They Might Be Giants Celebrate 30 Years of Flood in Detroit!

Celebrating the 30^th anniversary of their breakthrough LP, Flood, the twin quasars of rock, They Might Be Giants, and their expert backing band thoroughly rocked a sold-out crowd at Detroit’s Majestic Theatre last Sunday. Tickets sold so quickly that a second show was also performed the following night, which sold out as well. The unique style of the Flood album, being both the band’s most popular and well-known in their nearly 40 years together, has appealed to a wide swath of listeners since its release, and the announcement it would be performed in full throughout the tour brought fans from all corners, from grizzled veterans seeing the group for the 20^th or 30^th time to young teens attending their first or second-ever concerts with their parents. Everyone in attendance had fun sharing an amazing night of music and nostalgia.

 

John Linnell (vocals, keyboards, accordion, etc.) and John Flansburgh (vocals, guitar, etc.) have been blazing a trail of original and engaging rock music for decades and have been working with the same backing band for over 16 years, so it’s no surprise that the professionalism and musicianship they bring to the stage is consistently top notch time and again. Guitarist, Dan Miller, peppered the evening with impressive leads and solos that accented the peaks in each song while bassist, Danny Weinkauf, kept the bottom end solid and grooving throughout the night while also nailing the awkward nuances of some of the less-conventional songs that were included. Marty Beller, on the drums, has a highly animated and energetic style that makes him look and sound like a cartoon character most of the time (perfectly suiting the band's musical style), and horn player, Curt Ramm, a supporting band member in the studio for over a decade and on tour for the last three years, has become a mainstay and highlight of the band’s performances. While TMBG focused more on celebrating Flood and spotlighting a variety of fan favorites and deep cuts from their legendary catalog rather than including any new or unreleased material, it is rumored their next LP will be coming later this year.

 

 Even in the late winter, the venue got pretty warm as the show went on though this night was nowhere near the inferno that raged there during TMBG’s 2005 show in the heat of July. The Majestic Theatre is a great venue for a Giants show in size, vibe, and most other respects, and compared to the band’s previous Detroit show at Saint Andrew’s Hall, The Majestic is an overall better fit for the style of the group and for their audience. TMBG had journeyed to The Motor City from Chicago after playing two big shows there last weekend, so in addition to changing time zones, they also experienced the beginning of Daylight Saving Time during the trip, which they comically commented on during the show. While the shows in Detroit, Chicago, and all other cities on the tour each sold out, the band had to postpone the last couple weeks of shows due to the recent virus outbreak, with Detroit ending up as one of the final cities prior to that decision.

The show itself, an evening with They Might Be Giants, meaning two sets from the headliner with no opening acts, was similar to the one they began to promote I Like Fun in the winter of 2018, but it has been tweaked to focus more on Flood and a few more hits with a bit less of the “quiet storm” section and less recent material. The entire first set consisted of songs from Flood, but they were performed in a random order, unlike previous such tours where the songs were performed in their original running order, a backward running order (last track to first), or even in alphabetical order, keeping both the fans and the band engaged and on their toes by making the presentation less predictable. Up-tempo numbers like, “Your Racist Friend” and “Twisting,” kept fans dancing and singing along, and the classic, “Particle Man” saw them clapping on the back beat through smiles and lyrics they’ve known by heart for decades. Another notable moment came when the group went to perform “Sapphire Bullets of Pure Love,” before which they explained they had (for no particular reason) learned how to play and sing backwards (!) which they proceeded to do, rendering the 90-second song nearly unrecognizable, but if recorded and played backward essentially matches the album recording from 30 years ago.

 

 After 17 of the album’s 19 songs had been performed, TMBG took a 20 minute intermission and returned with a short three-song set of tracks performed in stripped-down and quieter arrangements that allowed for them to be seen and heard in a slightly different light and usually featured only three to four of the six members of the touring group. The rarely performed, sci-fi themed, “2082,” fell apart before it began but was executed well once it got going. After a short video interlude while the crew adjusted the equipment on stage, the full band returned and powered through a mix of hits (“The Mesopotamians,” “Ana Ng,” and “New York City”), live favorites (“Older,” and  “Damn Good Times”) and deep cuts (“Wearing a Raincoat,” and “Let Me Tell You about My Operation”). The second set ended with the final two Flood songs, noticeably absent from the first set, a dynamic, horn-filled rendition of their signature cover of The Four Lads', "Istanbul,” and the super-short but much beloved, “Theme from Flood,” which Linnell and Flansburgh commented was the exact length of time you’re supposed to wash your hands, so you can sing it to yourself while doing so in place of “Happy Birthday.” The concert ended with a strong double encore that included the song-suite parody, “Fingertips,” and the hit single, “The Guitar,” both from 1992’s, Apollo 18, as well as the live standard, “Doctor Worm,” continuing to provide a climactic energy that has been part of the band’s shows for over twenty years now.

 

 While the members of the band are certainly looking older, they continue to sound very sharp, and moments of joy throughout the night mixed with a few rough spots also elicited laughter among the players on stage. There was less banter between John and John than usual, and many segues between songs allowed the next to start on the same beat or note as the previous one ended (possibly allowing the band to pack more songs into their allotted time. All told, the group played 35 songs in just over 2hrs, 20 minutes (minus all breaks), and even after all of that, the crowd would have kept rocking even longer had TMBG returned for a third encore!

Looking back on it a week later, which now feels like a lifetime ago, it’s clear TMBG’s recent Detroit performances will resonate deeply with those who were lucky enough to attend them, especially now that the timetable for returning to venues for live music remains unknown.

They Might Be Giants set list, Detroit #1 (3/8/20)

(“Gypsy” intro)
Dead

They Might Be Giants

Twisting

We Want a Rock

Minimum Wage

Your Racist Friend

Particle Man

Hearing Aid

Sapphire Bullets of Pure Love (Stilloob version)

Letterbox

Lucky Ball and Chain

Hot Cha

Women and Men

Someone Keeps Moving My Chair

Whistling in the Dark

Birdhouse in Your Soul

Road Movie to Berlin

------------------------------------(intermission)-------------
(Godzilla intro)
Music Jail (parts 1 & 2) (quiet)
2082 (quiet)

Wicked Little Critta (quiet)
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Underwater Woman (video during set change)

--------------------------------------------------------------------
Wearing a Raincoat

The Communists Have the Music

Let Me Tell You about My Operation

Older

The Mesopotamians

All Time What

Ana Ng

Damn Good Times

New York City (Cub)

Istanbul (The Four Lads)

Theme from Flood

-----------------------------------------(encore break)--------

Fingertips (parts 1-21)

Doctor Worm

-----------------------------------------(encore break)--------

The End of the Tour

The Guitar

--------------------------------------------------------------------