The Flaming Lips are three songs into writing the follow up to 2006's 'At War With the Mystics,' and at least one song takes major inspiration from frontman Wayne Coyne's Oklahoma City neighborhood."It's called 'Smoking Crystal Meth Obliterates the Ability to Enjoy Nature,'" Coyne told Spinner about one of the new numbers. "I live in probably one of the worst neighborhoods in Oklahoma City. I've lived here my whole life, but you know, you get exposed to the worst elements and all that s---. What can you do?"
Another cut is tentatively titled 'I Don't Understand Karma,' which has a John Lennon feel but in Flaming Lips style, of course.
"Where he would sing about 'Instant Karma' -- I'm 47. People forget he died when he was 40 and a lot of his overly optimistic, 'We are gonna f---ing change the world' sort of stuff came in his 30s," Coyne said. "I think they believed some of what they were singing about would change the world, but after a while you realize music doesn't change the world. Music is just music, and changing the world is a big, tall, slow, boring thing, and frankly I don't know the world needs changing. The world is great. It's people that suck."
As for what the as upcoming album will sounds like, so far Coyne suggests his previous comments to the media -- that it'll sound like John Lennon meets a 'Bitches Brew' Miles Davis and the two take a journey, with computers, in a time machine -- will indeed materialize when they finally hit the studio.
"I think that's what we're expecting," Coyne said. "But if you ask me, that's already a pretty radical route to go."
As for when the new songs might see the light of day, Coyne said the wheels are turning in Camp Flaming Lips, but they are still heavily involved in the creative process.
"On one level, we're very much like weirdo artists who just want to sit here and play around with all our machines and computers and instruments and it would never matter to us, in a way, if the world ever heard it," he said. "But on the other side of us, we know we're the Flaming Lips and we have ... this thing that looks like we're big-time entertainers and we know we can put together a show, and it's this travelling, optimistic thing. But we never sort of feel like we need to put this music out there because, 'F---, the world needs it!' There's plenty of f---ing great music out there already. There's no need for anything. It's just really up to us when we feel like it would best suit us to put it out."
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