They Might Be Giants – old school fiends John Flansburgh and John Linnell – have been making elliptical, funny and adventurous records for over 40 years and writing music for children, advertising and TV comedies. We talk to John Linnell here about songwriting, early shows in art spaces, the way you saw the world when a "wiseacrey teenager" and what you can expect from their autumn tour. Which, incidentally, will include the "pointlessy difficult exercise" of performing Sapphire Bullets Of Love every night in reverse which they'll film and run backwards and then send the clip to audience members so they can gauge its accuracy ("like watching people sing for whom English is a second language"). Some illuminating moments here ...

... the rich vein of '50s music outside of rock and roll. 

... communicating by posting cassettes and how they built a following with an ansaphone.

... working in a record store in Massachussetts. 

... playing on the same bill as Steve Buscemi at New York performance venues in the '80s and gigs involving papier mache hands and masks. 

... why children are "a tough crowd" and the unsettling news that their albums for kids were outselling their usual records. 

... the fine art of survival after a 1990 worldwide hit.

... and Yoko Ono, Pere Ubu, Elvis Costello and the disturbing effect of Frank Zappa's Weasels Ripped My Flesh.

They Might Be Giants tickets here …

https://www.ticketmaster.co.uk/they-might-be-giants-tickets/artist/945181

Visit us on Patreon to see how you can help us continue the conversation: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.