One thing I love about certain artists/bands is that they're never afraid of changing things up stylistically from album to album, even at the risk of alienating fans, and The Flaming Lips are an example of that. The Terror to me is an improvement in the focus department over Heady Fwends, since it's very much a unified cohesive piece, with nearly all tracks segueing into the next in someOne thing I love about certain artists/bands is that they're never afraid of changing things up stylistically from album to album, even at the risk of alienating fans, and The Flaming Lips are an example of that. The Terror to me is an improvement in the focus department over Heady Fwends, since it's very much a unified cohesive piece, with nearly all tracks segueing into the next in some way. Nearly all the tracks accomplish the same goal; they're dark, atmospheric, spacious soundscapes with very loose structures & tons of reverb. But at the same time that pop sensibility comes in in a subtle way by providing some memorable vocal melodies that give individual tracks some staying power beyond just creating one unified full-album mood. The strongest track to me is “Try to Explain”, which perfectly combines that synth-washed atmosphere with a structure, melody & lyrics that are hooky & instantly catchy, but not in a way where the 2 mindsets clash. If anything they enhance each other in some weird way.
Some other elements here & there make certain tracks stand out, like the synth part in opener “Look... The Sun Is Rising” that sounds straight out of a Kid A outtake, the constant hammer-on guitar riff & sinister “lust to succeed” vocal delivery in Phantogram collab “You Lust”, or the gradually building instrumentation in “Turning Violent” that, while repetitive, has a pretty satisfying climax. Also worth noting are the bonus tracks, “Sun Blows Up Today” & a cover of The Beatles' “All You Need Is Love”. The former (originally made for a Super Bowl commercial) is a fantastic exuberant fast-paced indie-rocker with fun upbeat lyrics & an awesome synth solo. Normally I'm not a fan of the idea of outtake bonus tracks, but listening to the rest of the album this song wouldn't have fit in at any point in the track list, so I'll make an exception. Same goes for the latter, in which the band injects the peace-loving classic with minimalist percussionless psychedelia in a way that stays true to the original while also making it their own.
What I will say about the album negatively that holds it back from being an absolute masterpiece in that in my opinion it dips in quality in the middle, between the boring uninteresting “You Are Alone” & title track, and “You Lust” which, while generally well-written, didn't need to be 13 minutes, and would've been better off if they shaved it down to around 7 or 8 minutes, keeping that long continuous groove while also getting rid of the points where the additions are just mindless programming-noodling. And the lyrics, while never bad or cringe-worthy, for the most part don't have much of a message beyond very vague philosophical thoughts. Even Wayne himself said in a track-by-track, “I never thought about the lyrics very much. They're just some cosmic sh*t you think sounds cool against that sound or whatever.” There are a couple exceptions though, like “Turning Violent”, with a personal narrative whose vagueness adds to the song by giving it a haunting feel that lets you imagine what kind of horrific mental situation the narrator is in. Or closer “Always There in Our Hearts”, with the clearest message on the album, about learning to accept the good with the bad in life.
While this album doesn't beat Bulletin or Yoshimi for me, it's up there for sure, and easily the most impressive album I've heard from them in terms of ambition. Even for someone like me who's more into catchy hooks than inaccessible experimental ambient pieces, I found a lot to enjoy in The Terror, even despite its less ear-grabbing moments. I can picture it being a gateway for some people into even more abstract stuff.
Top 5 tracks: Try to Explain, Sun Blows Up Today, Turning Violent, Look... The Sun Is Rising, Always There In Our Hearts
Score: 73/100… Expand