The Flaming Lips
The Terror
Warner Bros.

With the oddly-twisted synths and bass-driven rhythms that dominated 2009’s Embryonic, the Flaming Lips made the first step away from the bright psychedelic pop and splendor that dominated every record since their 1999 magnum opus, The Soft Bulletin. And while those records always had themes of melancholy and death, they were mixed with celebrations of love and life. Embryonic may have hinted a change towards a darker sound both contextually and aurally, but nothing could have prepared anyone for the despair and sheer anger that dominates The Terror.

The nine songs that make up the Lips’ latest opus have you on edge from start to finish. Given frontman Wayne Coyne’s recent coping with divorce and multi-instrumentalist Steven Drozd’s struggles with addiction, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the imagery descends fast and far into themes of isolation, loneliness, desperation and disillusion; but the Lips have always channeled loss with hope and optimism. There is no wonder or glee to be found here on The Terror with searing and buzzing electronic synths that open it on “Look… The Sun Rising.” Incendiary guitars and beats leave the listener unsettled and disorientated that only continues with such stark and bleak pieces as “Be Free, a Way,” “Try to Explain” and “You Lust.” The 13-minute centerpiece that makes up the title track jolts you into a violent and chaotic dream full of electronic buzzing, screaming guitars, keyboard atmospherics.

The Flaming Lips have never ceased to continue on a road different from the mainstream that they’ve paved for themselves, filled with experimentation and different musical landscapes that change with every release. You could sense a different direction on Embryonic, but it’s full realized here on The Terror. It’s cathartic, jarring and intense; a powerful masterpiece that captures the full intensity and emotion of the Coyne and Drozd with music that’s simply one of the best albums of the career – Jeff Noller.