The Flaming Lips bring confetti-filled carnival to LA

The Flaming Lips pulled out all the stops at their sold-out performance at Los Angeles' Greek Theatre last night (August 17), creating a festive dance-party atmosphere that began with confetti-canon blasts, a giant bubble and a stage filled with yetis and sexy kittens.

When taking the stage, three of the four band members stepped through a set designed to look like a woman's birth canal, a likely nod to the title of their forthcoming album, 'Embryonic'.

Frontman Wayne Coyne appeared soon after, encased in his trademark giant plastic bubble, which he proceeded to roll out into the crowd for a round of crowd surfing as the band played the Intro.

Coyne quickly returned to the stage for 'Race For The Prize' from their 1999 album, 'The Soft Bulletin'. "Hello LA!" he shouted. "We've only played the Greek Theatre one other time. This is fucking beautiful," he said, surveying the scenic pine-tree-dotted amphitheatre.

The Oklahoma band played two songs from their new album - 'Convinced Of The Hex' and 'Silver Trembling Hands' - but focused mainly on old favourites, including a stripped-down version of 'Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots' and 'The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song'.

The audience, which included actor Elijah Wood, punk icon Henry Rollins and Har Mar Superstar, tossed around giant confetti-filled balloons and sang along throughout the evening, while costumed dancers dressed as all sorts of creatures ran around onstage.

Toward the end of the evening, Coyne got political, encouraging the audience to bid farewell to former US President George W Bush and celebrate a brighter day. "We're glad that we have Barack Obama in the White House. Put your hands in a fuckin' peace sign. It's like the war is over," he said.

The band concluded their 75-minute set with 'Do You Realize??', which they punctuated with several confetti blasts.

Earlier in the evening, Stardeath And White Dwarfs, featuring Coyne's nephew Dennis, kicked things off. They were followed by a dance-inducing, laser-filled set from Ghostland Obervatory.

The Flaming Lips played:

'Intro'
'Race For The Prize'
'Silver Trembling Hands'
'The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song'
'Fight Test'
'Enthusiasm For Life'
'Convinced Of The Hex'
'Mountain Side'
'Vein Of Stars'
'Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots'
'Pompeii'
'The W.A.N.D.'
'Do You Realize??'

--By our Los Angeles staff.
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