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The Flaming Lips are classified by many as an alternative band, but that's probably because the band's sound is so bizarre and different, there's really not another musical genre by which to define it. The Flaming Lips have developed a cult following and had brushes with mainstream success over the course of their 24-year existence, part of which stems from the trio's live show. That show has featured oddities in the past such as giant hands, quirky light displays and lead singer Wayne Coyne's strange habit of playing from inside the confines of a plastic bubble. Before The Flaming Lips bring their show to Sunset Station on Monday, Sept. 24, bassist Michael Ivins talked to 210SA about the band's staying power and why he wears a full-body skeleton on stage. Hey, we said they were different.
 

Did you ever think The Flaming Lips would be going on 25 years as a band?
(In the beginning) we made jokes about it, but it seemed like we were headed in some sort of direction. The joke was, “What are you doing for the next 20 years?” I think that was a joke, but here we are. I just wanted to keep doing it. A lot of bands break up, and we certainly haven't been immune to anything like that. We've had personnel changes and all that. I think that it's really helped in a lot of ways to shape how we present ourselves and what we do.

Do you think some fans love your music, even if they have no idea what it means?
I think, in the big picture, what I hope comes through and what I'm sure Wayne hopes comes through too is just really a general optimism for everything, whether life or whatever. That's what it comes down too, self-determination and self-responsibility, things like that, which is why we don't really do any actual protest song. If you worry about what you're doing instead of what others are doing, the world would be a lot better.

Because of your sometimes-bizarre songs, some have labeled you an acid-rock band. How do you respond to that?
I will say I have never created anything or done anything (musically) while in an altered state of any sort, especially in the studio. In this day and age, with so many buttons that function to erase everything you've done over the past three years, I don't want to be in some other (mental) place and hit the wrong button. I've heard stories of people being out of control in the '70s, and I can't imagine how a record would have been made. I'm certainly a fan of when the work's done, go have a beer or something, but as far as us being an acid-rock band or needing to be in some sort of altered state, I don't think it's necessary. But I'm not a prude either.

How trippy is a Flaming Lips live show?
I think what actually sets a live show apart from anything else is just all the other people that are there, which just turns it all into a different sort of experience. You're running the gamut between people who might like the band and people who have never heard of the band before. We really try to make it as much of a fun experience and as enjoyable as possible ..... I think older people, which I count myself among them, it takes a lot to get you out of the house. You're going to all that effort to go somewhere, driving, parking, and sometimes, frankly, it's an ordeal ..... Sometimes if you go see a show and you're in a lousy mood or going through something bad, in some ways it's like seeing a movie. You can actually go and sort of have a chiropracty (sic) done on your emotions and snap out of that.

Finally, why do you wear a full-body skeleton costume on stage?
The first incarnation was me and (drummer Steven Drozd) wearing rabbit suits, and that evolved into having people on stage in animal costumes, just to switch things up. We just sort of get bored, and (dressing up) just makes things easier. You know what to wear that night and don't have to worry about your shirt looking good. (Former bassist for The Who) Jon Entwistle wore a skeleton suit, and I always thought that was kind of cool ..... Dressing up as a skeleton every night, perhaps it's a statement on the war, to remember mortality. All those sort of fun things you could say, you could say it was being said by what you wear.

CLINT HALE | 210SA