Twinterview: Wayne Coyne

Mic Wright caught up with Head Flaming Lip Wayne Coyne and put your questions to him at Electric Picnic.

What do clouds taste like?
I can tell you for sure. I was in Australia and we'd just got off tour with Tool. This guy was in the band at the time. He told us a story about being in an open top private plane.

The wind was going through their hair and he, in his mind, thought as he was going through - I'm going to open my mouth and see how that tastes. He's an interesting guy - what weirdo would do that? And he said, you know Wayne, it's weird because they kind of taste metallic. So we named our record that - Clouds Taste Metallic. People are always looking for a light/heavy analogy like Iron Butterfly or Led Zeppelin and I always am. I could think of no better but truthful analogy. I haven't tried it myself.

Submitted by @tigerpixel

I think the start of The Flaming Lips was one of the most incredible beginnings of music. What's your memory of the start of the band?
We used to play in a warehouse where my dad worked, in an empty meat locker. Next door there was an all black bar.

We'd stand outside smoking and after three or four months we got to talking to them. The owner said: You should play here. To be embraced there was great. New Wave clubs in Oklahoma wouldn't let us play but this cooler club would and actually invited us to play. The second gig we played was at one of the first and only transvestite bars in Oklahoma City.

I still meet people who say: I was at that show! And I say: You must've been a transvestite then. And they go: Well, I was but I'm not anymore. I'm a lapsed transvestite. Some friends of my brother still talk about being hit on by 'exotic women' at that gig.

Submitted by @AnnaCaramuru

Ask Wayne why the heck The Flaming Lips won't play Newcastle please?
I'm not aware that we haven't. I'm sure it's a wonderful place. We've got no beef with Newcastle. It's probably just scheduling. There's no grudge.

Submitted by @gshizzy

What's your Fave story of act/s of kindness/love (other than marriage proposals) inspired by gigs?
People, all the time at Flaming Lips shows come and care about each other. It's not being a drunk but actually genuinely liking each other. People send me letters and stuff all the time.

We played with Sonic Youth three years ago, we were playing state fairs in Upstate New York and there was a famous outlaw at the time. He had escaped from jail and had shot a Highway Patrolman. He was, for whatever the reason, kind of celebrated. They lost him for a couple of weeks. We played this show in Upstate New York and this other Highway Patrolman was there.

He wrote me a letter later and said: This has been a horrible summer. My friend was shot by the outlaw and the paper thinks he's a great hero. But my friend died and he had a couple of gigs. Coming to your show I was frustrated and angry and after your show it's changed everything for me and I believe in justice.

Somewhere along the way, people who are looking for an answer see at a Flaming Lips show, there is no answer and you make the world what you want it to be. In the face of something that terrible it's a tall order. We want our shows to do that.

Submitted by @twayward

Interviewer (on your behalf): Mic Wright

12:45 PM | 14/09/2009

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The Flaming Lips , Twitter interview

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