Tuesday, November 16, 2010

First Things First

I was all set to write an entry on a completely different topic and I had even started writing it when I realized it wasn't going to work. I was going to do an entry called "This song always reminds me of..." about memories we associate with specific songs but I realized that, while I was looking forward to reading other people's entries, I had none to share myself. All of my memories associated with specific songs are of things directly related to the band: the first time I saw it live, some funny piece of banter associated with it, an interview quote about it, some bit of Gigantic, etc. And those don't seem like they would be very unique memories to share. I attribute this to the fact that, with very little exception, I only ever listen to music in my car, so the only associations I have are of driving. I actually do associate specific sections of road with certain songs because they would always play at the same point in my commute. And a list of intersections in Massachusetts roadways permanently linked to They Might Be Giants songs in my head does not seem like a worthy Audience Participation entry.

I also realized, since I've decided to go forward with the Song of the Day idea, that all of your "this song always reminds me of.." comments can be saved for when those songs come up in the cycle, so the idea wont be totally abandoned.

This does, of course, leave me needing to pick a new topic for the, now terribly delayed, Audience Participation. I've decided to go with TMBG Firsts. I thought this might be kind of a fun "getting to know you" exercise since I have so many newer readers. And while it may re-tread some previously covered ground, hopefully I'll think of some stuff I've never mentioned before. I'm just going to list a whole bunch of my own personal "firsts" related to the band, with some explanations where appropriate. You can use as many of my prompts as you like or make up your own unique ones.

First song I ever heard: If we are talking "heard and knew it was TMBG," On The Drag. It was the 2nd song on a mix CD I borrowed from my boyfriend, probably two years before we were dating. In terms of "heard and later realized it was TMBG," I'm pretty sure I heard Istanbul in middle school.

First album I listened to in it's entirety: Factory Showroom, though again, I had no idea it was TMBG. I was painting what was to be my bedroom, in the most ill advised housing decision of my life, with a friend from college. She had become enamored with James K. Polk at a TMBG concert a bunch of my friends had attended in Boston a few years earlier and had bought Factory Showroom just for that song. I know the album was among those we listened to while painting because I remember her talking about the Polk song. I honestly couldn't tell you which was the first album I heard and knew it was TMBG.

First song I loved: Doctor Worm. They played it at my first show. I've loved it ever since. To this day, it is one of my favorites.

First show I attended: February 21, 2005 at the Borders in Braintree, MA. It was an in-store promoting Here Come the ABCs. I was completely unfamiliar with the band (except for On the Drag and She Was a Hotel Detective, the 2 songs on the previously mentioned mix CD). I went with my boyfriend and his girlfriend at the time. I only remember four of the songs they played and the full setlist has never been entered into the wiki. But it was fun.

First thing I ever said to John Flansburgh: "Can I have some stickers?" Very eloquent. But I still have those stickers somewhere.

First album I ever bought: Miscellaneous T. Odd, I know.

First picture I ever took of the band: (This is assuming the undetermined blob in the photo prior to this one is not actually a person. I can't quite tell, but I don't think it is.)





First song I really identified with: Damn Good Times. I can not fully explain this but, the first time I heard this on the album I knew I had heard it before. I've never figured out where. Probably just in the background in my boyfriend's car or apartment or someplace. But from that moment and despite the fact that, I am by no means a "natural dancer," I have always felt this song was describing me somehow.

First TMBG T-shirt I bought: The Flood shirt. I was at a Flood show. It seemed fitting.

First member of the band I met: Not counting Flans and the exchange with the stickers (which I don't since I couldn't even tell the Johns apart at the time), it was Marty. I got him to sign our setlist after a show last fall.

First internet friend I made because of the band: A guy named Armando. He sent me a message because he liked a slogan I had submitted to a contest the band was having on MySpace. I haven't talked to him in forever, but he, unlike most of the rest of the world, is still on MySpace.

First real life friend I made because of the band: Stacy! We met in the parking garage going to Linnell's 50th birthday show in Portland, ME. She's awesome :-)

First TMBG inspired tattoo: The bird from the Nine Bowls of Soup video. He rides around on my shoulder begging for soup.

First show I wore the pigtails to: I think it was the Northampton show on 10/24/08. I'm not positive. I know it was a weekend we went to two shows so it was either that one or the Lupo's show in January. Either way, I haven't not worn them since. They are tradition. And if you don't know what I am talking about, go back and look at the picture of me in the post on the Boston concert in April.

Songs for which I was present for the first live performance: I'm Impressed, Take Out the Trash, Upside Down Frown, The Shadow Government, Countrecoup, Withered Hope, The Mesopotamians, Why Does the Sun Really Shine?, I Am A Paleontologist, Science is Real, Canajoharie, Duende, Nonagon and How Many Planets?


Those are the only ones I can think of at the moment. If I come up with others I'll add them in the comments. Sorry about the extremely late post. I hope it's still fun, even if it wasn't what I originally intended. I'll start Song of the Day tomorrow.

10 comments:

  1. First song I heard before knowing it was TMBG: Why Does the Sun Shine? (A rocking version, so probably the Severe Tire Damage one.) It was in a Year 8 science class - our teacher was a biologist and kind of out of her depth when talking about astronomy, so she inserted the song into her Powerpoint to make it more interesting. My reaction wavered somewhere between "ooh, catchy" and "who would write this?"

    First photo of TMBG I remember seeing: A picture of John and John standing outside, wearing coats and looking terribly serious. I found it in some KoL forum thread I've long since forgotten the title of, but it was in response to someone asking "what's up with that TPTMBG acronym?" (or something similar), which was the only reason I knew who was in it.

    First song I heard knowing it was TMBG: Don't Let's Start. After deciding I needed to get into a new band (I don't keep up with music very well), I looked them up on Wikipedia and decided to Youtube some of the songs mentioned, which were listed in chronological order. ...I know that's sad.

    First song I heard and fell in love with: Ana Ng! ♥

    First album I bought: Here Come the 123s. I claimed it was for my baby brother, but it wasn't.

    The physical CD I treasure the most: The Spine Surfs Alone. The backstory is fairly stupid, but basically I'd had a crappy time at a party resulting in minor food poisoning and bleeding toes, and when I got home I didn't feel like doing anything apart from listening to that CD (which had arrived in the mail only that morning) on repeat for an hour. Since then, I've really grown attached to it. I've taken it in my bag to every show I've attended so far, which isn't saying much, but if any more crop up I'll probably take it to those too.

    First song I heard live: Fibber Island, at the start of the very first show I went to. It's not my favourite song or even my favourite on that album, but there was something really magical about standing in the crowd that day and knowing I was breathing their air, hell yes! It holds a special place in my heart. Also, a kid tried to climb up onto the stage near the beginning of it, which was funny.

    That's all I can think about for now.

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  2. •First song I heard, but didn't know it was TMBG:
    At a very young age I was disturbed by the Tiny Toons video for Particle Man. The image of Triangle Man and my confusion whether he was a man or a woman all came back to me once I saw the video many years later as a fan.

    I also distinctly remember the Courage the Cowardly Dog song, and my brother saying he liked it. He asked the band, and I replied, "They Might Be Giants." He said, "Oh. Weird name."

    •First song heard, where I knew it was TMBG:
    Experimental Film. Yeah, I'm one of those Homestar people. I can't really place why I was so attracted to the song. I loved it at first listen.

    •First Album Bought:
    After A User's Guide (I was so confident in buying this; its namesake assured me I'd be getting the songs I was supposed to know, starting out), Flood. Ah yeah. Flood. What's funny is I can tell you where I bought ever single TMBG album, sometimes even down to what I was wearing and what weather/season it was. It was raining when I bought Flood. How apt.

    Funny that you first bought Misc. T. Because I /just/ bought that, because I realized sort of know most of the songs, but don't have them. Literally, it came in the post just last week.

    •First moment of realization of fandom:
    Ana Ng. I think it was the "They don't need me here, and I know you're there" verse. When I was listening to Ana Ng that day I had that wonderful moment of confirmation. That moment of "I've found my favorite band."

    •First wiki memory:
    Trying to find interesting songs to look up using the "User Ratings" page. Before I was a member, I think too. I was a Homestar Runner Wikian for a while (transcribed two puppet jams, thank you very much), so I decided to join tmbw for the same wikian glory.

    •First Show:
    08-04-07. We were late, and running into the park/arboretum they were playing at as they began "Alphabet of Nations." It was around the time The Else came out. I was a recipient of "the stare," made John Linnell laugh (because I was in such happy shock), met Danny Weinkauf, and went home a giggly, happy high school girl.

    Speaking of shows, I've seen several songs at all three shows I've attended. I know. Three. Lame. But now that I attend university in New York (City!), so I'll be attending far more shows. Once they begin playing again, that is. Then that number may go down to 2 or 3 songs performed at every show... I want to see which song survives the streak the longest!

    I also have this knack for hearing semi-strange songs live, and not hearing some of "the norm." Like Stalk of Wheat at 2/3 shows, but I've never heard Museum of Idiots performed. Actually... looking at it now... that was Stalk of Wheat's last performance before the Avatars of They did it, I believe. Notice the 2007-2010 gap? Wow.

    •First wikian friends met in real life:
    In an act of gregariousness at my second show, I began to talk to the group next to me, all who were around the same age as I am. Turns out, they were from the wiki too. Two in particular I became quite close to and, serendipitously, the three of us all attend the same university now. :3

    •First Dial-A-Song call:
    We Live in a Dump. Oh God. I called it like 10 times that day. And of course, once I got the courage (I guess courage) to call, it was almost broken.

    •First Obscure Dial-A-Song song acquired as mp3, cue epiphany:
    No Answer. It was such an eye opener to their lesser-known stuff. I still love No Answer with all my heart.

    I'll probably think of more stuff later. I'm not satisfied with my list; I think it's a little odd and/or mundane. Oh well.

    I mean. I've never said anything to the Johns. Just awkwardly gawked at John Linnell.

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  3. My TMBG history is extremely long and drawn out. Here goes:

    First TMBG songs heard: Don’t let’s start and Ana Ng were both played on my local public radio station and I loved them!

    First favorite song: Then when Flood came out, heaps of the album tracks were played. My favorite was We Want a Rock though I never knew its title, just called it the Forehead song.

    First video seen: Birdhouse in 1990. Immediately took a shine to the floppy haired guy.

    First album bought: Severe Tire Damage in 1998. Didn’t really take a shine to this though for some reason and barely listened to it.

    Second attempt at album purchase: Dial-a-song compilation in 2005. Beginning to be seriously interested now.

    Moment of enlightenment: Late 2007. Got fast internet connection at home, discovered Youtube, TMBG Wiki and online fan communities. In quick succession, obtained every available CD and DVD, read every article, was kindly endowed with a MP3 rarities collection. In other words, became totally obsessed. Floppy haired guy now has god-like status.

    Biggest regret: Prior to my fandom, TMBG played in my home-town on at least three occasions, including an in-store at a record shop I used to frequent. Now they’ll probably never come back here. My regret at never having seen them live is almost painful.

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  4. First song I heard: probably Put Your Hand Inside the Puppet Head, but could have been Don't Let's Start

    First video I saw: Put Your Hand Inside the Puppet Head. And I still really love that video to this day. With no DVR or even VCR, I spent a not insignificant part of my life waiting for Puppet Head and Don't Let's Start to come on MTV. Of my favorite musicians at the time, TMBG was the only one ever featured on mainstream MTV.

    First album I bought: They Might Be Giants (on vinyl). Probably bought in 1987.

    First time I called Dial-A-Song: Damned if remember, but I did call that old machine a couple times from my mother's house in CT (it was a toll call, so I didn't call more than 2 or 3 times). Must have been around 1987. Wish I could remember what I heard. Whatever it was, it was unfamiliar to me at the time. The machine _did_ work each time I called.

    First song I loved: Don't Let's Start (easily one of my top ten favorite songs during my high school years, and it's still up there)

    First time seeing John & John perform live (on TV, that is): I remember seeing them host 120 Minutes (my new wave self watched that show religiously), but am not sure exactly when that was (1987 or 1988 maybe -- I think it was probably before Flood, since I was definitely still in high school at the time, but it must have been during a school vacation since I couldn't watch the show while at boarding school, so I'll guess summer of '88). I think that was the first time I saw them perform live, and I thought they were absolutely geekilicious.

    First show I ever attended: December '09, NY Hall of Science. I know, I know -- a fan from age 13 and saw my first live show at age 36. I've never been much of a concert-goer, but the kids' albums slowly dragged me back into really loving this band after losing track of them for awhile. And now I am fast becoming addicted to their live shows too (have gone to 5 more since that first one). And that science museum show was so wonderfully weird... there I was, finally seeing John Linnell --one of my few celebrity crushes during my teen years -- perform live a few feet in front of me on a very small stage in a venue the size of a small lecture hall. When he was 50 and I was 36. With 3 of my kids at my side. I felt as if I had entered some kind of bizarro world.

    First band member I spoke to: Marty. I said "thank you" when he handed me and my kids stickers after the science museum show. All band members but Linnell hung around the stage and lobby after that show, but I was too shy and/or overwhelmed by the bizarro world to approach any of them. Plus the kids and I had a whole science museum to explore. :-)

    First homemade TMBG item: t-shirt for my 4-year old. He designed his own Triangle Man (with really awesome hair) and I scanned his drawing and printed it on a transfer with the caption: "Triangle Wins!" Song-specific shirts for the other kids and for me quickly followed.

    First band member autograph: Marty. He's now signed several of our family's foam hands.

    First setlist acquired: Fairfield CT evening show, Oct 30 2010. I've decided that if I'm going to become a TMBG concert addict, I may as well go all out and try for the ultimate souvenirs. I'm new to the groupie thing, but I think I'm doing okay so far. I'm sure I'll get more pointers from this blog along the way. :-)

    First person I recognized as attending multiple shows with me and my husband: you. The pigtails were sort of stand-outish, I guess.

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  5. rsreale, your son's "Triangle wins!" shirt sounds awesome.

    First song I heard live: Twisting. It was my first show (obviously) and I was sort of terrified that I'd have a bad time because I don't usually like live shows, but as soon as I heard the opening notes I was completely sold.

    First thing I said to John Flansburgh: "I don't know what to do with my hands." It was way less awkward than it sounds and totally resulted in us holding hands, so I'm okay with it.

    First album I bought: A User's Guide, but if that doesn't count, Apollo 18.

    First favorite song: Ana Ng.

    First moment I knew I was well on my way to being an obsessed fan: when I paid $250 for plane tickets to fly across the country for a show.

    And this isn't a first, but it's an only: I've been to 25 shows and they've played Istanbul at every single one of them. It's the only song I've seen at every show.

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  6. Meg, Rebecca's kids were the group in the yellow t-shirts we were admiring at the Morristown show. Homemade shirts rule!

    Also, taking that picture of you with the Johns may have just been the most nervous I have ever been with a camera in my hand. It was the one and only time I KNEW they were both looking right at the lens. And Flans is so smily in your shot :-) Adorable.

    Rebecca, I think you said you guys were at one of the Town Hall shows. Was it the early or later? And that didn't happen to be one of the times Marty signed your foam fingers did it?

    Cathy, I love the wording of your post. "Floppy haired guy now has god-like status" made me giggle. Which state are you in? I'll gladly add it to my list of "places the band MUST perform again so a friend can see a show and I can road trip there." Kentucky's already on the list for Jamie :-)

    Erin (and several of the rest of you for that matter), can I just express how completely jealous I am that you got to experience real Dial-A-Song. I was just a tiny bit to late into the fandom for that and will regret it forever.

    Blizente, I love your story about The Spine Surfs Alone. Love it.

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  7. Yes, we were at Town Hall -- the later show -- and yes, Marty signed a hand there. :-) Why do you ask?

    Also, if anyone wants to see the kids' shirts, we have photos here: http://www.plainsong.com/Family/TMBG_Shirts.html

    We still have to design one for our 2-year-old, who can't really express an opinion on the project yet. Based on her enthusiastic singing, I think her favorite song may be "Brain Problem Situation", which doesn't seem wholly appropriate. So maybe we'll wait a bit and see if another song inspires us. She'll definitely need a shirt before the next family show.

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  8. It would be a very challenging road-trip for you to travel here Blue Canary! I live in Melbourne, Australia. It has crossed my mind that I could in fact travel to the US to see a TMBG concert but the logistics are too overwhelming. I have to be happy with the vicarious experiences provided via the internet.

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  9. Rebecca, I said it before and I'll say it again. Those shirts are awesome. I especially love the logos on the backs, as that is the logo I have tattooed on my back :-)

    I was asking about Town Hall because that was the show I loaned Marty my Sharpie to sign foam hands with. So you probably have a hand autographed with my marker. What a coinkidink!

    And Cathy, I didn't realize you were an Aussie! That's so cool! I've been as close as New Zealand down your way but never actually to Australia. I wouldn't be opposed to an Australian road trip if there were enough shows to make it worth my while and I could figure out how to cover the exorbitant cost of getting there. I'll add it to my wish list for you anyway. And should you ever wish to venture to the US for a show or two, I make an excellent TMBG travel agent :-)

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  10. First Song I Ever Heard: Either Istanbul (Not Constantinople or Particle Man on Tiny Toons (which I LOVED) if those count. If they don't count, then Birdhouse In Your Soul on Pushing Daisies and then the original online after looking it up because I liked it so much.

    First Album I Listened To In Its Entirety: Flood

    First Song I Loved: Birdhouse (I know these are probably typical, boring answers. Sorry..)

    First Show I Attended: October 13, 2009 at the Vogue in Indianapolis, Indiana. First and, so far, only. Aside from the guy smoking pot in front of me who was falling all over himself and his friends in an attempt to dance and shouting things (I eventually managed to scoot away from him), it was a fantastic experience! They played several of my favorite songs and I was excited that they had such a lovely mixture of songs from their span of music-making. :) And I had no idea The Avatars Of They existed and was pleasantly surprised! I danced like a choreographed lunatic to some of the songs (Ana Ng, Birdhouse, etc.) and tried not to care that no one else seemed to be dancing them. I laughed at the banter and enjoyed the general feeling of comfortableness the Johns and Dans and Marty gave off. I was pleased with the old, small, interesting venue. It was a great show. :)

    First Thing I Ever Said To John Flansburgh: "Thank you!" after he handed me a bumper sticker from the stage after the show. I highly doubt he heard me before I was swept away in a sea of people, though. :}

    First Album I Bought: A User's Guide To They Might Be Giants. If that doesn't count, Flood.

    First Picture I Ever Took Of The Band: None. :( Because there were "ABSOLUTELY NO CAMERAS" signs posted EVERYWHERE.

    First Internet Friend I Made Because Of The Band: You. :)

    Songs For Which I Was Present For One Of The First Performances In A Very Long Time: Where Your Eyes Don't Go. I thought it was the first, but upon researching performance dates on the wiki, I see that they played it a couple of times that tour before the Indy show. Still, they mentioned that they had to relearn it because it had been so long since they played it. (Something like ten years, I think?) I was just excited to hear it! I love Where Your Eyes Don't Go! :)

    First Song I Heard Live: Meet The Elements

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