The Flaming Lips Announce Two More "Bubble Concerts" In Oklahoma City

Following a successful two-night run of “bubble concerts” in Oklahoma City earlier this month, The Flaming Lips have announced two more of the concept concerts in their hometown. The shows will once again take place at The Criterion on March 12th and 13th.

January 22nd and 23rd saw The Flaming Lips execute what they deemed to be the world’s first-ever “bubble concerts.” The psych-pop rockers filled the Oklahoma venue with 100 plastic bubbles that could hold three fans each, as well as performed the concert from plastic enclosures themselves. It now appears that the band will continue on with this concept as long as the pandemic maintains its stranglehold on regular live gatherings.

Each bubble is equipped fans with a battery-operated fan, a bottle of water, a towel to wipe down condensation, a Bluetooth speaker to receive sound, and a pair of signs—one which read “I gotta go pee,” and another reading “It’s hot in here.” When someone would display either of those signs, a staff member would come by to remedy the situation by either opening the bubble to allow the person(s) to use the restroom or refill the space bubble with new air to cool it down.

The Flaming Lips’ space bubble concerts came as the result of months of planning, test runs, and delays. Dating back to last June, the band teased the idea of performing an entire concert from socially-distant plastic bubbles with appearances on late-night TV and NPR Music‘s Tiny Desk (Home) Concert series.

The band attempted a pair of trial runs back in October, playing just a few songs in front of a test audience. Videos of these concerts filtered out online from the band and created a notable buzz around the idea and The Flaming Lips soon announced a pair of full-fledged concerts for December. However, even the protection of the plastic bubbles couldn’t halt fears from the outside world as the band decided to postpone the original dates to January in light of ever-rising COVID-19 cases. In a fortunate, and increasingly rare, turn of luck these rescheduled dates actually came to fruition as The Flaming Lips pulled off what they deemed to be the world’s first-ever space bubble concerts.

Tickets for the two upcoming Flaming Lips space bubble concerts at The Criterion on March 12th and 13th go on sale on Wednesday at 10 a.m. CT here.