Flaming Lips Bring Spectacular Yoshimi Tour to Cleveland Agora
Words and photos by Mara Robinson
The Flaming Lips, Steven Drozd and Wayne Coyne, perform in concert Sunday, June 11, 2023, at the Agora in Cleveland. (Photo: Mara Robinson)
A concert by The Flaming Lips is a phenomenon that must be experienced live to be fully appreciated. Each song features its own props and pageantry from a seemingly endless metaphorical bag of tricks. Giant inflatable pink robots and rainbows dwarf the band. Supplemental trippy strobe lights emanate from behind frontman Wayne Coyne. And confetti cannons shower the crowd in colorful strips and cutout pink robots. All while a backdrop of psychedelic LEDs flash song lyrics word-by-word.
Cleveland’s Agora was jam-packed full of fans Sunday June 11 for the two-set extravaganza. For the first set, The Flaming Lips celebrated the 20th anniversary of their 2002 album Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots by performing the album in its entirety. Frontman Wayne Coyne introduced their huge hit Do You Realize?? by encouraging the audience to tell loved ones how much you appreciate them, before it’s too late, because you never know what the universe has planned. Looking around at the audience’s smiling faces, wet with happy tears, proves that beautiful song still hits people right in the feels.
After a brief intermission, the band played a second set and encore of hits and fan favorites, such as “She Don’t Use Jelly,” “Feeling Yourself Disintegrate” and “Race for the Prize.”
Wayne Coyne, front and center, is often the only band member visible in the light, while the rest of the band performs largely in silhouette. But if you look beyond the pageantry at the front of the stage, you’ll see a group of multi-instrumentalists hard at work — including drummers and keyboardists who switch to guitar and bass while also singing backup; including the ever-elusive genius behind the music Steven Drozd, buried in a box of instruments and effects pedals — happy to hand over the spotlight to Coyne. Visit www.MaraRobinson.com for more photos from this show and others.
Cleveland, OH 44103