If you’ve read my reviews lately you may have noticed that they haven’t been glowing*.

　　However, this effort from The Flaming Lips is absolutely wonderful. If you look at the cover and decide that this album is mainly for children, you’ll miss out* on a lot. I don’t want to speak too much about the band because their previous experimental efforts have already made them quite famous.

　　Commonly, experimental music* is somewhat difficult for listeners to enjoy. This is not true of The Flaming Lips’s songs. Their songs are easy to listen to, beautiful, funny and moving. The 11 tracks on this album combine to tell a story which I cannot quite seem to make sense of, but that doesn’t prevent me from appreciating* the music.

　　I was immediately snared* by the opening track Fight Test, and the following track, One More Robot, made me a fan for life. The third song, Yoshimi Battle the Pink Robots, Pt. 1, is a nice guitar ballad with a marvelous melody.

　　A good album should be a perfect fusion* of melody, rhythm and songcraft*, and The Flaming Lips have achieved a nice balance in that respect.

　　Few bands can craft life-affirming* songs as well as The Flaming Lips. This album deserves the full five stars.