1994 Apples And Oranges
The exclusive, long-awaited interview with the juicier half of They Might Be Giants, John Linnell
By Julie Ana Klausner, Apples and Oranges Zine, 1994
Archived from: https://web.archive.org/web/20030722090430/http://tmbg.net/articles/applesoranges1994.html
"I spoke to John Linnell over a year ago, when John Henry, They Might Be Giants' first release with a real live back up band first emerged. After Mr. Linnell called my line, I was hardly prepared for one of the most terrifying half hours of my life. Here it is: the exclusive Apples and Oranges interview."
{Ring}
Apples and Oranges: Hello.
John Linnell: Hi, I'm trying to reach Julie Ana Klausner...
Hi. Are you sick of all these interviews yet?
My voice seems to be holding out; I'm not too hoarse.
Have you ever heard of But A Paper Dress?
Is your thing the Brian Dewan thing?
Something like that. This is a short interview so I better get started. Regarding your "States" songs; are you considering other solo possibilities for the future?
I don't know what's happening for the future. We're kind of immersed in the tour promoting John Henry at the moment, so we haven't really elaborately worked out any other plans. I'd like to put out the "States" songs, if I can get Elektra to put it out that would be pretty cool. Elektra's in sort of disarray at the moment, so we're still waiting to see what will happen.
Are you looking forward to this US tour or are you too exhausted from Europe?
I'm looking forward to it. By the time it starts, I'm sure we'll be well-rested enough to get into it. It always feels like we're not ready for a tour; it can be kind of disorganized.
You do a lot of touring.
No, we don't. I mean, most bands tour more than we do, but for us it seems like a lot. We're definitely getting old. Psychologically it's rough; packing up and splitting, living out of a suitcase. But we don't have too much to complain about- we are getting a lot of work and sometimes it's a lot of fun. It was a lot of fun to go to Europe...
Were you well received?
Yeah! Well we've played in France opening for Frank Black and we weren't really well known there. But elsewhere we had pretty solid audiences; in Germany and Holland and England and Ireland we had really good shows. We had Brian Dewan with us in Ireland and Scotland; the crowds were totally into him as well.
During a recent set, do you ever get a little wistful and want to bring out papier mache heads and use The Stick?
(Laughs) John's been talking about bringing The Stick back, actually. Maybe we'll revive The Stick- it wouldn't be much work, really, we'd just have to find a stick. We'll see.
Are you getting more comfortable with the four-piece arrangement?
Yeah! Well, it's a six-piece now; we've got a horn section. But it's very good.
Where's Kurt [Hoffman]?
Kurt had so much stuff that he wanted to do, and [TMBG] was taking up so much of his time, so from his perspective I really understand [why he left]. We miss him a lot, though; he was a really big asset for us on the road, and personally as well as professionally. But, he's got his Band of Weeds and is doing a lot of other music as well. He's writing for movies now, too.
Do you believe in God?
No, I don't.
How were you raised?
My parents weren't really...I didn't really get a religious upbringing.
Do you enjoy performing?
Yeah! It's fun.
Do the fans ever spook you out?
[Laughs] I like the way you said that. "Do you ever find them...spooky?" [laughter] Um...no, not really; they're fine. Once in a while there's the occasional stalker, but most of them are okay.
I get the impression that after shows you aren't too into the whole social thing.
Yeah, I don't think it's a great way to meet people. I think that people have a funny idea about us based on what they see on stage, and some people really project a lot onto bands. They don't really know the people but they feel they know them. Also, they get confused that when you see someone on stage you feel that you're close to them and so you assume they must be close to you. People are kind of screwed up sometimes.
What do you miss most about being on an independent label?
Well, it's not really that different. I guess one of the big perks of Bar/None was that we really knew everybody there, whereas at Elektra it's a little more confusing. I sometimes meet people and forget that I've met them. Also, we're not that important... like at Bar/None we were kind of like The Guys, so we got preferential treatment. That's not really true at Elektra.
Do you ever get annoyed that They Might Be Giants are usually interviewed by borderline retarded journalists? [a la Katy Manor]
There's a guy in Chicago, and we've done his video show a whole bunch. His name is Jerry something. He doesn't ask you questions, he makes a statement like "You guys are fabulous" and he'll point the microphone at you as though it were a question. It's incredibly difficult.
What's the most tiresome interview question?
There are a lot. I don't want to make it out like we hate journalists, like they're total creeps or anything. Obviously we're happy to get publicity, but there are some questions that we get asked over and over again.
Like...?
What our influences are, where we got our name...just standard stuff.
Those are pretty close-ended questions. I'm talking about those inevitable "Why are you guys so wacky" ones...
That's a really gruesome one. We don't hear that so often anymore, I think people know better now.
Which is better, caffeine or sex?
Well, they're different. I don't know if you can really compare them. It's sort of Apples and Oranges.
Why did you decide to exchange your accordion for a keyboard in the live show?
I'm doing both now, actually. It's just that Kurt left the band and rather than teach all the keyboard parts to one of the horn guys, I just thought it would be easier to play it myself.
Why is Oregon so bad?
That's a really facetious song; it's not really about Oregon.
Okay, I won't pursue that one any further. How do you take your coffee?
Throughout my life I've been drinking it black with sugar, but when I was in Europe this summer, I've been drinking those Cafe Au Lait things. Recently I've been taking just milk or cream.
[overreacting nervously] Wow! Jeez!
Holy Cannoli!
Where do you see yourself five years from now at...forty?
That's not too far away. I'll probably be doing similar stuff. I've been doing this for thirteen years, so I don't think I'll be doing anything radically different.
Do you think you'll be in the band?
Probably, yeah. There's no particular reason to dissolve it; usually bands breakup because people don't get along. John and I have known each other for something like twenty years now, so I don't think that's going to be a problem.
Did you enjoy high school?
Well, you know, there was a certain amount of unpleasantness which you had to get through. Some of it was good, I made some good friends.
Which emotion you think is more sexual; love or violence?
I don't think I'm prepared to touch that one.
I don't think any of us are. Let's give you some easier ones. Who are the kids in the John Henry cover art?
We hired them; they're like professional kids with show business parents. They were great.
What do you do to pass the time commuting when you're on tour?
Well, I read sporadically. I just read this book called Call It Sleep by Henry Ross, but I'm not really reading anything right now. Also, we were sleeping a lot; we had a bus with beds.
Did you do any drawings?
Not really, no. I have a camera and I took a lot of pictures. And I like looking at maps of where we are, kind of being a tourist.
Do you plan on doing any collaborative work in the future with artists like Brian, or Frank Black, Jon Spencer...
I haven't had any offers yet but yeah, why not?
Good luck on your tour.
Thank you, Ana. Good luck to you.