcrowded warehouse in Norman this summer for a listening party, only to be let down with pre-recorded Wayne and an abundance of Lips paraphernalia. So, when I found out they were touring with Beck... it was no trouble at all to make the short trip down to Ft. Worth to see both bands. I pre-purchased 4 tickets in hopes of sharing this experience with some of my fellow local Lips fanatics (Adam, Tim Watson, Dibbler, Phillip), but because of varying circumstances it ended up being Dibbler meeting up with Chito and Big Kyle in Ft. Worth. Having been to several Lips shows before, I was hoping they would come in with an open mind and a sense of humor.

So, we shuffled in to an oversized High School Auditorium in Ft. Worth, making our way past several families who were attending the Shriner's Circus at the arena next door. I thought the whole thing to be rather fitting, as Wayne corralled his stage crew of goldfish, frogs, pigs and an array of other human-sized animals that would make even Barnum and Bailey proud. But tonight they would serve as side-stage lighting, each carrying their own spotlight to accent the rhythms laid down by Steve Drozd.

The Lips began their set with "Race for the Prize", the first song from Soft Bulletin, before breaking into their new music with "Fight Test" and "Yoshimi, part 1". Each song was accompanied with video ranging from the fight scene in Cool Hand Luke to Teletubbies, from a b-side female-lead Chinese gangster flick to an eerie reenactment of the marching hammers in Pink Floyd's The Wall, accessorized neatly by Wayne barking lyrics through a megaphone. As always, the concert was an audio and visual delight with a stream of confetti, balloons, and disco balls; but I noticed a different approach to previous Lips shows I have atteneded with each song standing on its own as a mini-adventure instead of one continuous show.

The Lips stayed mostly modern playing songs from the last two albums, with the exception of "She Don't Use Jelly", where the band was aptly introduced by the Peach Pit emcee from their unexpected appearance on 90210. I counted 9 songs altogether for the band's solo performance, ending with "A Spoonful Weighs a Ton" and not with "Do You Realize?" as I would've predicted.

I was pleasantly surprised that my last minute recruits to the show, were as impressed as Dibbler and myself with the Lips opening performance. A few moments later, Beck entered the stage for a solo acoustic set where he played a medley of older work, covered the Lips "Do You Realize?" before settling into the new album's opener, "The Golden Age", where the Lips joined in halfway into the song as Beck's backing band.

I thought the chemistry between Beck and the Lips was phenominal, each feeding off of the other's energy. Beck's disco steps blended in with Wayne's spotlights, his drum machines replaced with real percussion, and the unexpected backing vocals on "Devil's Haircut" and "Where It's At". I must admit my favorite part of the show followed Beck's breakthrough hit "Loser", where he took a shot at Radiohead for not "remembering their roots" by no longer playing "Creep" in their shows since they've progressed past that song - a similar argument shared amongst many of my friends. After his short soliloquy, Beck interupted his next song with his a singalong version of "Creep" that was both humorous and truly wonderful. Following the song, Wayne volunteered to take the song off of Radiohead's hands since it was a "great [expletive] song".

Overall I thought both bands were great, but the band I came to see outstaged Beck and proved once again why they remain as one of my favorites. Wayne may be aging with grey hair and more mature lyrics, but his stage show remains as energetic as ever. I would definitely take a chance to watch this show if it comes nearby.