Oczy Mlody

The Flaming Lips - Oczy Mlody
Critic Score
Based on 39 reviews
2017 Ratings: #703 / 940
User Score
Based on 285 ratings
2017 Rank: #802
Liked by 5 people
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CRITIC REVIEWS

90
musicOMH

It’s possible that Oczy Mlody will disappoint those looking for an easy hit, or the sound of old-school Lips, but for those willing to persist and explore, it’s a work of nuance and intelligence.

90
Slant Magazine

Oczy Mlody doesn't overwhelm or immediately impress, but instead invites listeners into its elusory world of crossed senses, unassigned values, and blind turns, hoping they end up in the same place Coyne thinks he's headed: to an idyllic future state that feels just like the past.

88
GIGsoup

The music delivers on successfully altering the body and mind in the iconic band’s latest chef-d'oeuvre cook up.

80
Loud and Quiet

This is the most vital Lips record in a while and, true to their paradoxical style, is one of their subtlest, too.

80
The Independent

It’s a lovely, silly, serious work that draws one in despite the bursts of utopian cosmo-babble.

80
God Is in the TV

Oczy Mlody is not an immediate album, but give it chance and it has the power to draw the listener back time and again, and becomes quite addictive. A very successful return from everyone’s favourite Oklahoma all-stars.

80
Crack Magazine

A good Flaming Lips album is all about scale, and while it’s not as boldly experimental as some of their past work (think Yoshimi part 2, rather than Zaireeka), the album still manages to map out worlds within itself.

80
Uncut

Oczy Mlody continues the Lips’ longstanding mission to explore the joy and sadness of simple human consciousness, so that even when the album loses its footing – which it does, often – it never loses its way.

80
The Guardian
Somewhere in the haze lurks their old knack for writing great, off-kilter pop songs that reflect and escape the bewildering world around us.
80
Clash

They’ve managed to meld together the grand themes of ‘The Soft Bulletin’ and ‘Yoshimi…’ with some of the experimentation of ‘Embryonic’ and ‘The Terror’, and it makes for a fascinating return.

80
The Skinny

Some of their sillier excesses may jar ever so slightly and fans may well feel the absence of a true pop banger ... In every other aspect, however, this is The Flaming Lips on top of their game: refracting the weirdness of the world through a youthful sense of awe and wonder.

80
Drowned in Sound

With Oczy Mlody, The Flaming Lips have managed to take us on apocalyptic journey that’s also fun, which is no mean feat. If the 'real' end of the world is half as fun, we’ll all be alright.

80
Under the Radar
This time, the music took clear precedence over the concept, and that's worthy of rejoicing.
80
No Ripcord

They continue pushing boundaries using familiar sounds as starting points, fusing warped electronic and ambient atmospheres with fried psychedelics, and with even less emphasis on anything resembling conventional "rock" music.

80
Paste

On Oczy Mlody Oklahoma City’s finest manage to build a bridge to the rest of us norms, making some of their must listenable and straight-up lovely music along the way.

75
Consequence of Sound

Save for a few moments, it’s generally slow and somber. Sure, the imagery is some of their most blacklight poster-inspired to date, but even the most druggy reference isn’t without a touch of sadness, a party lingering on too long as the morning starts to break.

70
AllMusic

As they move on from the crises that inspired The Terror, they bridge the abrasive sound that started on 2009's Embryonic and the try-anything whimsy of their collaboration with Miley Cyrus in ways that are surprisingly complex.

62
Pitchfork

While Oczy Mlody finds the Lips still eager to stretch the parameters of their aesthetic 30-plus years into the game, this time, it leaves them sounding a little distended and shapeless.

60
NME

‘Oczy Mlody’ is the sonic equivalent of a deserted space-ship adrift in the cosmos, with Coyne as the lonely repair-bot dusting the diodes. A psych rock Passengers, then, rather than Barbarella.

60
The Line of Best Fit

In stark contrast to the razor-sharp sense of purpose and unity of its predecessors, the album's meandering lack of focus soon becomes impossible to ignore.

60
Rolling Stone

The album is a bitter pill at first but it pays off to tune in and turn on.

60
Exclaim!

Unfortunately, Oczy Mlody fails to keep building on the momentum of its studio album predecessors. Though the record builds on The Terror's cerebral paranoia, its occasional forays into Casiotone drum beats and nonsensical lyrics make it an uneven, confusing effort.

58
Pretty Much Amazing

The band has become pros at surprises, and their new record Oczy Mlody is their biggest surprise yet: it’s a disappointment.

50
The Needle Drop

The Flaming Lips follow up their 2013 album The Terror with a less emotionally and texturally rich project.

40
The Observer

Rich in interesting R&B-influenced textures, its songs too often fail to engage, particularly on a ponderous second half.

40
DIY
Frequent changes in instrumentation and tone ultimately make ‘Oczy Mlody’ feel unfocused, and without any of the band’s signature flamboyance to fall back on, it makes for a dull listen.
40
PopMatters

Oczy Mlody feels less like the group’s 14th grand artistic statement and more like a minor footnote to a once-great band’s recent output.

30
The 405

Oczy Mlody at times feels like a pale imitation of The Flaming Lips, by someone who only knew of the band through their reputation for quirky antics and hyperactive, costumed live shows. The problem is that whilst it occasionally gets the stylistic elements right, there’s very little substance.

30
Tiny Mix Tapes
In some ways, it is as an exercise in stripping away everything that makes The Flaming Lips such a truly special group, leaving only that which serves as decorative tinsel to their music, hanging limp and lifelessly in the air.
depechemode4lif
68

My only main issue with this record is that while it has strong ideas and a great atmospheric vibe, the individual tracks lack much to stand out from one another in my opinion.

Stankysauce
45

I've heard quite a lot of bad things about this album, mostly regarding it having boring songwriting and no songs that really jump out at you. And honestly the intro is… fine? It really does do much, doesn't really sound like a flaming Lips track, it just kinda sounds like some random ambient thing. I'm sure it doesn't help that there are no vocals also.
I like a lot of the synth textures and effects on How?? But as a song, it is quite boring, it really doesn't bring out any sort of ... read more

LILY69420
40

some good tracks here, but too much of this album feels meandering, boring, or pointlessly weird for no reason. i really dont see what some other people find amazing here, this is easily one of the weakest things the flips have ever done

depechemode4lif
68

My only main issue with this record is that while it has strong ideas and a great atmospheric vibe, the individual tracks lack much to stand out from one another in my opinion.

jooklemainframe
87

Ugh I love flame lip

blazznambertooo
59

I like the airy, ambient, and futuristic sound they go for on the meditative title track, but some of these songs just stink.

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Added on: October 20, 2016