THE DEAL: Flaming Lips guitarist Steven Drozd offers mostly instrumental movie soundtrack.
THE GOOD: Let’s get right to it — the stand-out track here is also the lone vocal contribution, a cover of “Rocket Man” featuring the voice of Tool’s Maynard James Keenan. Keenan’s vocal style, in addition to the pulsing beep of a heart monitor, gives the track an odd and eery feel. The album careens around the universe with a light, heady feeling that only Drozd-fueled spacey-ness can provide. “Born” slowly builds its way up, “Quaalude Youth” is a trip of its own and “Bad Mood Rising/Dimensionless” offers a bit of Pink Floyd inspiration before settling down into a tranquil setting.
THE BAD: Soundtracks can tend to be a bit monotone — with countless riffs sounding alike in order to create a cohesive feeling within a film. This one suffers a bit from the same thing, but there’s enough separation between tracks to make it more enjoyable. I could have done without the short, buzzy “Last Dose,” but you have to remember it’s a soundtrack.
THE VERDICT: Fans of the Lips will undoubtedly pick this one up, and there won’t be too much disappointment. Sure, Lips singer Wayne Coyne isn’t here, but the music has that same psychedelic feel to it. A number of these songs could have easily been Lips tunes if given that extra touch.
This article appears in Jan 18-24, 2011.
