Interview: They Might Be Giants’ John Linnell
When it comes to the music industry, few bands have maintained the level of creativity, wit, and sheer staying power of They Might Be Giants. With a career spanning over four decades, the Brooklyn-based duo of John Flansburgh and John Linnell have continuously reinvented themselves, producing a vast catalogue of quirky, intelligent, and undeniably catchy tunes.
Now, as they prepare to embark on their much-anticipated (and slightly overdue) Australian tour, I had the pleasure of catching up with John Linnell (vocals/Keys/Accordion) to discuss the band’s plans, their creative process, and the unexpected joys of Scottish summer.
When I connect with Linnell, he’s not in his usual Brooklyn haunts, but enjoying the Scottish countryside. “I am currently in Edinburgh in Scotland,” he tells me, the excitement evident in his voice. “My wife and I are spending pretty much the whole summer in Scotland, mostly in a flat outside of Dundee. But we’re down here in Edinburgh just for a little visit.”
The change of scenery seems to agree with him, especially given the weather differences. “The weather is quite nice in Scotland as compared to our usual home base of Brooklyn, New York, where it’s like 90ºF (32ºC) or something like that,” Linnell chuckles. “My son is sweltering in New York right now.” But even in the midst of this idyllic Scottish summer, work calls. Our early morning interview has Linnell facing an unexpected challenge: finding a decent cup of coffee. “I assumed there’d be coffee somewhere. But nothing was open when I went out,” he laments, before adding with a hint of amusement, “I think there’s a thing about Europe where, they’re not just open all the time the way they are in New York, you know?”
Our conversation naturally turns to the band’s upcoming Australian tour, an event that’s been years in the making. “We are very much into fulfilling the original promise,” Linnell assures me, referring to the tour that was initially planned to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their seminal album ‘Flood’. “We’re very pleased and flattered to learn that people had held on to the tickets they bought, you know, years and years ago, when we originally booked this tour, rather than ask for refunds.” The band’s gratitude towards their patient Australian fans is palpable. “That was really good news for us,” Linnell continues, “because it would have been a major financial hit, obviously, in addition to just feeling, you know, like it would compound the disappointment of cancelling the tour.”
So what can fans expect from the shows? “We’re doing the same show where it’s no longer the 30th anniversary of Flood. It’s now, I think, the 34th anniversary of Flood,” Linnell explains with a laugh. “But we’re still planning on playing that entire album. And we are still promoting our most recent album, Book. So, yeah, that’ll be the show that we promised originally. Plus we’re doing multiple shows in every city, at least two shows per city on consecutive nights.” And for those dedicated fans planning to attend multiple shows, there’s good news: “We will be doing completely different, well, largely different sets from one night to the next, because I’m fairly certain that there will be at least the people in the front row who are going to be returning for the second night.”
This commitment to variety stems from the band’s extensive back catalogue. “We just have a very, very long back catalogue, so we have a lot of stuff to choose from.” Linnell explains. “And we have taken the trouble to rehearse a lot of material for this show. So, yeah, it’s going to be a big cavalcade of old songs and recent songs.”
With such a vast repertoire to draw from, I’m curious about the duo’s songwriting process. Linnell’s response is refreshingly candid: “Well, we… I think we rarely have a sort of coherent, over-arching plan. We really just are trying to write a lot of songs.”
This approach of quantity leading to quality has served the band well over the years. “I think the best work we’ve ever done, we collected maybe double the number of songs that we would need for an album. And then we pick and choose the ones that sort of coalesce into a good sequence of songs,” he elaborates. But even for seasoned songwriters like these, the process isn’t always easy. “We obviously don’t want to repeat ourselves. You know, we’re trying to come up with something new each time, which gets increasingly hard, you know, every time,” Linnell admits with a laugh. “As John Flansburgh once said, we run the risk of running out of nouns. You know, I think he’s written a song by that name, Running Out of Nouns.”
The challenge of maintaining quality while constantly innovating is something both Johns treat with seriousness. “We take very seriously the idea that we don’t want to disappoint people by doing mediocre work. So, it’s hard.” he confesses. “It’s always been hard to write songs. I think the pleasure I take in the creative process is mostly after the fact. You know, I like having written songs. I struggle with writing songs. And sometimes it’s painful, you know.” This sentiment, Linnell points out, is not unique to them. “I think a lot of people who do creative work have said that exact thing, that the fun part is the satisfaction when you’ve done the work. But it can be a little bit like torture just trying to take the thing that’s out there, and make it into an object.”
One thing that sets TMBG apart from many of their contemporaries is their approach to lyrical content. “We mostly don’t write songs that are strictly about our personal lives,” Linnell explains. ” I think, we’ve never really found our own personal lives that interesting or worthy of trying to write about.” Instead, the band takes a more imaginative approach. “We don’t write confessional material. I think we’re just trying to use our imagination to come up with the kind of song that we would like, you know, that we’d enjoy if somebody else was producing it,” Linnell says.
This open-ended approach allows for a wide range of topics and styles. “We pick a wide range of topics,” Linnell continues. “Some of our songs occasionally I think we get sort of characterised as people who write songs that are sort of informational like pick a topic and just write an encyclopedia entry more or less or write an autobiographical song. We’ve certainly done that. And then songs with some historical basis.”
But at the heart of it all is a desire to create something unique and avoid clichés. “We try to avoid the clichés, you know, so we’ve written love songs, but we don’t want to write a sort of clichéd love song or a song about a heartbreak or, you know, that those topics have been very well covered already,” Linnell explains.
As our conversation draws to a close, Linnell’s thoughts turn to recent events and the future. Without delving too deeply into politics, he expresses cautious optimism about recent developments both in the US and the UK. “We’re always hoping, you know, hoping for the best, basically. What else can you do, right? Laugh or cry!” he muses.
This sentiment of hope seems to perfectly encapsulate the enduring appeal of They Might Be Giants; through decades of musical and cultural shifts, they’ve maintained their unique voice and their ability to connect with audiences young and old around the world.
When they reach Australian shores once again this coming October, fans can look forward to a series of shows that promise to be as diverse and engaging as the band’s lengthy career. Whether you’re a long-time fan eager to hear ‘Flood’ in its entirety or a newcomer curious about their latest work, Book, this tour is sure to be a celebration of creativity, resilience, and the enduring power of music.
They Might Be Giants are touring Australia throughout October 2024. Tickets on sale now.
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS Tour Dates
Tuesday 1st October – The Gov, Adelaide
Wednesday 2nd October – The Gov, Adelaide – SOLD OUT
Friday 4th October – Enmore Theatre, Sydney – SOLD OUT
Saturday 5th October – City Recital Hall, Sydney – SOLD OUT
Monday 7th October – The Tivoli, Brisbane
Tuesday 8th October – The Tivoli, Brisbane
Thursday 10th October – Forum, Melbourne
Friday 11th October – Forum, Melbourne – SOLD OUT
Sunday 13th October – Astor Theatre, Perth – SOLD OUT
Monday 14th October – Astor Theatre, Perth
PRESENTED BY DESTROY ALL LINES and METROPOLIS TOURING