The Flaming Lips announce first album in six years, with two London shows planned for 2027
The Flaming Lips will release their 17th studio album, The Teardrop Throbs, on 22 January 2027, marking their first collection of new material since 2020’s American Head.
The Oklahoma psychedelic rock band have also shared the album’s lead single, ‘God Will Control the Werewolves’, and announced a series of intimate two-night shows, including two dates at London’s O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire on 2 and 3 April 2027.
The new record will be released through Third Man Records, marking the band’s first album for Jack White’s label. It also represents a significant change in the group’s lineup: multi-instrumentalist Steven Drozd, who had been part of the band for decades, does not feature on the album.
Frontman Wayne Coyne has described the record as the product of a two-year creative process, with its material drawing on parenthood, mortality, addiction and the strange ways everyday experiences can find their way into songwriting.
The title track’s accompanying single takes its name from a conversation between Coyne and his children during a game of hide-and-seek at dusk. When one of his sons wondered whether werewolves might come for them, Coyne reassured him that God would keep them safe for a while. The encounter eventually became the starting point for the song.
Coyne has also cited an unusual reference point for its sound: Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon, imagined with Syd Barrett still in the band.
The 13-track album includes ‘Every Teardrop Cried’, ‘You’ve Got Brain Damage’ and ‘Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell Part Two’, a new interpretation of a song from the band’s 2002 album Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots.
The London shows form part of a wider series of two-night engagements in Nashville, New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. The band plan to give the new album a prominent place in the performances, alongside material from their back catalogue.
Tickets for the London dates go on general sale on 30 October.
The Teardrop Throbs is released on 22 January 2027 via Third Man Records.
