Earlier this year, we told you about the tumultuous breakup of The Flaming Lips as we knew them, and how Wayne Coyne has essentially commandeered the band – booting longtime bandmate, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and creative genius Steven Drozd to the curb, in favor of some yes-men.
At the time, Wayne was fittingly cocky and dismissive about the whole thing, downplaying Steven’s decades of songwriting, musicianship and influence like he was just some guy who helped load the confetti cannons before shows.
Anyway, Wayne’s tone – and his apparent desire to minimize Steven’s role in the band’s success – caused a little controversy in the local music press, so you’d think he’d maybe be a little more graceful, careful or even nice when addressing the topic in the future.
Well, apparently not.
Earlier this week, an Ogle Mole sent me a link to a new interview Wayne gave to Balkanrock – a Serbian music site – where he once again talked about Steven’s departure and somehow managed to make it sound even uglier.
Instead of simply saying Steven was a massively talented, essential part of The Flaming Lips’ greatest era and wishing him well, Wayne did what Wayne apparently does now – minimized the contributions of former bandmates, framed himself as the only real engine behind the band, and then aired out Steven’s personal problems like a bitter ex-boss giving a reference check.
Check this out:
Balkanrock: What's it like to be the last man from the original line-up left in the band, after Michael Ivins left as the only other original member left. Not to mention that longtime member Steven Drozd left the band relatively recently.
Wayne Coyne: The Flaming Lips have been around since 1983. It's a very, very long time, and I'm mostly the one doing things. Michael was never a particularly good musician. We did a lot of things together and went on a lot of tours, but he was never the creative one. When we started, we were a punk rock band and he never wrote songs or did that kind of thing. When Steven came along, he was such an amazing musician that he could turn a simple song into a big, lush composition. We were just freelancing, however that worked. However, many times I am still the one doing things.
I don't want to say that nothing has changed, but I do so much that no one who has had the opportunity to work with me would really notice much of a difference.
Okay, that’s honestly not that bad.
Wayne simply acknowledged what most Flaming Lips fans already know – he’s the band’s founder, frontman and general freak-show foreman, while Steven was the musical savant who could turn one of Wayne’s acid-bubble ideas into something beautiful, lush and occasionally Grammy-worthy.
Sure, Wayne fired an unnecessary stray bullet at Michael Ivins, who was probably somewhere peacefully not being a particularly good musician, but whatever. At least he gave Steven some credit for being an “amazing musician” who helped shape the band’s sound. That’s progress, right?
Well, maybe not:
And Steven has always been a drug addict and an alcoholic. As you get older, those things just take their toll. Little by little, as he got older, he wanted to do anything less and less. And I can work and I don't have to wait for anyone. There are many people around who would jump in and say, "I'll help!".
I absolutely loved those guys, and I don't work with anyone I don't love. But I'm old, you know. I am 65 years old, although I still have a lot of energy. After a while, their batteries just died and we got to the point where they didn't want to do anything anymore. Steven's problem was that he was using too many drugs and he couldn't even play anymore, nor did he know that he couldn't play anymore. It's hard to drag an old man along who just doesn't like doing anything anymore. He didn't like tours, planes, hotels, backstage. He didn't like to play concerts. And then you're like, "Well, that's literally all we do!"
With all that he was doing, he had to be heavily drugged to function at all. I mean, I love all of it. I like to play and I like to travel. I try to accept everything. I even love this interview we're doing now. I look at it as an amazing life that I get to live. For me, the feeling isn't really that much different. If you were around me, you wouldn't think anything was different.
Listen, I always appreciate honesty, and say what you want about Wayne Coyne – the guy doesn’t mind sharing his honest opinion on things – but there’s a pretty big difference between being candid and publicly airing out the alleged addiction issues of a former bandmate who helped make you famous.
Seriously, what the hell was that?
First of all, as someone who’s seen Wayne Coyne sitting alone at the Blue Note waiting for a drug dealer, it’s a little rich to hear him suddenly go full D.A.R.E. officer when talking about Steven Drozd.
I’m not a psychologist – I’m just a local obscure social blogger with a grudge and a thesaurus – but it sure feels like there may be a little projection floating around in that space bubble.
Second, and more importantly, why can’t Wayne just be cool and nice?
As I’ve written multiple times on this site, Steven Drozd was a key contributor to The Flaming Lips when they achieved peak fame during the indie rock craze of the mid-aughts. His influence can’t be overstated. Without him, there’s likely no Soft Bulletin, no Yoshimi, and, as a result, no Wayne Coyne giving interviews to Serbian rock websites in 2026 about how art is like masturbation.
Seriously, Wayne could have simply said Steven is dealing with some personal things, touring got hard, and the band decided to move on. That would have been honest enough. Instead, he basically shoved Steven under the tour bus and backed over him with the hamster ball.
Anyway, I guess that’s Wayne’s choice. He can keep pretending The Flaming Lips are still the same band as long as there are balloons, costumes and enough hired hands to kiss his ass, but for longtime fans – especially the Oklahoma ones who watched the band evolve, with the help of Steven Drozd, into one of the most inventive acts in rock – it’s hard not to see this as another reminder that the Flaming Lips we knew are gone.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We’ll keep you advised.
