Photograph by Prudence Upton THE FLAMING LIPS Sydney Opera House, September 30 How appropriate that this adult children’s party, this celebration of trust and hope and optimism in the face of pretty much anything, this lysergic-tinged but in truth sober, straight and merely naturally buoyant event took place on the day it looked like Sydney’s lockout laws might be overturned.* We can go out and play mummy and daddy? Oh goody! Fittingly, given we were marking the 20th annivers

At the end of this month The Flaming Lips will mark 20 years since The Soft Bulletin turned them from low-selling weirdos with wild ideas to culturally significant, better-selling weirdos with wild ideas with an Australian tour including two nights at the Sydney Opera House. While there’s been some mixed results in recent years, most of the first decade of this century saw the Oklahoma band play some of the most spirit-lifting, communal-love-in, ultra-enjoyable shows you’re e