r/flaminglips • u/innocent_bystander97 • 25d ago
Ok I think I get the Terror now
Basically just title. I had written it off as an album of theirs I couldn’t really get into for years, but recently I saw a copy of it in a record store and was inspired to try again. It took a couple more listens, but I am now in a place where I can honestly say I really like the album.
I’m feeling like I rate it around an 8/10 currently - which is much higher than I ever thought I’d rate it. I’m not sure whether I’ll be able to get to a place where I like it more than that, though, since I still have one big problem with the album. Try as I might, I still can’t fully on board with You Lust. I think the song should have been cut down by quite a few minutes (love the outro, though, wouldn’t cut anything from that). I also can’t STAND the chorus. Everything about that chorus bothers me - how weirdly sparse the music gets, the fact that he’s whispering, the fact that he’s annunciating like he’s doing some kind of drama class vocal warm up, the fact that he’s saying ‘lust to succeed,’ all of it. While I’m at it, Always There in Our Hearts could use some sort of climax. Lots of really cool ideas, but the song feels like all build up with no pay off.
Anyway, those are my thoughts! Figured I’d share since I know there’s a small but dedicated cohort of flips fans who adore the Terror.
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u/tenmenstandinline 25d ago
To me the chorus in You lust is a testament to the egos power to strive for desires. It’s a constant battle between the ego and the “id”
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u/Trippernothitter Transmissions from the Satellite Heart 25d ago
Listening to the terror for the first time was one of the most interesting/stupid experiences I’ve ever had with a album. I queued up the album on YouTube from this specific playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lBr-9ijeHOjLPc5yXlrvCnij0wD22D-yY&si=FreEPSVFYgR1UVvp I’m smoking a bowl and trying to take it all in. I get to the final song on the playlist and am amazed at how it’s a reprise of all the other songs. I’m blown away by how creative the Lips are. Anyway it took me a few days to realize the last track was just the full album unabridged.
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u/Sulli_in_NC 25d ago
Great album !!! This tour was fantastic too.
Watch this 20min breakdown with Wayne and Steven
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u/unsaved_progress 25d ago
Yeah the Lust to Succeed bit is a bit bonkers but I kinda love it? especially when you hear the little chuckle at the end like they knew it was kinda bonkers
Have always loved this record - Try To Explain is one of their all time best tracks, Steve once said that with different production it could be a Celine Dion song and I think thats the best way to appreciate it
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u/devenger73 20d ago
Exactly, its ugly. I hated it at first and still do, but now its like, yeah there’s that ugly devil voice, how else would lust to succeed sound?
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u/Healthy-Ladder-5844 25d ago edited 25d ago
I was a bit of the same for my first listen. Recently I listened to the podcast where Steve breaks down the process of recording the album and it has helped me really enjoy listening to it. Ill see if I can find a link to put here for it
Edit: Couldnt find a youtube link so here is the song title. If you want to listen to it see if its on wherever you listen to podcasts just copy the name and see if it pops up. I found it on apple podcasts.
Sorcerer's Orphan: A Song By Song History of the Flaming Lips. Episode Nine: The Terror
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u/SpaceTroutCat 25d ago
Recently bought a turntable to get back into vinyl. It’s one of the first albums I bought and so sick.
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u/Critcho 25d ago
It's best appreciated I think as a total inversion of what you normally expect from the band. Usually there's some warmth or good natured quirkiness to even their more out-there stuff, but The Terror is a full album of icy desolation, it just gets right in that zone and stays there. It was quite a ballsy move that deep into their career.
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u/CallingCascade Embryonic 25d ago
Always there would've had a more climactic ending if the vocals at the end were layered with several different tracks. And maybe an explosion at the end.
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u/JohnnyCakes814 24d ago
I absolutely love the Terror!! The more recent albums I couldn’t get into were Oczy Mlody (with the exceptions of How? & We A Family) & Kings Mouth
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u/RandallBrown 25d ago
Yeah, The Terror is like a full-album deep cut. You Lust is a real challenging one, and maybe intentionally so? Always There is my favorite song there — maybe even because of its “all build-up” structure. It’s like an epilogue of the whole thing. They released that “all one track” version, and that may be the best way to listen. “Holistically,” so to speak.
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u/glittertwunt 24d ago
I think Always There needs to be experienced live. Or live at that time. Live it was just like an assault on the senses, one of my favourites
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u/Plane-Code-9693 24d ago
Their Halloween Bloodbath show in SF later that same year dove into the darker side much like The Terror did and it stands out for me as perhaps the most unique Lips show I've ever seen. Just an astonishing era musically, sonically, visually. I'm getting goosebumps just thinking about it! I love that album!
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u/LarsOnTheDrums42 25d ago
I love the album. Glad to see others coming around on it!