Thursday, March 31, 2005

the twin quasars of rock


 
They Might Be Giants usually get tarred with the "wacky" brush (often with a side order of "zany") but I just think they write really catchy and interesting songs. And if you listen to most of their lyrics, far from being wacky, they're actually pretty dark.

"Now That I Have Everything" is from their first self-released cassette from 1985. The drums are from a shop-bought rhythm track in a bizarre time signature, which is why the drum fills happen at unexpected times.

"The Famous Polka" originally appeared on the "Don't Let's Start" single and was responsible for the infamous stage invasion that sent 80 members of the audience crashing (but unscathed) into the orchestra pit at a theatre in Milwaukee.

Both these songs come from "Then: The Earlier Years", which includes the first two albums, early EP tracks and classic songs from Dial A Song (the TMBG service where you call a number and can hear a new song everyday).

theymightbegiants.com/