Fleming Lips performed a concert with bands and fans enclosed in plastic bubbles


Rock musicians in Oklahoma City are literally blowing up in 2020, finding a way to play live and use inflatable human-sized bubbles to defend themselves and fans against Covid-19.

Performing in their hometown criteria on Monday evening, Fleming Lips put themselves and all the fans present inside – individual plastic spheres. The concert – which was part of a live show, part of a music video shoot – was born out of a sketch by Dwayne Coyne in the early days of the epidemic, Frontman told CNN.

Coyne told CNN during a phone call, “I drew a little picture … where I drew The Flaming Lips where he was doing a show in 2019. Interview on Friday.” Then (I drew another picture with this) Fleming Lips in 2020 Was running a show. The same scenario, but I’m in a bubble, and everyone else is. “

At the time, Coyne says, the idea was more or less a social commentary about the state of the virus, with the idea that Covid-19 would never last long to see the bubble experiment fully grow.

“I don’t think anyone would have thought … this is still going on in mid-March, you know, after eight months. I think we all thought this is a month, this is probably two months,” but we We will get a handle on that, ”he said.

Coyne and Bond unveiled the concept during their first visit to “Stephen Colbert with the Late Show” in May.

It motivated them to continue.

“We do some songs with about 30 people in the bubble. And we start thinking, ‘Well, you know, just by doing that, we start to get an idea that we can really do it, you know, and It could really happen, “Coyne said.

“Space Bubbles” has long been part of the Fleming Lips stage show, so Coyne and company were familiar with a series of inflating orbs. After setting the specs, the band ordered 100 bubbles from China, and this unique music event – one of the first to be drawn on Koye’s sketchpad – was set to kick off.

“Since May, the desire to watch live music has just been received, you know, more, more expanded,” he told CNN, adding that fans interested in running the test have been asked to come to the criteria between 6:30 and. 7 p.m. ET.

“Shortly after six, we already had enough people.”

With nearly a hundred fans floating, Fleming Lips remixed a pair of dances from “Assassins Youth for Youth” and “Brother I”, their latest LP, “American Head”.

Coyne posted an Instagram post from the show “Laughs !!!” Gave a citation with the word. – They allowed the feat to be pulled en masse.

“I like this way, because you can get as excited as you want, you can scream as much as you want, you can’t just infect the person next to you, no matter how much you forget, how excited you are,” he said. Said. “That barrier is still there, they’re safe, and you’re safe … part of it is what really made us feel like a success.”

So is the future of live music, at least in the midst of this global epidemic, bubbling with fans and bands alike, surrounded by ncing?

“I’m willing to do everything I can, you know, I think we can do this, and this would be absolutely safe,” Coyne said, hoping to eventually get a vaccine.

“We, as Fleming Lips, like the idea that we’re doing something different …. I think it can be cool. It can be fun. And for all of us, it can be a crazy unique experience. . ” He said.

“Enough for a while.”

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