Rating:  -
On their fifth album (and third major-label release), 1994's John Henry, They Might Be Giants are backed by a full band, resulting in their hardest-rocking, most conventional-sounding effort. John Linnell pretty much rules the proceedings (good news for anyone who thought he was underused on Apollo 18), and he turns in some of his finest performances since 1988's Lincoln. "Subliminal" (about a near-death experience) is a catchy blast; "Thermostat" is a wry comment on unreliable technology. "Unrelated Thing," a countryish examination of a problematic relationship, features his sweetest performance since 1986's "She's an Angel." "I Should Be Allowed to Think" straddles a thin line between passionate argument for freedom of speech and thought, and satire of a childish mentality that equates being unallowed to hang a poster with being oppressed (dig the refs to Allen Ginsberg's "Howl"!). In "Why Must I Be Sad," he takes on the voice of an angst-ridden teen who personally identifies with the shock-rock anthems of Alice Cooper; I love how, as he repeats the title phrase toward the end, he has bandmate John Flansburgh string together a bunch of oddly appropriate Cooper titles ("Welcome to My Nightmare," "Dead Babies," "Raped and Freezin'", etc.). In the rollicking "Destination Moon," Linnell plays a mental patient (or possibly an ailing ex-astronaut?) who thinks he's soon due for a trip into space; and in the Latin-pop "No One Knows My Plan" -- which sounds like something the late Kirsty MacColl could have done on Tropical Brainstorm (2001) -- he inhabits the character of a smug prisoner plotting revenge against the people who turned him in (whether he was guilty to begin with or not). "The End of the Tour" is about the death and guilt that result from a tour bus crashing into a car full of teenagers; though the lyrics are a bit vague, the tasteful singing and playing on the track lend it a mournful edge.
Flansburgh turns in a few strong performances, as well. "Sleeping in the Flowers," the poignant tale of a hapless loser with a crush on a copy store clerk, alternates between ham-fisted verses and a wildly catchy chorus; the angry "AKA [NyQuil] Driver" features a similar pattern of tension-and-release ("It's just a full day's drive away ... Hey NyQuil driver, get outta my lane!"). The mellow "Dirt Bike" sounds like something Sting could do, though it's hard to imagine Sting ever writing or performing trend-weary-turned-trend-savvy lyrics like "Mind bending dirt bike in control / Soul crushing dirt bike ... You see I never thought I'd understand 'til that bike took me by the hand." In the tradition of David Bowie's "Andy Warhol," the Modern Lovers' "Pablo Picasso," and Jonathan Richman's "Vincent Van Gogh," Flansy immortalizes yet another painter with "Meet James Ensor." And in the power-poppish "Out of Jail," he expresses dismay over his larcenous new girlfriend, yet faithfully stands by her.
However, as you might expect with a 20-track album, John Henry is not without filler. The barbershop pastiche "O Do Not Forsake Me" (performed by guest vocalists Hudson Shad) feels completely out-of-place; Linnell's "A Self Called Nowhere" and "Stomp Box" -- intriguingly dark lyrics aside -- are hookless and sluggish; and a few tracks (Linnell's "Snail Shell" and "Window," Flansburgh's "Extra Savoir-Faire" and "Spy") are just too lightweight compared with the surrounding material. Otherwise, nice work!
Rating:  -
At first(like many others) I thought album was dull.But soon, it was always in my CD Player.Every night songs I skipped began to grow on me. And now I only skip 3 songs. AKA Driver started out to be one of my least favorites, but that was before I heard the full song. I miss some of the upbeat songs on Lincoln and They Might Be Giants, but this album is still great, even though the songs are serious
Rating: -
Without a doubt one of the best albums from the Johns, this is a wonderful mix of the sounds for which the group has become so well known. This is probably the album most balanced between mainstream and experimental. It has definite depth and character without being intangibly eccentric. Once you put this into your stereo, you will not take it out of your own free will.
Rating:  -
This is the first one the Johns did with a full band to back them up, and you can tell they're still sort of getting used to how to use full band arrangements but still keep the personality of the group. The good songs are really good ("no one knows my plan" and "the end of the tour" in particular), but there's a few too many songs that while not exactly bad, could have been written by anyone. Of all their cds, only mink car is as hit and miss. There's quality material to be found, and it's something to get eventually, but I wouldn't make it your first tmbg purchase. maybe your fourth.
Rating: -
I've been a long time fan of TMBG, having started with the first TMBG CD. Sometimes I think it's easy to dismiss their music as being a little silly, but I'm amazed as I sit here and think about how long I've listened to these guys on a regular basis. I had stopped following their new releases after Flood (maybe my least favorite TMBG CD), even though I continued to listen to their ealier CDs. After listening to a friend's Apollo 18 years later, I bought it and was once again listening to TMBG all the time. I went on to buy the John Henry, and I was initially disappointed. I never like my favorite music on first listen, but for some reason I felt that this one was going to bore me. It took a while for my feelings to change, but change they did, and I really enjoy this CD. I'm giving it five stars not because I think it's going to change music as we know it, but just because I can think of few CDs that just keep making their way into my CD player after more than a year. As lame as it may be, I don't have their two most recent CDs. But, I'm ordering them as I write this, so I feel pretty lucky that I have some new TMBG experiences coming soon.
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