The Soft Bulletin

The Soft Bulletin
The cover of the original version of The Soft Bulletin
Studio album by The Flaming Lips
Released	May 17, 1999
Recorded	April 1997 – February 1999 Cassadaga, New York, USA
Genre	Psychedelic rock, space rock
Length	58:26
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	The Flaming Lips, Dave Fridmann, Scott Booker
Professional reviews
Allmusic [1] Robert Christgau (B)[2] Inkblot Magazine (positive) link[dead link] NME (9/10)[3] Pitchfork (10.0/10)[4] Q [5] Rolling Stone [6] Tiny Mix Tapes [7]
The Flaming Lips chronology
Zaireeka (1997) The Soft Bulletin (1999) Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (2002)
Singles from The Soft Bulletin
"Race for the Prize" Released: June 14, 1999 "Waitin' for a Superman" Released: September 6, 1999
Alternate cover
The cover of The Soft Bulletin 5.1

The Soft Bulletin is the ninth album released by The Flaming Lips on May 17, 1999 (see 1999 in music) in the UK, with a US release following on June 22, 1999.

Sound

The album was considered to mark a change in course for the band, with more traditional catchy melodies and accessible-sounding music (their previous album, 1997's Zaireeka, was a quadruple album of experimental sounds meant to be played on four separate stereo systems simultaneously) and lyrics that were more serious and thoughtful in content.^[8]

The album was noted for its fusion of ordinary rock instruments, electronic beats and synthesizers. Its large, layered, symphonic sound has also earned it a reputation as the Pet Sounds of the 1990s from a few critics.^[9][10]

Critical and commercial impact

Despite never reaching the Billboard 200 (it hit #12 on the Heatseekers chart), The Soft Bulletin reached universal acclaim (85/100) on Metacritic and topped over 60 "Best of 1999" lists^[11] with some critics, namely Allmusic and Pitchfork Media, even going so far as to name it as a contender for the best album of the 1990s. Pitchfork Media rated The Soft Bulletin at #3 in their top 100 albums of the 1990s.^[12] The Soft Bulletin is partially responsible for establishing the latter-day identity of The Flaming Lips, and as its following expanded over the years after its release, paving the way to their being among the most well-respected groups of the 2000s. The album sold 38,000 copies in the U.S. in 2006.^[13] In 2006, Robert Dimery chose The Soft Bulletin and its follow-up Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots as part of his book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die [1].

Album cover

The cover artwork of the album is a modified version of a photograph taken by Lawrence Schiller for a 1966 Life magazine article on LSD.^{[citation needed]}

Track listing

All tracks by The Flaming Lips

Upon its release, The Soft Bulletin was subject to record company demands for commercial-sounding music, hence the inclusion of remixes of several songs. In addition, the US and UK CDs each contain one track that the other does not, "The Spiderbite Song" and "Slow Motion" respectively.

US CD release

1. "Race for the Prize" (Mokran Remix) – 4:09
2. "A Spoonful Weighs a Ton" – 3:32
3. "The Spark That Bled" ("The Softest Bullet Ever Shot") – 5:55
4. "The Spiderbite Song" – 4:02
5. "Buggin'" (Mokran Remix) – 3:16
6. "What Is the Light?" ("An Untested Hypothesis Suggesting That the Chemical (In Our Brains) by Which We Are Able to Experience the Sensation of Being in Love Is the Same Chemical That Caused the "Big Bang" That Was the Birth of the Accelerating Universe") – 4:05
7. "The Observer" – 4:11
8. "Waitin' for a Superman" ("Is It Gettin' Heavy?") – 4:17
9. "Suddenly Everything Has Changed" ("Death Anxiety Caused by Moments of Boredom") – 3:54
10. "The Gash" ("Battle Hymn for the Wounded Mathematician") – 4:02
11. "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate" – 5:17
12. "Sleeping on the Roof" (excerpt from "Should We Keep the Severed Head Awake??") – 3:09
13. "Race for the Prize" ("Sacrifice of the New Scientists") – 4:18
14. "Waitin' for a Superman" (Mokran Remix) – 4:19

UK CD release

1. "Race for the Prize" (Sacrifice Of The New Scientists) – 4:18
2. "A Spoonful Weighs a Ton" – 3:32
3. "The Spark That Bled" (The Softest Bullet Ever Shot) – 5:55
4. "Slow Motion" – 3:53
5. "What Is the Light?" (An Untested Hypothesis Suggesting That the Chemical (In Our Brains) by Which We Are Able to Experience the Sensation of Being in Love Is the Same Chemical That Caused the "Big Bang" That Was the Birth of the Accelerating Universe) – 4:05
6. "The Observer" – 4:10
7. "Waitin' for a Superman" (Is It Gettin' Heavy?) – 4:17
8. "Suddenly Everything Has Changed" (Death Anxiety Caused By Moments Of Boredom) – 3:54
9. "The Gash" (Battle Hymn For The Wounded Mathematician) – 4:02
10. "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate" – 5:17
11. "Sleeping on the Roof" (excerpt from "Should We Keep The Severed Head Awake??") – 3:09
12. "Race for the Prize" (Mokran Remix) – 4:09
13. "Waitin' for a Superman" (Mokran Remix) – 4:19
14. "Buggin'" (The Buzz Of Love Is Busy Buggin' You) (Mokran Remix) – 3:16

Vinyl release

Side one

1. "Race for the Prize"
2. "A Spoonful Weighs a Ton"
3. "The Spark That Bled"
4. "The Spiderbite Song"

Side two

1. "Buggin'" (The Buzz of Love Is Busy Buggin' You)  – 3:16
2. "What Is the Light?"
3. "The Observer"

Side three

1. "Waitin' for a Superman"
2. "Suddenly Everything Has Changed"
3. "The Gash"

Side four

1. "Slow Motion" – 3:53
2. "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate"
3. "Sleeping on the Roof"

The Soft Bulletin 5.1

On January 31, 2006, Warner Bros. re-released The Soft Bulletin in the US as a two-disc package titled The Soft Bulletin 5.1. It includes a remastered CD and a DVD-Audio disc that contains a 5.1-channel surround sound mix of the album. The song titles provided are the songs' full titles and are featured on their website. (Two songs, "Waitin' for a Superman" and "Suddenly Everything Has Changed" feature two different subtitles, one for the UK edition and one for the US edition. Most websites use the UK subtitles, and are also used here.)

Package content

CD and DVD

1. "Race for the Prize (Sacrifice of the New Scientists)" – 4:18
2. "A Spoonful Weighs a Ton" – 3:32
3. "The Spark That Bled (The Softest Bullet Ever Shot)" – 5:55
4. "Slow Motion" – 3:49
5. "What Is the Light? (An Untested Hypothesis Suggesting That the Chemical [In Our Brains] By Which We Are Able to Experience the Sensation of Being in Love Is the Same Chemical That Caused the "Big Bang" That Was the Birth of the Accelerating Universe)" – 4:05
6. "The Observer" – 4:11
7. "Waitin' for a Superman (Is it Gettin' Heavy??)" – 4:17
8. "Suddenly Everything Has Changed (Death Anxiety Caused by Moments of Boredom)" – 3:54
9. "The Gash (Battle Hymn for the Wounded Mathematician)" – 4:02
10. "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate" – 5:23
11. "Sleeping on the Roof (Excerpt From "Should We Keep the Severed Head Awake??")" – 3:33
12. "The Spiderbite Song" – 4:10
13. "Buggin' (The Buzz of Love Is Busy Buggin' You)" – 3:24

DVD videos

1. "Race for the Prize (Sacrifice of the New Scientists)" – 4:26
2. "Waitin' for a Superman (Is it Gettin' Heavy??)" – 4:39

DVD outtakes

1. "1000 Ft. Hands" – 5:50
2. "The Captain Is a Cold Hearted and Egotistical Fool" – 5:14
3. "Satellite of You" – 4:32

DVD radio sessions

1. "Up Above the Daily Hum" – 4:38
2. "The Switch That Turns Off the Universe" – 7:54
3. "We Can't Predict the Future" – 3:04
4. "It Remained Unrealizable" – 8:34

Notably, the album track list for the 5.1 package is the definitive track list that the band had intended but was unable to release in 1999. A few notes:

• The 5.1 package has the UK tracklist with the remixes at the end removed. They were replaced with "The Spiderbite Song" and the original mix of "Buggin'" which had previously only seen release on a US promotional CD.
• This package marks the first time that US consumers have been able to get "Slow Motion" on CD, as this had previously only been available on the UK CD and the US vinyl releases.

Packaging error

The first pressings of The Soft Bulletin 5.1 were erroneously shipped with an original US CD instead of the new remastered CD with the revised track list. The band is offering to replace the incorrect CD with the new version for anyone who received the wrong CD in their package.^[14] In addition, many people who have sent their incorrect CDs in for replacements have also received a hand-written letter of apology from the band's bassist, Michael Ivins. Warner Bros. has since fixed this problem and is now shipping 5.1 packages to retailers with the correct CD included.

Personnel

The Flaming Lips

• Wayne Coyne – songwriting, vocals, guitar, percussion
• Michael Ivins – bass guitar, vocals
• Steven Drozd – songwriting, guitar, keyboards, synthesizers, drums

References