[John Linnell and John Flansburgh]
Left: Flansburgh | Right: Linnell

    They Might Be Giants (hereby known as TMBG) was originally comprised of John Linnell and John Flansburgh. The two, both interested in music at the time, met in high school and decided to start writing witty tunes. In their early songs they would use whatever instruments were available to them. Linnell usually played accordion, Flansburgh played guitar, and they both sang vocals and worked with a drum machine and synthesizer. TMBG played their first concert at a park in New York where most of the audience only spoke Spanish. Nevertheless, they enjoyed their debut and continued playing in local shows in the early 1980's.

    TMBG released their first album, self-titled (They Might Be Giants), in 1986. They forged ahead and produced about 5 more full albums by themselves and with the help of various musicians when they needed certain instruments. By the release of John Henry (1994) they had assembled a full multi-instrumental band to help back them up.

    As a fan of TMBG, I have found myself in a dilemma when asked by others what category of musical style the group fits in. So here goes... The lyrics to the majority of TMBG songs are packed with metaphorical phrases and quizzical sayings. The melodies they use often sound like catchy pop tunes. Yet, other melodies go to extremes almost to sound as though TMBG intentionally mocks some performers of that musical genre. Considering these factors, it would be safe to group TMBG loosely in the alternative styles of music.

**UPDATE**
    On March 24th, 2001 I attended a TMBG concert! The experience was quite a memorable one, and the concert was excellent. Judging by the size of the audience, it looks like TMBG has gotten a lot more popular in the past three or four years, yet not too popular as to become unoriginal and lose their quirky cult-like following. Many "unique" individuals were there, but I'm happy to report that there weren't a bunch of stupid punk kids, thus backing up just how good the band still is. Linnell accompanied a few songs with his accordian and directed the audience to participate in the long, drawn-out 8 minute improvised ending to Spy by pointing to us and getting us to shout out a silly noise. Meanwhile, Flansburgh just played his electric guitar, making sure to stand right beside an apparently hidden fan so that it would blow his hair while he played. As old favorites such as Particle Man were performed, I looked all around me to see the mouths of nearly the entire audience moving, singing along with the two Johns. That sent a bit of a chill to my spine and was an indescribable feeling! The night of the concert was filled with many wonderful feelings and memories that I will never forget. The next time they come to play in the area, I'm the first in line!

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