Originally Posted by RdTv

The bottom line is the Flaming Lips (by Wayne Coyne & Michael Ivans own admission) had no creativity and/or musical direction and then Stephen Drozd stepped in the picture and started to write everything and all the music became like bowie/ny dolls/overproduced/smoke and mirrors. The band has gone on record saying this, OK? Therefore The Flaming Lips are a fluke, a joke that has merely lasted this long, am I saying their music or shows are horrible, no, I'm simply saying they have done nothing special or noteworthy. OK, so their shows are probably the most visually stimulating exsperience you can have whilst attending a concert, but that doesn't make up for the over-production and sense of sugar coating the music gives you, especially the new album, save for 3 songs.

Sonic Youth has spawned countless and countless and countless imitators and inspired a legion of people around the world. Their music is built on creativity, substance and excitement, yes even the newer stuff. So, maybe the shows are less visually oriented, but thats because they are better musicians and don't need costumes and glitter to attract people.

the bottom line: SY=,originality,creativity,high quality, substance
Flaming Lips=production,effects,over the top,indie-pop

Originally Posted by screamingskull

now this is where we disagree i think the flaming lips have evolved more than sonic youth have. they might not be as creative.

Originally Posted by afterthefact

I have to disagree. Not that SY is better, because honestly I don't think such a question should arise in the first place. It's not fair, it's not like they even make similar music. Apples and oranges, people. But to say FL had NO creativity before Drozd is simply incorrect. Granted, he almost single-handedly made them what they are today, but they were very good pre-Drozd. He just took them in a different direction. In fact, without Drozd, if they continued to progress in what they were doing before, them touring with SY last year would have probably made more sense. And as far as their amazing live shows that can transform the hardest of punk rockers into giddy little children, it is almost exclusively from the mind of Coyne.

Originally Posted by RdTv

I retracted my statement of no creativity earlier to screamingskull, I meant to convey a sense of talent or originality. You have to agree with that (originality), come on, the person who made them sound somewhat original was Drozd, like you said they have several era's and in all those era's its an outsider of the original lineup that brings in that era's sound. I was a bit passionatte in my post (calling them a fluke, a joke etc...) and for that I'm sorry, I didn't mean to slam them that hard, but it was that easy, I don't believe in the better or not issue, but when it is pushed (this thread) I seem to evolve into this angry, ogerous being that bludgeons whatever I don't see eye to eye with.

I like the FL, especially CTM,Soft Bulletin,Yoshimi. Like you said it isn't fair to compare bands, they are apples and oranges, but you have to agree if SY is an apple and the Fl are an orange, then the apple would taste a lot better comapred to the quality of other apples, than the orange would compared to other oranges.

Originally Posted by afterthefact

they were definately ripping off Butthole Surfers.

Originally Posted by floatingslowly

honestly though, the person who's had the most influence on the Lips for the longest time is Dave Fridmann. everything after he started producing sounded like Mercury Rev to me.

these are not bad things however, and in fact most bands I like take influence from other bands I like. there's very little that's cool, new and original anymore....

Originally Posted by atari 2600

sounds like Mercury Rev covering Pink Floyd/David Bowie