So You Stopped at "Flood": 5-Song Playlists for Every* Post-"Flood" TMBG Album
Whenever I read about They Might Be Giants online, just as often as I run across effusive praise from superfans (like myself, natch), I run into the inevitable "I listened to Flood, but never anything after that." They likely heard "Birdhouse in Your Soul" from a mix tape or CD, or likely saw the Tiny Toon Adventures episode with "videos" for "Particle Man" and "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)." Of those that liked what they heard, there's a subset that never got farther than that.
Some folks acknowledge the subsequent catalog of Johns Flansburgh & Linnell is daunting to dive into--and it is, as they put out 21 albums *after* Flood--while others were wary of how the Johns' sound would or wouldn't evolve.
Thus, here's a primer for every "proper adult" post-Flood album by TMBG for those curious of dipping into their vast catalog. I've created 5-song playlists from each album that, in my humble and obsessive opinion, are both the best a given album has to offer, but also capture the vibe and tone of the album in miniature. A YouTube video is included for each song for your perusal and consideration.
* Before diving in, note that I'm excluding their children's albums, compilations, live albums, solo projects, one-off concept albums, bonus albums or EPs--or else this post would be triple the length! Without further ado...
The 1990s
Learn more about Apollo 18 at tmbw.net
I Palindrome I: Arguably the anthem for word nerds everywhere? Dreamlike imagery meets smart, snarky wordplay. Classic.
The Statue Got Me High: Prime example of taking a non-sequitur idea--a statue changing your life--and running wild with it.
The Guitar (The Lion Sleeps Tonight): Horn-centric bop that puts a clever spin on the classic "The Lion Sleeps Tonight."
See the Constellation: Though not a concept album per se, this album had a "space" theme--and this stargazing power-pop gem turns looking at the night sky into a transcendent time.
Fingertips: You want experimental music? You got it. 21 mini-songs, pinballing between genres, styles, vocalists, and vibes. Truly unique.
Learn more about John Henry at tmbw.net
AKA Driver: If finding yourself in a moonlit Twilight Zone-esque race with a stranger on a dark highway had a theme song, this would be it.
Sleeping in the Flowers: Cleverly bounces between different tempos and style to great effect. Daydreamers unite!
No One Knows My Plan: This song about a stir-crazy would-be jailbreaker has a tempo that leads to conga lines at TMBG concerts. You've been warned!
A Self Called Nowhere: Based on a Vonnegut short story, but evoking gothic and cosmic horror vibes. I'm not sure there's been a song like this of theirs before or since.
The End of the Tour: A gut punch of a song about love and loss. If you know you know.
Learn more about Factory Showroom at tmbw.net
Till My Head Falls Off: Antic banger from the POV of someone raging against aging. For better or worse, I relate to this song far more than I did when it first came out (ha!).
How Can I Sing Like a Girl?: Big-sounding power pop with a slide guitar bridge, and lyrics one could argue are pro-queer/pro-trans. I'm 1000% here for it.
Spiraling Shape: A song about the dangers of addiction that goes hard AND climaxes with a vibraphone-heavy finale? Yes.
Pet Name: Per John Flansburgh: "This track takes us deeper into the Memphis groove than the band has ever been before. The song is about a slightly sleazy couple with a tenuous relationship to each other and a suspect relationship to the world."
The Bells are Ringing: Pairs well with "Spiraling Shape" as a two-fer dealing with succumbing to bad influences.
Learn more about Long Tall Weekend at tmbw.net
Drinkin': Short, sweet, jaunty, peppy tone-setter showcasing surf-ish bass and robust horns.
Certain People I Could Name: Propulsive piano and bass drive this ode to recognizing folks in the least palatable of places.
Maybe I Know: A cover of the Leslie Gore hit from the 1960's, it was a long-time staple at their live shows. Here's them performing it on MTV (hey, remember that?)
Lullaby to Nightmares Keeping with the retro vibe, this wouldn't feel out of place in a 1950s night club (filled with creeps and ghouls).
They Got Lost: A fan favorite and their most meta song, literally about them getting lost on the way to a radio station. (I cheated and posted the superior up-tempo version of the song from their '98 live album "Severe Tire Damage." You're welcome!)
The 2000s
Learn more about Mink Car at tmbw.net
Man, It's So Loud In Here: TMBG loves proving there's no genre they can't nail, and they absolutely crushed this techno-heavy (and extremely danceable) track.
Cyclops Rock: Big-time '80s punk vibes on this one, with an unforgettable cameo by Welsh singer Cerys Matthews *screaming the bridge*.
Hovering Sombrero: A rumination on the passage of time, regret, and self-worth, through the lens of, well, a hovering sombrero. Is it a UFO reference? Is it about an angel's halo? Who knows. It's still wonderful.
My Man: One of many songs by the Johns about accidents: car crashes, bike crashes, and the fallout of them. This is from the POV of (part of) a post-crash paralysis victim. On paper it sounds depressing as hell, but damned if it isn't catchy.
Mink Car: The jazzy piano and horns give the album's title track a stately, timeless sound. Hallucinatory lyrics evoke the sadness of losing the happiness that money can't buy.
Learn more about The Spine at tmbw.net
Experimental Film: Buoyant and joyful banger about the pleasures of just making weird art. As meta as a TMBG song gets without being explicitly meta.
Bastard Wants to Hit Me: Uncategorizable in its sound--you've got vocoder vocals, synth-heavy backing, and a brass bridge, all in service of some poor guy trying to avoid some crazy guy looking for a fight. Hilarious and hard to forget.
It's Kickin' In: Flansburgh goes full Elvis Costello. Jangly guitars, nimble keyboards, 100% swagger. This is the good stuff.
Thunderbird: A fan favorite at concerts for years. I really don't know what it's about--something about car crashes (again)? something about regaining your memory?--but it's as catchy and head-bobbing as anything they've ever done.
Damn Good Times: On the CD, this is technically the second half of two songs bridged by the sound of applause (the charming "Au Contraire"), but I prefer this one on its own. Sounds like it was engineered to get the crowd going at their live shows. And it works!
Mighty hard to pick a top 5 from this one. Includes one of my all-time fave songs of theirs, the anthem of dealing with work-a-day drudgery "Climbing the Walls." "With the Dark" is a rollercoaster of a song, whipsawing between what sounds like 5 different musical styles, while "The Mesopotamians" is the Johns' oblique commentary on the Iraq War disguised as a goof on the Monkees' theme song.
Learn more about The Else at tmbw.net
Climbing the Walls: Also in my top 5 faves of theirs, and my teen daughter's favorite TMBG song as well. It poses the question, which is worse: being stuck in a job you hate, or being stuck hating not having a job?
The Cap'm: Sometimes you want a silly song about a guy with a big ego singing about his awesomeness. This is that song, and it rocks.
With the Dark: There is a LOT going on in this one. It feels like five or six songs crammed into one tight package. Come for the cryptic lyrics, stay for the wonderfully tonal whiplash.
Withered Hope: Have you seen "American Splendor?" Recall the awkward courtship of Harvey & Joyce? Set those vibes to big 1970s funk and brass. Boom.
The Mesopotamians: Only John Linnell could take the names Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal, and Gilgamesh, and turn them into *the chorus* of a riff on the theme song to the Monkees. Well played, Mr. Linnell.
The 2010s
Also the first in a string of albums with videos created as part of fan contests. Check out the absurdly clever (and very "cheeky") backwards-style video for "Can't Keep Johnny Down".
Learn more about Join Us at tmbw.net
Can't Keep Johnny Down: Take something akin to the theme from the US version of "The Office," but set it to lyrics from the POV of the town jerk, and you've got this cheery-on-the-outside, disturbed-on-the-inside opener. As one of the first lyrics goes, "All of the dicks in this dick town / can't keep Johnny down." Indeed!
Canajoharie: Truly gorgeous and wistful track inspired by John Linnell's childhood.
When Will You Die?: Like the meanest Weird Al song never made. Gleefully riffs on one brazenly praying for a horrible person's death. It's wonderful.
Judy is Your Viet Nam: I don't know how they pulled it off, but an entire relationship arc is covered in 1.5 minutes in his tight, rockin' miracle.
Three Might Be Duende: Another hard-to-pin-down gem. Brassy horns, acoustic guitar, and a marching beat, it tells the tale(?) of a trio of mythical brothers(??) who together form the essence of artistic emotion(???). Broadway vets David Driver and Michael Cerveris provide textured guest vocals.
It's also curious, for me anyway, that it's the only album of theirs I felt has the songs "in the wrong order." Hit me up if you ever would like my suggested reshuffling of the tracks ;)
Learn more about Nanobots at tmbw.net
Nanobots: A jaunty title track if there ever was one. At face value it's about literal nanobots propagating, but you could easily see it as a metaphor for raising children.
Circular Karate Chop: Like the theme song to a lost Disney Channel show about a kid who squares off against the school bully and wins. The spoken bridge evokes that karate instructor from "Napoleon Dynamite." Good stuff.
Lost My Mind: From the POV of a body that lost its mind ("literally"), pining for it to return like a long-lost lover. Heart-string-pulling in a way I wasn't expecting.
Sleep: The best and longest of the mini-songs, it raises the disturbing question: are you a different person every time you wake up?
The Darlings of Lumberland: A spooky good time, inspired by wandering graveyards in Sullivan County, NY. Has one of their best song intros ever IMO. The horns on this are immaculate.
Despite the potential for there being a lot of middling stuff, this one ended up being one of their best. Also continued the trend of fan-made video contests; see my favorite winning entry for "Erase" below.
Learn more about Glean at tmbw.net
Erase: What if "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" was a catchy-as-hell power-pop song? It'd sound a lot like this.
Music Jail, Pt. 1 & 2: Evoking "Istanbul..." from "Flood" this two-part experiment starts with soaring violins, and then pivots hard into almost Beach Boys-esque melody, all in the service of a tale of someone taking chances with their art, and living to regret it.
Answer: One of their most painfully heartfelt songs about wanting to make someone happy--yet the lyrics leave it ambiguous as to the singer's intentions.
All the Lazy Boyfriends: Like a lost '80s/'90s anthem for guys trying to get off their butts and do something with their lives. (And its video is one of their funniest)
Unpronounceable : Heavy-duty synth-pop/new wave shenanigans. Captures the pain of *just* missing out on "the one."
Learn more about Phone Power at tmbw.net
I Love You For Psychological Reasons: John Linnell is a lyrical wordsmith par excellence, and this dive into exactly *why* we love who we love puts on a clinic of top-tier, brainy-yet-heartfelt songwriting.
I'll Be Haunting You: When a tale of immortal revenge meets an absolutely slapping bassline, you get this masterpiece. (Fun fact: Adoni Maropis, the actor playing the table-tennis champ in the video, was also real a table-tennis champ.)
ECNALUBMA: Leave it to TMBG to write a song from the POV of a guy so enamored with the pageantry of ambulances, he keeps hurting himself just to ride in them. Disturbing yet fascinating.
Daylight: Flans gets super-heavy in this short but effective dirge for those stuck in a miserable relationship with seemingly no escape.
Bills, Bills, Bills: TMBG appeared in the AV Club Undercover series twice: once performing Chumbawumba's "Tubthumping," and again performing a rock-ified take on the Destiny's Child hit. Linnell challenged himself by having to sing all those quickfire lyrics at an even more rapid clip, and he pulls it off.
Strong album--not quite top-tier, but better than their '99-'04 stretch. (The cover continued a curious trend of ever-more-minimalist album covers, sort of starting with "Glean." Just you wait for the next few album covers... there's so little to see! ;) This was notably released a few years after the 2016 US Presidential election, and you can tell a lot of the tracks are informed by the general vibes of the time--some more oblique in capturing those feelings, others far more on the nose (like the well-intentioned but awkward "Lake Monsters," about swamp creatures voting to save the nation). Definitely a darker edge overall, but nonetheless top-shelf stuff.
Re: the videos--check out the brilliant POV-warping fan-made contest winner for "I Left My Body," as well as the nightmarish "apocalypse on a farm" visuals of "By the Time You Get This"--featuring the Johns themselves!)
Learn more about I Like Fun at tmbw.net
I Left My Body: I asked John Flansburgh, in an online Q&A when this album came out, if this was a spiritual successor and/or sequel to "Lost My Mind" from "Nanobots." While he said only Linnell (who wrote this) would have the answer, he didn't seem to disagree. A stirring companion piece: where the other song was about a body losing its mind, this is about a mind losing its body.
By the Time You Get This: A seriously underrated track, if only because it has so many twists and turns re: the intentions of the song's main characters (via a time-capsule message from 937 AD), all packed into its barely-two-minute narrative. A timeless commentary on the persistence of corruption and the forces fighting it.
An Insult to the Fact Checkers: As close to punk as TMBG gets. Flansburgh claims it's based on a friendship gone south; you'll be forgiven if you think it's about the current administration in the US.
When the Lights Come On: When it comes to subject matter, there's dark, and then there's this. Did you ever read or see "The Road?" You know the people in the basement of that house? It's got those vibes. And yet... this totally slaps.
Last Wave: Dark, but unintentionally so: for their live shows, TMBG took the "Walk This Video" Aerosmith/Run DMC video, and added silly lyrics a la Bad Lip Reading to it. *This* version, though, is those lyrics (many of which are bleak as all get out), and plays it straight.
Speaking of which, it of course has the most off-putting title of any TMBG album (it is taken directly from the song "Mrs. Bluebeard" off of "I Like Fun," but still...yeesh. Not pleasant!) A lot that's average, but still plenty to like, and what's to like is fabulous. Learn more about My Murdered Remains at tmbw.net
The Communists Have the Music: If you're looking for a full-throated, clear-eyed, anti-fascist, pro-music anthem, look no further than this.
I've Been Seeing Things: Takes you inside the mind of someone solving a mystery that never was. A manic, crunchy toe-tapper.
Gudetama's Busy Days: Moody, psychedelic, and very "non-TMBG" sounding, but the subject matter and lyrics are on point and haunting. Check the video, edited by Flansburgh himself, using found footage for the cult Canadian horror film "The Mask."
Selectionist: A refreshing electronic instrumental piece. If I ever need a quick sonic pick-me-up, I throw this on.
The Neck Rolls Aren't Working: If the frustration of useless self-help products were a song, this would be it. Some of Linnell's knottiest looping-logic lyrics ever.
The 2020s
This album came out in the early days of the COVID pandemic, and there are definitely songs in here reflecting their mindset (the "increasingly worrying press conference" madness of "Synopsis for Latecomers", and the "losing all track of time due to the pandemic" disorientation of "I Lost Thursday"). And it features one of my favorite songs of theirs of the last 10 years, the breathless "I can't do the math of life to save myself" frantic bop "Less Than One."
Learn more about BOOK at tmbw.net
Synopsis for Latecomers: Very much a "listening hopelessly to COVID-era press conferences" vibe, with the beat of a march. Maybe their weirdest album opener ever? (Trigger warning: it does contain a cannibalism reference that, while played for laughs, some might find disturbing.)
Moonbeam Rays: Flans has the whole "wistful tales of broken hearts" thing locked down tight, and he adds another to his arsenal here.
Brontosaurus: From the POV of a, well, brontosaurus (or is it?), it's a tale of trying to make it as an artist and fitting in (and failing).
Part of You Wants to Believe Me: Another 2020's song with a 1990's vibe. Sunny power-pop about reckoning with lies. And full of signature tricksy wordplay from Linnell.
Less Than One: Captures the anxiety and struggle of when, no matter how hard you try, you always end back up at "zero." Easily in my top 5 of theirs, no joke.
Learn more about The World Is To Dig at tmbw.net
Wu-Tang: Literally inspired by John Linnell's appreciation for the Wu-Tang Clan, it's about someone singing the praises of those who've inspired them artistically. It also short-circuited the mind of rapper Open Mike Eagle, who is a mega-fan of both TMBG and Wu-Tang.
Sleep's Older Sister: Inspired by the "sleep's older brother" lyric from "Three Might Be Duende" off of "Join Us," this dark and moody banger takes you on a trip across the River Styx.
Outside Brain: From Flansburgh: "[It's] about mania and panic, and is as much about the feelings of those twisted emotions as it is about any real storytelling in the lyrics." Check the machine-gun drums courtesy Marty Beller driving the whole thing.
Get Down: TMBG loves to take a well-known phrase and play with it by addressing its multiple meanings all at once. And they do that here to hilarious, funky effect.
Character Flaw: One of my favorite opening lyrics from a TMBG song (complete with Linnell screaming "Yesssss!"). Peppy and poppy, but with a dark, disturbing truth lurking beneath the surface. (Y'know, like most TMBG songs.)
Some folks acknowledge the subsequent catalog of Johns Flansburgh & Linnell is daunting to dive into--and it is, as they put out 21 albums *after* Flood--while others were wary of how the Johns' sound would or wouldn't evolve.
Thus, here's a primer for every "proper adult" post-Flood album by TMBG for those curious of dipping into their vast catalog. I've created 5-song playlists from each album that, in my humble and obsessive opinion, are both the best a given album has to offer, but also capture the vibe and tone of the album in miniature. A YouTube video is included for each song for your perusal and consideration.
* Before diving in, note that I'm excluding their children's albums, compilations, live albums, solo projects, one-off concept albums, bonus albums or EPs--or else this post would be triple the length! Without further ado...
The 1990s
Apollo 18 (1992)
There's a fair chance you may have seen a video or two on MTV (back when it was relevant) from this album! Though the Johns didn't yet have a dedicated backing band yet, they continued to feature several guest performers and vocalists with their follow-up to Flood--most notably Laura Cantrell's vocals on "The Guitar (The Lion Sleeps Tonight)" and the handful of non-John singers featured throughout the tour de force "Fingertips". Learn more about Apollo 18 at tmbw.net
I Palindrome I: Arguably the anthem for word nerds everywhere? Dreamlike imagery meets smart, snarky wordplay. Classic.
The Statue Got Me High: Prime example of taking a non-sequitur idea--a statue changing your life--and running wild with it.
The Guitar (The Lion Sleeps Tonight): Horn-centric bop that puts a clever spin on the classic "The Lion Sleeps Tonight."
See the Constellation: Though not a concept album per se, this album had a "space" theme--and this stargazing power-pop gem turns looking at the night sky into a transcendent time.
Fingertips: You want experimental music? You got it. 21 mini-songs, pinballing between genres, styles, vocalists, and vibes. Truly unique.
John Henry (1994)
The first TMBG album to feature a full-backing band. Despite the shift away from heavy reliance on synths and drum machines, John Henry was absolutely bursting with fresh ideas and explorations of musical styles (e.g., the super-dark tragedy of "Why Must I Be Sad?", the a capella gravitas of "O Do Not Forsake Me," the whimsical smarm and charm of "Extra Savoir Faire"). This one features what's become my all-time favorite song of theirs, "AKA Driver" (aka "NyQuil Driver," renamed due to legal reasons).Learn more about John Henry at tmbw.net
AKA Driver: If finding yourself in a moonlit Twilight Zone-esque race with a stranger on a dark highway had a theme song, this would be it.
Sleeping in the Flowers: Cleverly bounces between different tempos and style to great effect. Daydreamers unite!
No One Knows My Plan: This song about a stir-crazy would-be jailbreaker has a tempo that leads to conga lines at TMBG concerts. You've been warned!
A Self Called Nowhere: Based on a Vonnegut short story, but evoking gothic and cosmic horror vibes. I'm not sure there's been a song like this of theirs before or since.
The End of the Tour: A gut punch of a song about love and loss. If you know you know.
Factory Showroom (1996)
The Johns got even more experimental with his album, opening with a legit (if a little awkward) ode to gettin' it on ("S-E-X-X-Y"), a song entirely recorded on an Edison Laboratory wax cylinder recorder ("I Can Hear You,") and flirtations with "normal-sounding" blues-inspired songs of love gone wrong (the excellent and featured "Pet Name").Learn more about Factory Showroom at tmbw.net
Till My Head Falls Off: Antic banger from the POV of someone raging against aging. For better or worse, I relate to this song far more than I did when it first came out (ha!).
How Can I Sing Like a Girl?: Big-sounding power pop with a slide guitar bridge, and lyrics one could argue are pro-queer/pro-trans. I'm 1000% here for it.
Spiraling Shape: A song about the dangers of addiction that goes hard AND climaxes with a vibraphone-heavy finale? Yes.
Pet Name: Per John Flansburgh: "This track takes us deeper into the Memphis groove than the band has ever been before. The song is about a slightly sleazy couple with a tenuous relationship to each other and a suspect relationship to the world."
The Bells are Ringing: Pairs well with "Spiraling Shape" as a two-fer dealing with succumbing to bad influences.
Long Tall Weekend (1999)
The two most notable things about this album: it's the only TMBG album to open with an instrumental track ("Drinkin'"), and even crazier, it was the first album by a major recording artist released entirely online. 'Tis a shame, then, that this is easily their weakest album, in my opinion. The following are handily the five best tracks--legitimately great and would slot in nicely with any of their stronger efforts. (My personal fave is the darkly funny "Certain People I Could Name.")Learn more about Long Tall Weekend at tmbw.net
Drinkin': Short, sweet, jaunty, peppy tone-setter showcasing surf-ish bass and robust horns.
Certain People I Could Name: Propulsive piano and bass drive this ode to recognizing folks in the least palatable of places.
Maybe I Know: A cover of the Leslie Gore hit from the 1960's, it was a long-time staple at their live shows. Here's them performing it on MTV (hey, remember that?)
Lullaby to Nightmares Keeping with the retro vibe, this wouldn't feel out of place in a 1950s night club (filled with creeps and ghouls).
They Got Lost: A fan favorite and their most meta song, literally about them getting lost on the way to a radio station. (I cheated and posted the superior up-tempo version of the song from their '98 live album "Severe Tire Damage." You're welcome!)
The 2000s
Mink Car (2001)
Plenty of solid tracks on this one, but continued a trend of not quite reaching the highs of their albums of the '80s and '90s. The absolute highlight is the pulse-pounding Pet Shop Boys-esque techno homage/parody "Man, It's So Loud in Here." Also the first album of theirs to have a proper "title track" (the evocative piano-driven "Mink Car"). This album also has the unfortunate distinction of releasing on 9/11/2001; I remember buying the CD of this that day in sort of a fugue state. It definitely helped me through that period in time.Learn more about Mink Car at tmbw.net
Man, It's So Loud In Here: TMBG loves proving there's no genre they can't nail, and they absolutely crushed this techno-heavy (and extremely danceable) track.
Cyclops Rock: Big-time '80s punk vibes on this one, with an unforgettable cameo by Welsh singer Cerys Matthews *screaming the bridge*.
Hovering Sombrero: A rumination on the passage of time, regret, and self-worth, through the lens of, well, a hovering sombrero. Is it a UFO reference? Is it about an angel's halo? Who knows. It's still wonderful.
My Man: One of many songs by the Johns about accidents: car crashes, bike crashes, and the fallout of them. This is from the POV of (part of) a post-crash paralysis victim. On paper it sounds depressing as hell, but damned if it isn't catchy.
Mink Car: The jazzy piano and horns give the album's title track a stately, timeless sound. Hallucinatory lyrics evoke the sadness of losing the happiness that money can't buy.
The Spine (2004)
It's the "That Homestar Runner video" album! Another decent album with a handful of total bangers (aka the five listed below), surrounded by lots of OK ones. The first time one of their albums dabbled in a "mini concept" tucked into a "regular" album (featuring the super-short thematic tracks "Spine" and "Spines"). Features maybe one of their catchiest, bounciest songs ever, "Damn Good Times."Learn more about The Spine at tmbw.net
Experimental Film: Buoyant and joyful banger about the pleasures of just making weird art. As meta as a TMBG song gets without being explicitly meta.
Bastard Wants to Hit Me: Uncategorizable in its sound--you've got vocoder vocals, synth-heavy backing, and a brass bridge, all in service of some poor guy trying to avoid some crazy guy looking for a fight. Hilarious and hard to forget.
It's Kickin' In: Flansburgh goes full Elvis Costello. Jangly guitars, nimble keyboards, 100% swagger. This is the good stuff.
Thunderbird: A fan favorite at concerts for years. I really don't know what it's about--something about car crashes (again)? something about regaining your memory?--but it's as catchy and head-bobbing as anything they've ever done.
Damn Good Times: On the CD, this is technically the second half of two songs bridged by the sound of applause (the charming "Au Contraire"), but I prefer this one on its own. Sounds like it was engineered to get the crowd going at their live shows. And it works!
The Else (2007)
A triumph. This one felt like a massive course correction for the Johns. This in my top 3 albums of theirs, and one of the few with "no skips". Fun fact: it was produced by The Dust Brothers, who also worked with the Beastie Boys, Beck, and the Rolling Stones, to name a few. While that may add to the polish of how each track sounds, the lyrics and breadth of ideas really make it shine.Mighty hard to pick a top 5 from this one. Includes one of my all-time fave songs of theirs, the anthem of dealing with work-a-day drudgery "Climbing the Walls." "With the Dark" is a rollercoaster of a song, whipsawing between what sounds like 5 different musical styles, while "The Mesopotamians" is the Johns' oblique commentary on the Iraq War disguised as a goof on the Monkees' theme song.
Learn more about The Else at tmbw.net
Climbing the Walls: Also in my top 5 faves of theirs, and my teen daughter's favorite TMBG song as well. It poses the question, which is worse: being stuck in a job you hate, or being stuck hating not having a job?
The Cap'm: Sometimes you want a silly song about a guy with a big ego singing about his awesomeness. This is that song, and it rocks.
With the Dark: There is a LOT going on in this one. It feels like five or six songs crammed into one tight package. Come for the cryptic lyrics, stay for the wonderfully tonal whiplash.
Withered Hope: Have you seen "American Splendor?" Recall the awkward courtship of Harvey & Joyce? Set those vibes to big 1970s funk and brass. Boom.
The Mesopotamians: Only John Linnell could take the names Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal, and Gilgamesh, and turn them into *the chorus* of a riff on the theme song to the Monkees. Well played, Mr. Linnell.
The 2010s
Join Us (2011)
This one came after what felt like quite a long time between albums (at the time, the longest between releases). It built on the strengths of The Else, pushing more envelopes and trying new musical styles (the Johnny Cash-esque bumpin' "In Fact," the breezy sunny-day '70s pop vibe of "Let Your Hair Hang Down," and the uncategorizable myth-building of "Three Might Be Duende", featured below). Since 2016, their track "When Will You Die?" has become quite popular and timely. I leave it to you to sort out why.Also the first in a string of albums with videos created as part of fan contests. Check out the absurdly clever (and very "cheeky") backwards-style video for "Can't Keep Johnny Down".
Learn more about Join Us at tmbw.net
Can't Keep Johnny Down: Take something akin to the theme from the US version of "The Office," but set it to lyrics from the POV of the town jerk, and you've got this cheery-on-the-outside, disturbed-on-the-inside opener. As one of the first lyrics goes, "All of the dicks in this dick town / can't keep Johnny down." Indeed!
Canajoharie: Truly gorgeous and wistful track inspired by John Linnell's childhood.
When Will You Die?: Like the meanest Weird Al song never made. Gleefully riffs on one brazenly praying for a horrible person's death. It's wonderful.
Judy is Your Viet Nam: I don't know how they pulled it off, but an entire relationship arc is covered in 1.5 minutes in his tight, rockin' miracle.
Three Might Be Duende: Another hard-to-pin-down gem. Brassy horns, acoustic guitar, and a marching beat, it tells the tale(?) of a trio of mythical brothers(??) who together form the essence of artistic emotion(???). Broadway vets David Driver and Michael Cerveris provide textured guest vocals.
Nanobots (2013)
A curious one. Overall really solid, and one of their longest by track length, but for me, very uniformly "pretty good"--no clunkers, but not a ton of top-tier songs either. Notable for being as close to a concept album as one of their regular albums get: Not only is there a title track called (and about) "Nanobots," but the album has several "Fingertips"-style mini-songs peppered throughout the album... to varying degrees of success. The best of which is the 45-second mindbender "Sleep," which will have you questioning the very nature of your existence in less than a minute.It's also curious, for me anyway, that it's the only album of theirs I felt has the songs "in the wrong order." Hit me up if you ever would like my suggested reshuffling of the tracks ;)
Learn more about Nanobots at tmbw.net
Nanobots: A jaunty title track if there ever was one. At face value it's about literal nanobots propagating, but you could easily see it as a metaphor for raising children.
Circular Karate Chop: Like the theme song to a lost Disney Channel show about a kid who squares off against the school bully and wins. The spoken bridge evokes that karate instructor from "Napoleon Dynamite." Good stuff.
Lost My Mind: From the POV of a body that lost its mind ("literally"), pining for it to return like a long-lost lover. Heart-string-pulling in a way I wasn't expecting.
Sleep: The best and longest of the mini-songs, it raises the disturbing question: are you a different person every time you wake up?
The Darlings of Lumberland: A spooky good time, inspired by wandering graveyards in Sullivan County, NY. Has one of their best song intros ever IMO. The horns on this are immaculate.
Glean (2015)
Another top-tier album IMO, and save for one or two, a virtual "no skips" one for me. This was one of 3 albums they put out in 2015 (!!!) as part of the first of their "Dial-A-Song" revival projects, in which they released a video *every week* of 2015, with 2 "proper adult" albums and a children's album coming out of it. Despite the potential for there being a lot of middling stuff, this one ended up being one of their best. Also continued the trend of fan-made video contests; see my favorite winning entry for "Erase" below.
Learn more about Glean at tmbw.net
Erase: What if "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" was a catchy-as-hell power-pop song? It'd sound a lot like this.
Music Jail, Pt. 1 & 2: Evoking "Istanbul..." from "Flood" this two-part experiment starts with soaring violins, and then pivots hard into almost Beach Boys-esque melody, all in the service of a tale of someone taking chances with their art, and living to regret it.
Answer: One of their most painfully heartfelt songs about wanting to make someone happy--yet the lyrics leave it ambiguous as to the singer's intentions.
All the Lazy Boyfriends: Like a lost '80s/'90s anthem for guys trying to get off their butts and do something with their lives. (And its video is one of their funniest)
Unpronounceable : Heavy-duty synth-pop/new wave shenanigans. Captures the pain of *just* missing out on "the one."
Phone Power (2015)
Remember what I said about their big 2015 Dial-A-Song project? This is the other "proper adult" album that came out of it... and it admittedly feels like a bunch of leftovers. Some absolute gems (with truly memorable videos--check the "adorable lab mice" one for "I Love You for Psychological Reasons," and the "guy beats the Grim Reaper at ping-pong" epic for "I'll Be Haunting You")--but much of it was basically what they didn't think was strong enough for "Glean," and it kind of shows. (One unexpected highlight: their revved-up AV Club Undercover take on Destiny's Child's "Bills, Bills, Bills," which has rightly become a staple of their live shows.)Learn more about Phone Power at tmbw.net
I Love You For Psychological Reasons: John Linnell is a lyrical wordsmith par excellence, and this dive into exactly *why* we love who we love puts on a clinic of top-tier, brainy-yet-heartfelt songwriting.
I'll Be Haunting You: When a tale of immortal revenge meets an absolutely slapping bassline, you get this masterpiece. (Fun fact: Adoni Maropis, the actor playing the table-tennis champ in the video, was also real a table-tennis champ.)
ECNALUBMA: Leave it to TMBG to write a song from the POV of a guy so enamored with the pageantry of ambulances, he keeps hurting himself just to ride in them. Disturbing yet fascinating.
Daylight: Flans gets super-heavy in this short but effective dirge for those stuck in a miserable relationship with seemingly no escape.
Bills, Bills, Bills: TMBG appeared in the AV Club Undercover series twice: once performing Chumbawumba's "Tubthumping," and again performing a rock-ified take on the Destiny's Child hit. Linnell challenged himself by having to sing all those quickfire lyrics at an even more rapid clip, and he pulls it off.
I Like Fun (2018)
Because doing a song a week for 2015 simply wasn't ambitious enough, they did it again in 2018 for their 2nd Dial-A-Song project, again yielding three albums (two for adults, one concept album for a one-off comic book).Strong album--not quite top-tier, but better than their '99-'04 stretch. (The cover continued a curious trend of ever-more-minimalist album covers, sort of starting with "Glean." Just you wait for the next few album covers... there's so little to see! ;) This was notably released a few years after the 2016 US Presidential election, and you can tell a lot of the tracks are informed by the general vibes of the time--some more oblique in capturing those feelings, others far more on the nose (like the well-intentioned but awkward "Lake Monsters," about swamp creatures voting to save the nation). Definitely a darker edge overall, but nonetheless top-shelf stuff.
Re: the videos--check out the brilliant POV-warping fan-made contest winner for "I Left My Body," as well as the nightmarish "apocalypse on a farm" visuals of "By the Time You Get This"--featuring the Johns themselves!)
Learn more about I Like Fun at tmbw.net
I Left My Body: I asked John Flansburgh, in an online Q&A when this album came out, if this was a spiritual successor and/or sequel to "Lost My Mind" from "Nanobots." While he said only Linnell (who wrote this) would have the answer, he didn't seem to disagree. A stirring companion piece: where the other song was about a body losing its mind, this is about a mind losing its body.
By the Time You Get This: A seriously underrated track, if only because it has so many twists and turns re: the intentions of the song's main characters (via a time-capsule message from 937 AD), all packed into its barely-two-minute narrative. A timeless commentary on the persistence of corruption and the forces fighting it.
An Insult to the Fact Checkers: As close to punk as TMBG gets. Flansburgh claims it's based on a friendship gone south; you'll be forgiven if you think it's about the current administration in the US.
When the Lights Come On: When it comes to subject matter, there's dark, and then there's this. Did you ever read or see "The Road?" You know the people in the basement of that house? It's got those vibes. And yet... this totally slaps.
Last Wave: Dark, but unintentionally so: for their live shows, TMBG took the "Walk This Video" Aerosmith/Run DMC video, and added silly lyrics a la Bad Lip Reading to it. *This* version, though, is those lyrics (many of which are bleak as all get out), and plays it straight.
My Murdered Remains (2018)
As Phone Power was to Glean, so was this to I Like Fun--a handful of solid gems padded with what was very obviously filler. (They had so many leftovers, there was a bonus album accompanying this one called More Murdered Remains).Speaking of which, it of course has the most off-putting title of any TMBG album (it is taken directly from the song "Mrs. Bluebeard" off of "I Like Fun," but still...yeesh. Not pleasant!) A lot that's average, but still plenty to like, and what's to like is fabulous. Learn more about My Murdered Remains at tmbw.net
The Communists Have the Music: If you're looking for a full-throated, clear-eyed, anti-fascist, pro-music anthem, look no further than this.
I've Been Seeing Things: Takes you inside the mind of someone solving a mystery that never was. A manic, crunchy toe-tapper.
Gudetama's Busy Days: Moody, psychedelic, and very "non-TMBG" sounding, but the subject matter and lyrics are on point and haunting. Check the video, edited by Flansburgh himself, using found footage for the cult Canadian horror film "The Mask."
Selectionist: A refreshing electronic instrumental piece. If I ever need a quick sonic pick-me-up, I throw this on.
The Neck Rolls Aren't Working: If the frustration of useless self-help products were a song, this would be it. Some of Linnell's knottiest looping-logic lyrics ever.
The 2020s
BOOK (2021)
TMBG now in its 5th decade! An improvement over the last album, with a cover (which is pretty cool) that's the apex of minimalist TMBG covers. Notably titled in all caps, it's sort of a "concept album by proximity"--the album didn't feature songs with an identifiable theme, but it was available for purchase with a hefty (and also pretty cool) coffee-table book full of artsy photography paired with typographic art of the lyrics from this and the last few albums of theirs.This album came out in the early days of the COVID pandemic, and there are definitely songs in here reflecting their mindset (the "increasingly worrying press conference" madness of "Synopsis for Latecomers", and the "losing all track of time due to the pandemic" disorientation of "I Lost Thursday"). And it features one of my favorite songs of theirs of the last 10 years, the breathless "I can't do the math of life to save myself" frantic bop "Less Than One."
Learn more about BOOK at tmbw.net
Synopsis for Latecomers: Very much a "listening hopelessly to COVID-era press conferences" vibe, with the beat of a march. Maybe their weirdest album opener ever? (Trigger warning: it does contain a cannibalism reference that, while played for laughs, some might find disturbing.)
Moonbeam Rays: Flans has the whole "wistful tales of broken hearts" thing locked down tight, and he adds another to his arsenal here.
Brontosaurus: From the POV of a, well, brontosaurus (or is it?), it's a tale of trying to make it as an artist and fitting in (and failing).
Part of You Wants to Believe Me: Another 2020's song with a 1990's vibe. Sunny power-pop about reckoning with lies. And full of signature tricksy wordplay from Linnell.
Less Than One: Captures the anxiety and struggle of when, no matter how hard you try, you always end back up at "zero." Easily in my top 5 of theirs, no joke.
The World is To Dig (2026)
Preceded by the longest gap between albums to date, due to reasons ranging from COVID to Flans healing from a car accident. A solid effort, made all the more impressive considering the Johns are in their mid-60s at this point and cranking out odes praising the Wu-Tang Clan, funk jams warning about alien invasions, and punk-pop bangers sung entirely in French. As with I Like Fun, many tracks have a gloomier-than-usual undercurrent, implying they're responses to the stresses of the times when they were recorded. (The peppy "Character Flaw," for example, sure sounds like it's from the POV of someone strong-arming folks at the government's behest, and the "grinning through tears" bleak curio "Garbage In" is all shadows and no daylight). That all said, there's optimism and joy to be found amongst the downers, which is classic TMBG. Packaged with a gorgeous (and an actual, not-AI) painting of Yosemite, it's a miracle they're still going as strong as they are.Learn more about The World Is To Dig at tmbw.net
Wu-Tang: Literally inspired by John Linnell's appreciation for the Wu-Tang Clan, it's about someone singing the praises of those who've inspired them artistically. It also short-circuited the mind of rapper Open Mike Eagle, who is a mega-fan of both TMBG and Wu-Tang.
Sleep's Older Sister: Inspired by the "sleep's older brother" lyric from "Three Might Be Duende" off of "Join Us," this dark and moody banger takes you on a trip across the River Styx.
Outside Brain: From Flansburgh: "[It's] about mania and panic, and is as much about the feelings of those twisted emotions as it is about any real storytelling in the lyrics." Check the machine-gun drums courtesy Marty Beller driving the whole thing.
Get Down: TMBG loves to take a well-known phrase and play with it by addressing its multiple meanings all at once. And they do that here to hilarious, funky effect.
Character Flaw: One of my favorite opening lyrics from a TMBG song (complete with Linnell screaming "Yesssss!"). Peppy and poppy, but with a dark, disturbing truth lurking beneath the surface. (Y'know, like most TMBG songs.)
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