Huh. Apollo 18 is probably my favorite TMBG album, but John Henry didn’t grab me near as much.
I’d share warmth with that observation, but would only subscribe to it within certain discussions. The cleverness can get tiring, but it’s appreciated.
I’ve a bit of intrigue with TMBG, but overall it’s more of a, “meh”. Though, they are a significant artist on the musical landscape.
Also… I notice no love shown in this thread for “Experimental Film”? The narrator’s self-regard and pretentiousness are wonderfully balanced with an air of impotence (“I don’t know what makes your face implode, but that’s the way the movie ends”). It’s a fun composition with a hooky, sticky chorus.
I really liked Apollo 18 which was one of the first albums to recognize the potential of the shuffle feature on the CD players of the day.
…interesting…
If you want someone else in that vibe, there’s also Canada’s Moxy Früvous.
I don’t really like their recorded music that much, I mean it’s amusing but it’s not something I wand to sit down and listen to. But live they were really good, at least 20 years ago.
I’m not a big fan and I’ve never plunged into their deep cuts, but I like almost everything I’ve heard from them…for a maximum of 3-4 songs in in one sitting. After that, they get kind of annoying to me.
I will give them props for the stuff they let Animanics use back in the day. Also, their their kids stuff.
I love, love, love them so I think we cancel each out?
A different song, also called Constantinople. I refer it to the one covered by TMBG. 
Their kid albums are fantastic. I still sing snippets, and my kids are in high school.
Their kids’ album, “No!” is pretty great.
Agreed with those who were not impressed with them live - and it’s not because they were tired of the songs from Flood - the first time I saw them was summer of ‘90. The other two times were free shows.
Meh. Too obvious. Listening to that song feels like getting repeatedly whacked with a sledgehammer that has “RACISM IS BAD” engraved on the face.
Mr. Dibble: it occurs to me that the experience of hearing “Your Racist Friend” in 1990 was probably very different for a non-white South African than for a white American. I’m sorry for any offense I may have caused by being thoughtless about context.
I bought Flood when it came out, because of the great song “Birdhouse in Your Soul”. I knew nothing of the band at the time. In addition to Birdhouse, I immediately fell in love with “Dead”. The lyrics quoted are great, and the key to the song, but the rest are also terrific, in addition to the production and arrangement. But the rest of the album never took hold. I tried their follow-up Apollo and maybe played it twice. All this is to say that if there is one song that has a higher “I-love-the-song to I-am-not-a-huge-fan-of-the-album” ratio, I can’t think of it. This song always grabs me, and even more so now that it’s been 30 years since I first heard it. Fuck!
I saw them perform in a small venue (actually it was in the student center) at my university in Houston back in 1990. I bought Flood around the same time.
My son and I are going to see them perform Flood in its entirety for the 30th anniversary of the album’s release later this week in New Haven, CT. He’s in his early 20s, so of course the original album was released before he was born.
I saw them in 1995, with a friend who was then 5 months pregnant. (Her daughter slept through the whole show.) The only thing I really remember about that show is that it was in a ballroom, and at one point, they wanted the crowd to form one giant conga line. My friend was leading it at first, and when she asked if we could swap places, the line actually stopped and we did.
Wow, all these people saying TMBG live is boring is…not at all my experience. I like a lot of their albums and I have seen them live at least 10 times, and for me the lives shows have been amazing. They’ve got a killer backing band with whom the Johns have great chemistry. They improv, they do fun shit with the crowd, every show is different. They are one of my favorite live bands of all time.
Agreed. I might have given the opinion earlier that I don’t like them much. Flood was fine for the most part, and I certainly listened to it, at least enough to want to get tickets to see them at the 9:30 Club in D.C., when it was still downtown. And yeah, the show was very entertaining as I recall.
No love for The Guitar? I’m not a big fan of TMBG, I think my first encounter was Istanbul on MTV’s Liquid Television? Certainly enjoy Birdhouse. But to me, TMBG calls to mind The Guitar. Love that jam!