From Particle Man to the Playground
They Might Be Giants have evolved to teach evolution
By Adam Scoppa |
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"Hello, interview number one of six," said a mock-robotic voice on the other end of the line. "I'm getting my interview crash helmet on."
I suppose I didn't expect any less of a greeting than that from John Flansburgh, one-half of geek-rock legends They Might Be Giants.
John Flansburgh and John Linnell of They Might Be Giants
Photo: Jayme Thornton
"I'm ready for the hard-hitting questions," he joked.
If you're wondering whatever became of They Might Be Giants, rest assured that they're still just as fun and weird (not to mention productive) as you remember them from your salad days.
Perhaps best known for jubilantly bizarre tunes like "Particle Man" and taking accordion-infused pop music to unprecedented heights, Flansburgh and band mate John Linnell have been the cult heroes of intellectual, quirky music fans everywhere for over a quarter-century.
Since springing from Brooklyn's New Wave scene in the early 1980s, TMBG's unwavering commitment to their own unique standards has earned them two Grammy awards, multiple television and film collaborations, and tours all over the globe. Now fourteen albums into their career, they show no signs of slowing down.
"We started out with a very peculiar point of view, and we've tried to figure out how to take that to as elevated a level as we can," Flansburgh said. "We . . . kind of earned our position in the marketplace. We were never a Cinderella story, we were never an overnight sensation, we were never foisted on the public by a corporation. We really found our audience before we found a record company, and that just made it seem much more organic. At this point, having been in this band for 25 years, we're so far past the standard sell-by date that any band has."
TMBG's oddball themes and kaleidoscopic arrangements have found their way onto numerous children's shows, from Tiny Toon Adventures to Blue's Clues, so it's not too surprising that three out of their last four full-length releases have been geared towards children.
"We sort of backed in to this parallel career of doing kids' stuff," Flansburgh said. "It's been very well-received. There aren't very many people who are engaged in as split a career as we are at this point."
2005's Here Come The ABCs, 2008's Here Come The 123s, and last year's Grammy-winning Here Comes Science are classic-sounding TMBG fare, but are designed to be fun for both tots and their fan parents.
Here Comes Science kicks off with the infectious "Science Is Real," which proclaims in TMBG's trademark nasally vocals, "Science is real from the Big Bang to DNA/Science is real from evolution to the Milky Way." Though the lyrics aren't as pleasantly absurd as much of their best material, the music still bears all the hallmarks of their sound. The band's current tour features daytime family concerts, one of which they will perform at the Capitol Theatre on March 14th.
"They're really more like conventions of young parents," said Flansburgh. "It's very liberating for them and you can tell it's a very joyous experience. Our main objective is to entertain kids and keep kids engaged on the most essential level. And that's no small order. Sparking their imagination on any level is a real challenge."
"We're not educators, and we don't make any claims to have a unique insight to the educational topics. It kind of takes a lot of the topspin off of being curious about the world," he observed. "[Children] quickly find out in the culture that we live in that that's considered strange. If you're curious about the world, that's a good thing. It doesn't make you an outsider."
Like their other two educational albums, Science includes a DVD with music videos that correspond to each song. In the videos, Flansburgh and Linnell are portrayed either as puppets or animated characters.
"When the kids find out that we're real, they might be a little bit confused," Flansburgh mused.
They Might Be Giants have not completely resigned their focus to pre-adolescent entertainment. Between the dates of their family-friendly children's shows are performances of their acclaimed 1990 album Flood in its entirety, as well as sets comprised of at least one song from each release.
"I think we have a pretty healthy perspective on where we fit in," Flansburgh said. "What we're doing is very take-it-or-leave-it; it's not going to be for everybody. The fact that we're still actively recording and making new projects . . . that's something I'm very happy about. At this point, most people are rolling around in their greatest hits."
"We didn't ever really have that many hits," he added.
They Might Be Giants Perform @ The Capitol Theatre
77 S High St.
March 14th, 3 p.m.
www.theymightbegiants.com
Originally Published: March 1, 2010
