What an astounding career They Might Be Giants have had. Since 1982 John Flansburgh and John Linnell have delivered unique tunes crafted for everyone from hipsters to kids to senior citizens, for educational purposes, wacky cartoons, indie flicks and even CNN, all the while keeping their idiosyncratic style intact.
Their newest offering, BOOK is next in a long line of quirky projects and continues the band’s winning ways. The album is accompanied by a 144-page full-color, cloth-bound hardcover which features original work by Brooklyn photographer Brian Karlsson and lyrics selected from several TMBG albums set in typographical illustrations by graphic designer Paul Sahre.
Opening with the tie into the physical page turner “Synopsis For Latecomers”, everyone gets caught up with nonsense speak and evasive answers. This track and others like “I Broke My Own Rule” could be sly commentaries on modern politicians/corporations no-answer-answers, the handling of the ongoing pandemic or literally anything else, as TMBG never gets tied down to specific meaning with their songs. One thing seems certain, “Lord Snowdon” is not about National Security, or, if it is, it is way out there.
Two of the best efforts here however fall into a straight ahead theme most everyone can relate too, waking up confused and breaking up respectively. “I Can’t Remember the Dream” uses a fuzz guitar “Louie Louie” like intro, buzzy keyboards and a lyric that is bright while the indie rocking “Moonbeam Rays” feels like a Yo La Tengo jam. Both instantly become two of the more direct (and traditionally successful) songs in the TMBG catalog.
Other tracks that dig in are the perfectly titled “Super Cool” and the possible gas lighting ode “Part of You Wants to Believe Me” which bounces along playfully/evilly. The band always works better in short spurts and a few of the efforts (“Brontosaurus” and “Wait Actually Yeah No”) grate with repetition and one note ideas. However, the funky goodness of “I Lost Thursday” bumps along on a killer bass line, layers of percussive bangs, guitars and horns; it is as if TMBG is channeling their inner P-Funk on a tune that is one of the few here that could benefit from going even longer.
On BOOK (the record) They Might Be Giants continue to pump out what they always have, smart earworm pop tunes that are slightly odd, tastefully corny and instantly catchy.
