Photo by Bryan Lasky
Legendary American psychedelic rock band The Flaming Lips have announced their first round of 2023 tour dates. The tour billed as An Evening With 2023, will see the band playing shows featuring career-spanning setlists to celebrate their long and storied history.
The tour will kick off with a two-night stand at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver, B.C., on Feb. 28 & March 1. From there, the band will play shows in Stateline, Nev. and Las Vegas on March 3 and March 4, respectively. The Flaming Lips will then head to California for three performances, in Del Mar on March 6, Anaheim on March 7, before closing out the tour at the Arlington Theatre in Santa Barbara on March 9. In a statement, the band said these gigs will have them “mining (our) catalog for what promises to be an epic and unforgettable two-hour set.”
Aside from the upcoming tour, The Flaming Lips have a multitude of other news to share with their fans. For one, their famous anthem “Do You Realize??” was just certified gold by the RIAA. The single comes from the group’s opus Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, a sci-fi-themed quasi-concept album released in July 2002. The record, which was a long-anticipated follow-up to 1999’s acclaimed The Soft Bulletin, Yoshimi, was undoubtedly a high-water mark in the band’s nearly 40-year career. Since its release, the 2002 record has been a favorite of casual listeners and devoted fans alike.
To celebrate its 20th anniversary, Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots was recently re-released in an expansive box set that includes B-sides, demos, remixes, radio sessions, and two concerts, among a variety of other assorted rarities from its era. The box set is now available in CD form and on streaming services, with a five LP vinyl package (featuring 56 tracks) set to be released on April 14, 2023. The CD or vinyl box sets can be ordered from the band’s website.
The band also has The Flaming Lips Space Bubble Film, currently streaming exclusively on The Criterion Channel. The concert film, which takes place in the band’s home base of Oklahoma City, shows the logistical challenges of putting on a show at the height of the pandemic in 2020. The Space Bubble concerts featured both the band and the audience encased in individual, transparent prophylactic “space bubbles” that kept attendees safe and socially distanced yet still connected in a live music environment.
The Flaming Lips have been busy the past few years, between releasing their latest record, American Head in 2020, touring the world, making concert films and issuing re-releases. Their momentum will surely continue into 2023, kicking off the year with these An Evening With 2023 concerts.
Presales begin at 10 a.m. local time on Thursday, Dec. 8, with public on-sale starting Friday, Dec. 9, at 10 a.m. local time. Tickets and more information can be found here.
AN EVENING WITH WEST COAST TOUR 2023
Feb. 28 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
March 1 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
March 3 Stateline, NV Harrah’s Lake Tahoe
March 4 Las Vegas, NV Brooklyn Bowl
March 6 Del Mar, CA The Sound – Del Mar Fairgrounds
March 7 Anaheim, CA House of Blues
March 9 Santa Barbara, CA Arlington Theatre
YOSHIMI BATTLES THE PINK ROBOTS SHOWS
April 28 London, UK Eventim Apollo
May 05 Chicago, IL The Salt Shed
May 05-May 07 Atlanta, GA Shaky Knees Festival
May 25 Washington, DC The Anthem