When we told someone we were going to see the Flaming Lips play the Royal Albert Hall, they remarked “Wow, that’s a lot of balloons.”

Damn right it was. And the view from up in the circle, where we sat like a joyously rapt little kid – was nothing short of magical. There’s not many shows where you find yourself saying things like "I hope he brings out the nun puppet for the sing along again…"

Flaming Lips shows have been described as "wonderfully surreal," "otherworldy" and "psychedelic," by dazed fans and journos alike. And if you’re anything like us, you’ll feel huge waves of emotion at the gig, you may not shut up about it for days, and you’ll be reminded of the beautifully-phrased wisdom of lyrics like “happiness makes you cry.”

There definitely were a couple of moments… the first being when the band started by bursting in with Race For The Prize, confetti spraying out of the cannons onstage, combined with the amazing sight of heaps of giant white balloons bouncing high in the air off the massive crowd. Having seen The Flaming Lips on an intimate outdoor stage, closing a near perfect Big Day Out in Auckland in ’04, this writer had some idea of the treats in store. It was of course, more of that euphoric larger than life loveliness, magnified by the grand setting of the Royal Albert Hall.

The set-list hadn’t changed much, and that’s cos it needn’t have -what better song is there to start a show with?! Before it all kicks off, someone on stage says "Are you ready Mr Wayne?" before he steps into that giant bubble and rolls across the crowd, as their own inspiring and life-affirming words of wisdom blast up on the big screen. It’s what they’re all about – reminding us that life is “just one short momentary blip” and it’s up to us to make the most of it, and tonight we can join them in doing just that. Ending with one final statement “Fuck yeah!” the first song comes in.

As fellow heckler Matt Laidlow mentioned, Wayne had offered an explanation of the Santas and aliens dancing on opposite sides of the stage ("they could be good, or evil aliens, we’re not sure") as representing Christianity on one side, and Scientology on the other. “It’s The Flaming Lips and you guys in the middle… and we’re gonna win.”

The night is full of those personal touches, mixed in with the epic atmosphere inside what Coyne calls a “magical fishbowl” of a venue. He tells us a story about a recent New Year's show in L.A. that was rained out, where a guy had planned to propose to his girlfriend, as often happens at Flaming Lips concerts. Then he brings the couple out to re-enact the proposal – a Santa girl and an alien from either side of the stage – and tells us all to go “ape shit” even though it isn’t the real thing.

He remembers to talk to the people in the very front side seats who can’t see the big screen, smacks the giant balloons their way, and encourages the rest of us to help get them right us sitting at the top. He shakes the little nun puppet like crazy for the Yoshimi singalong, while making us hold all those notes for the longest time. And tonight we’re given the extra treat of a cow keyboard solo – the highlight being one well-placed note in the gap where the band stops playing. What’s a cow keyboard? A little keyboard made by a fan, to look sorta like a cow, of course.

Then there’s the mirrorball that gets lowered down, turning the whole hall into a sort of huge underwater ballroom, with hundreds of rays of light dazzling the crowd. As Matt mentioned, The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song is the main newie on the list, amongst classics such as She Don’t Use Jelly. At one point, Wayne’s holding his own strobe light, as well as all the others going off above the stage. The lights get up to that stupidly fast speed, and we try not to blink for a few seconds. The inside of the Albert Hall in that kind of light was indescribable.

We could go on, but really the best thing to do is just go see them for yourselves.As they leave after playing their cover of Black Sabbath’s War Pigs as an encore, it all seemed like it was over too quickly. As we left, we thought – that was so fantastic, did it really just happen? The confetti on the floor and streamers hanging from the lighting rig are all that remain. But it’s OK, there is more to look forward to yet. We're seeing them again soon, at a festival in Spain. And you can bet we won’t shut up about it then either. This one’s going straight into our top five gigs of the year, without a doubt.

[review by Dedee W]