Thank God for Wayne Coyne. Heck, thank God for all the Flaming Lips. They've given the world great explanations for why she doesn't use jelly, have consistently dressed up as bunnies and in meat or donut suits, and helped transform the
first host of Blues Clues into a respectable indie artist.
Their new CD, "At War With The Mystics" continues the trend of incredible music from the Oklahoma trio, with an added political twist. Coyne, though not into protest music per se, does note that (from
The Independent):
"With what's going on in the world, and with Bush and his band of buffoons in charge of our country, you could say that we're working through some frustration and anger," says Coyne with customary cheeriness. "We're not saying 'Let's all go kill George Bush,' or anything. We would never make protest music, and I don't necessarily think that music can change the world. I mean, it's wonderful but music is just music. But the idea of ignoring Bush and this war is ridiculous too. It's like when you're so mad, you punch the wall. Obviously it doesn't do you any good, but if you don't punch the wall, you feel even worse."
I am one to believe that music can change the world, though that isn't the point of my diary. What music can do is question, is remind, is call for action. The point here is to do just that.
The song that probably speaks best for us is "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song" (which is not a reference to the Karen O-fronted band). It is important to note that "Free Radicals" is more about Bush than the song below, but "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song" speaks more to the problems, and in some weird way, the hope of new change in government. Just take a read through the lyrics (edited by me here to include the yeah's and no's):
If you could blow up the world with the flick of a switch
Would you do it?
(Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah)
If you could make everyobody poor just so you could be rich
Would you do it?
(Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah)
If you could watch everybody work while you just lay on your back
Would you do it?
(Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah)
If you could take all the love without giving any back
Would you do it?
(Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah)
And so we cannot know ourselves or what we'd really do...
With all your power
With all your power
With all your power
What would you do?
(no no no no no no)
If you could make your own money and then give it to everybody
Would you do it?
(no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no)
If you knew all the answers and could give it to the masses
Would you do it?
No no no no no no are you crazy?
It's a very dangerous thing to do exactly what you want
Because you cannot know yourself or what you'd really do
With all your power
With all your power
With all your power
What would you do?
The lyrics speak for themselves in terms of what the Bush Administration has already done to this country, and their complete disregard for others, their idiotic wars that tear up American, Iraqi, and other hearts, the immigration kerfluffle's ingonrance of how there are geopolitical reasons behind illegal immigration, and all the rest that I could get into.
So, in closing, I offer you this question, the question that the Flaming Lips already offer us, but in a different form. I give you a situation: Today is November 8, 2006. The Democratic Party has retaken the House and Senate. You are Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid (or anyone, but I just use those two as examples). With all your power, what would you do?