It's Hard to Make The Good Things Last

Best. New Year's. EVER.This was a weekend that will go down in the books as one of the most joyous, carefree, and positive times spent with friends and a band that celebrates and embodies all of these things and more. I'm actually saddened to see it come and go, but it is a memory I hope I can keep with me for the rest of my life. When I first saw that The Flaming Lips were playing a New Year's Eve party with special guests, I knew it was something I would forever kick myself for passing on. From there, everything naturally fell into place and came together, with some of my most dear, amazing friends also in for the ride. It was so nice just to get out of dodge for a weekend and relax in California. No thinking of work, money, lack of money, bills, and the aftermath of the holidays. I have seen The Flaming Lips a couple times live before, but they really pulled out all the stops to make this a special New Year's night for their fans. From their light setup descending as a spaceship, to Wayne and his plastic bubble, the most spot-on and badass cover of "Bohemian Rhapsody", dancing right next to Christina Ricci and Adam Goldberg, and Cee-Lo and Cat Power doing a very impromptu "What A Wonderful World," it really felt like I was seeing something extraordinary. If you've seen a Flaming Lips show before, you're no stranger to confetti, streamers, and massive balloons, but I swear they went out of their way to out-do themselves and go above and beyond. The countdown to midnight just felt so exciting and special...the new year just never felt that special, or different. Being showered in so much orange confetti you couldn't see, and kissing someone very special to me, sharing this moment, together--it was worth every dollar given to Ticketmaster. Wayne wanted people to think they were at the best event in the world. It sounds crazy, but honestly I wish I could personally thank them for such an amazing time."Sometimes you'll go to a New Year's party or New Year's show, and [the next day] you'll be watching some dumb CNN thing, and they'll show some party that's utterly out of control," the singer says. "You'll slump in your seat and say: 'I wish I was at that one. The one I was at, even though it was fun, wasn't out of control. My thought is: You come to a Flaming Lips show, come home and watch CNN — you pity those fools. You were at the party that was the greatest party on the planet at that moment."