Archived Main Page Talk (Page 9)

Demo on new ParticleMen video?

[1] it sounds like Flans singing to me. does it deserve a song page?--Nosaj56 09:18, 9 September 2011 (EDT)

I would have no idea whether it merits a page or not, or what to title it if a page was made because I can't understand all of the lyrics. (Sounds mostly like "How fast is the speed of light" and "I was drunk".) I asked Flans about it on twitter and he said it's kind of a sketch of a new song, so I guess it qualifies as a demo of something. -J-Gatz

According to the TMBG newsletter that just showed up in my inbox, it's called "Read a Book." --Self Called Nowhere 18:49, 9 September 2011 (EDT)

Past Shows

I remember being fortunate to see you guys at Infest in Highriver Calgary, Alberta, Canada, in 1993, sorry to age you and myself! The show was amazing but I was the annoying broad that kept asking you to play Minimum Wage, as true gentlemen you played it for me twice and that was great. Other great bands at that festival were, The Ramones, Violent Femmes, Bad Brains! It was something I will never forget hope to see you guys again love all the new stuff and activities!

Anastasia

Hate to be the one to break this to you, but this is for talking to other wiki users, not The Johns. While they do know about and appreciate the wiki, I've gotten the impression that they use it mainly for things like checking setlists and wouldn't be paying attention to comments like this. I'd suggest using Twitter or Tumblr--Flans often responds to fans there. --Self Called Nowhere 18:08, 16 September 2011 (EDT)

Feature Request: Direct link to song performance page from Show pages

I don't really know how to describe it without going into a little detail, so let me explain. I was looking on a Show page (specifically this one and I wanted to see how many times that song has been performed. However, to do this, you currently have to go to that song's page and then click on the "x known performances" link from there. I feel like it would be easier to have a little link in the setlist next to each song that could take you to the performances page.

Is this something that would be possible to do? Or even worth doing? -WhatIsThatThing 19:00, 16 September 2011 (EDT)

It would be cool if clicking the bullet next to a song's name sent you there. It would require some template surgery and possibly stylesheet stuff depending on how you did it, and I'm not sure if others would care enough about it. It would be neat though... though I wouldn't like it if there was clutter in that thin column just for the purpose of saving a click. ~ magbatz 19:44, 16 September 2011 (EDT)

A sorta related thing I've been wishing for for a long time is a table that shows how many times every song has been performed live, in descending order, so you can see what song's been played the most without having to look at every song's page. Akagi 23:32, 22 September 2011 (EDT)

It's not really a mystery which song has been played the most, but I still like the idea of a full list, if only to compare the Top 50 or so. Perspixx 00:37, 23 September 2011 (EDT)

recent news

it looks like something's up with the main page in deciduous. specifically, the "recent news" image: it's not centred. here's a nifty screenshot: (nifty). it's happening in both safari and firefox.- Apollo (colloquia!) 17:22, 19 September 2011 (EDT)

Thanks...I found the culprit and fixed it. (FYI - it was also happening in Yuletide.) --Duke33 18:41, 19 September 2011 (EDT)

Exciting news from Flans

"We are working on a rarities comp of the listenable stuff left off Join Us." !!!!!!!!!! --Self Called Nowhere 04:51, 22 September 2011 (EDT)

I'm an idiot, but didn't he say this would be released as a podcast? --༺𝄞𝄆Ⓠⓤⓔⓛ⎈Ⓓⓞⓜⓜⓐⓖⓔ𝄇༻ 05:42, 22 September 2011 (EDT)

He said it in response to someone asking about rarities being posted as a podcast, but I don't think he would describe a podcast as a "comp." I'm taking it to mean a physical CD. (Though hearing that stuff even digitally would be exciting.) --Self Called Nowhere 06:17, 22 September 2011 (EDT)

maybe the compilation will be released November 1st. that's when he said we would be able to buy the version of Cloisonné used in the video. --Nosaj56 07:45, 22 September 2011 (EDT)

At the signing Flans and Linnell did in Cincinnati this week, Flans mentioned that a rarities compilation would be available sometime around December. He didn't give any other specific details, but perhaps this is what he's talking about. We'll just have to wait and see! --Mosesofthecows 18:00, 22 September 2011 (EDT)

"Superfueled Freaksickle - 2011 No Doubt Theatre"... Akagi 23:25, 22 September 2011 (EDT)

So, after I asked Flans the question about the rarities podcast, he responded to someone else about ads and all that and he said "We’re actually finishing up a bunch of half-done tracks started during the Join Us sessions. Those songs, along with Tubthumping, some of the live tracks made for the videos and some of the abandoned tracks from Join Us will all be part of a rarities set. Should be out relatively soon" So, I guess that means Tubthumping will actually have a studio version. - Goodtimes2

Mr. Flansburgh has confirmed the release date of the rarities comp as Nov. 1, via Twitter. Perspixx 02:20, 2 October 2011 (EDT)

Live album

For what it's worth, Flansburgh mentioned at the Louisville, KY that a live album will be available in six weeks. -thevince September 22 2011

Major Upgrade for Azure Skin

I have just deployed a major upgrade/update for the Azure skin (and a few others). If you see any problems (javascript or site look/feel), please drop a note here, or notify me directly. Thanks! --Duke33 17:06, 1 October 2011 (EDT)

It's probably not related to the azure update, but the page for 'File:300x250 iTunes TMBG 052107.jpg' doesn't display the image, and neither does the page for The Else. It happens on monobook, too. (FireFox 7.1, Win XP)--Oldpinebox 19:03, 7 October 2011 (EDT)

Gadgets? Asbestos?

What's with the weird links on the main page where the tag line should go? Is this spam? Entropy

I think so. That kind of stuff is abnormal enough to be spam. I deleted it. :) -- Buzzmusic100 ("Keep your voice down...")

Epic Fail Baloney Sandwiches

Should there be a page for this? SamuelMan36 20:52, 1 November 2011 (EDT)

I would say yes. They did it again last night in Salt Lake City as part of the Avatars of They segment. And speaking of last night in SLC, does anybody have a setlist? I'm surprised it hasn't been posted yet. Drew 01:37, 6 November 2011 (EDT)

John & John "now" pictures

Those "now" pictures on the Johns' pages are getting a bit old (especially since the flansbeard happened), and since those nice new promo pictures are up, i think we ought to utilise them! i cropped out Flans and Linnell individually from one of the photos, and i suggest that we use those (or something like those) but at a bit lower resolution. thoughts? -Apollo (colloquia!) 21:07, 6 November 2011 (EST)

I second this motion. --Self Called Nowhere 21:14, 6 November 2011 (EST)

could use a bit of croppage, but yeah, i think those are good. -- 21:17, 6 November 2011 (EST)

! -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 21:56, 6 November 2011 (EST)

Sorry, I just have to take a moment to point out my approval of the above use of BREAKING BAD MACROS. (But yes, I approve of the new photos of the Johns too!) -J-Gatz

Pencil Rain

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk6qKJRariY -- Jason DeLima - ♥! - 12:50, 14 November 2011 (EST)

Piano tabs/sheet music/chords?

I think something regarding piano tabs for songs would be very nice.

this SamuelMan36 19:06, 15 November 2011 (EST)

For melodic songs and piano-y songs, a piano tab would be helpful. :) --Buzzmusic100 19:36, 15 November 2011 (EST)

unlike the vast majority of the guitar/bass/drum tabs we have, piano tabs would be incredibly subjective and open to individual interpretation. there'd be constant editing due to disagreements and differing opinions, etc. while there are exceptions (e.g. dead, december/may), in general i don't believe this to be a very viable namespace. -- 19:43, 15 November 2011 (EST)

Article in The Washington Post

Good afternoon.

Just wanted to let you all know that They appeared in the Sunday Style section of The Washington Post. The article should be on the Post's website by now. A friend of a friend that I know happened to write the article for the Post and also interviewed the Johns by telephone. That friend says that she will probably give me a MP3 of the interview, but I doubt that I will be able to share it. If I am, however, you guys will be the first to hear it. Thanks.

--Sargon-- 16:05, 20 November 2011 (EST)

That article actually went up on Friday. I linked to it in Current Events but it got taken down. I think it is actually much better-written than a lot of articles we see about TMBG lately. It's here if anyone wants to see it. --Self Called Nowhere 20:29, 20 November 2011 (EST)

They Might Be Superheroes

The Line it is Drawn, a weekly feature at ComicBookResources has artists' renderings of what certain famous people would be like as Superheroes, and the Johns have been included! How awesome is that?

-- BigMike20X6

EMERGENCY MINK CAR UPDATE!

Attention all great users of TMBW!!! Mink Car is now available for download on iTunes!!! Go forth and purchase it!

Go!

--Sargon-- 16:24, 3 December 2011 (EST)

The Flansburgh House

Not sure if this is worthy of the main page since there was already a similar article earlier in the year, but there is a nice piece on the preservation of Flansburgh's childhood home in today's New York Times, that includes a picture of his mom with the house. It is here for anyone interested. --BlueCanary 11:54, 4 December 2011 (EST)

Horse With No Name

The AV Club has posted a live video of the AV Club performing A Horse With No Name with TMBG. Check it: avclub.com

already???

"@tmbg 2012. New tour. Then a new album. What a great world we get to live in." if this isn't a cryptic indication of a new album for 2012, then i don't know what is. -Apollo (colloquia!) 19:15, 15 December 2011 (EST)

Holy crap. Like, wow. Don't look too cryptic to me, though. ~ veggieman 20:59, 15 December 2011 (EST)

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! --Self Called Nowhere 22:31, 15 December 2011 (EST)

Go boys go! ~ magbatz 22:41, 15 December 2011 (EST)

I imagine it's probably either a children's album or a live album. Wasn't there something about an "Avatars of They album" for 2012 in a newsletter a while back? Akagi 19:05, 6 January 2012 (EST)

Here Come the 123s DVD Being Gold

Slight problem with this bit of info: there is no Here Come the 123s DVD. For that release there was only the combo release of CD and DVD together. I was pretty sure about this but I just double-checked with our resident walking TMBG discography encyclopedia, aka Ant, and he confirms it, and there's nothing here on the wiki. I don't know how there could be a secret one that managed to sell 500,000 copies so, yeh, I'm pretty sure this is wrong. (I've never heard of a DVD getting a status like gold, anyway I thought that was just for records, but I could be wrong about that.) Not sure if Danny misspoke and was talking about the album itself or what. --Self Called Nowhere 04:05, 19 December 2011 (EST)

I agree with your assessment. I think we can reasonably assume that the whole album is gold. --Duke33 12:25, 19 December 2011 (EST)

Accordion help!

Any tips for trying to figure out how to play TMBG songs on accordion?? I just can't figure out some of the chords.

here on the wiki, even though the pages are called "guitar tab", most of them just have chord lettering. you can play these chords on either end of the accordion. accordion bass is tuned in fifths, here's a map to get you started. also, practice a lot. and have fun!

fs vinyl

WHAT -Apollo (colloquia!) 18:26, 9 January 2012 (EST)

yeah i'm gonna wait a while to add that shit to /rd. fs wtf. -- 18:32, 9 January 2012 (EST)

According to this post, it looks like a double LP is in the works for John Henry as well: [2] --Duke33 12:33, 10 January 2012 (EST)

It looks like they are starting where they left off, and if it goes well they are going to keep going, presumably until The Else (unless they are planning to do the kids albums too). Either way, I'm hoping they re-release Apollo 18 too, because it's hard to get. Also, I'm saving my money for these. --Yamfox 20:43, 10 January 2012 (EST)

I was able to get some more info. The LPs are being mastered by Dave Eck from Lucky Lacquers, and are being pressed by Rainbo. Factory Showroom is coming first, with John Henry coming later in the year. Also, they are unfortunately being pressed from CDs, but they are copies of the (likely 16/48k digital) master, and are not the retail versions. Factory Showroom is coming out in March, and John Henry in the summer.--Yamfox 21:58, 10 January 2012 (EST)

I wonder if Token Back to Brooklyn is going to be on it? I would think not, since it's not on the iTunes version, but maybe there's a sneaky way to hide it on the record. — User:ACupOfCoffee@ 14:18, 16 January 2012 (EST)

The only way to hide it on the record would be to put it after a locked groove (like the hidden sound at the end of Radiohead's Kid A) but that would require some serious cutting expertise, and I would rather have less time per side as to have a better quality LP. Besides, if it is NOT on the Factory Showroom LP, then that might increase our chances of seeing a Long Tall Weekend re-release on vinyl (if you think Til My Head Falls Off and I Can Hear You would be awesome on vinyl, just imagine Lullabye to Nightmares and Edison Museum). --Yamfox 23:31, 17 January 2012 (EST)

Actually, Edison Museum is already on vinyl. --Self Called Nowhere 00:28, 18 January 2012 (EST)

Yeah, but it's not exactly the same recording. It is a longer version of the same recording, though, which means you're technically right, I guess, but it's also nearly impossible to find. Just sayin'. -Drew 02:41, 6 February 2012 (EST)

Yes, "Token Back To Brooklyn" is on the LP, after about a minute of silence after "The Bells Are Ringing". --Yamfox 11:05, 2 April 2012 (EDT)

looks like it was definitely sourced from CD masters. loads of compression, and the spectrals have nothing but traces above ~24khz. combined with the extra generations the sound is going through, it is objectively worse than the cd. (also it just sounds flat and lifeless to me). -- 17:21, 5 April 2012 (EDT)

I think you're being a little harsh. It's cut quiet, and it's certainly a "warm" sounding master, but it's beyond listenable and the bass has a pretty decent punch. On a brighter cartridge like the AT-440MLA I could see this having a lot of energy. And I don't think that it's too terribly compressed at all, the drums still punch nicely. Also, the actual quality of the pressing is better than Join Us (although not nearly as good as The Else), and there's no sibilance or other nasty distortions. And not being hi-rez is no surprise, the album was mixed directly to DAT, it never existed in a higher resolution. Overall, although I would recommend they master with a bit more treble next time, I'm still going to spin this regularly. And I'll buy whatever represses they come out with.

BTW, how is the original Apollo 18? I'll never be able to afford one... --Yamfox 19:37, 13 April 2012 (EDT)

this looks like an awful lot of compression. also there is quite a bit of inherent surface noise, which is just sad. i agree the manufacturing is in the realm of join us, but that's not really a compliment. a18 sounds pretty stellar, it's worth the investment. -- 20:05, 13 April 2012 (EDT)

I think that surface noise such as dust might just be more apparent because of the quiet cutting. I cleaned mine first, and the vinyl itself isn't that noisy at all. Not as dead silent as The Else, but better than some other vinyl I've purchased recently. BTW, here's what Spiraling Shape looks like on my rip, (CD here). Audition/Soundbooth does a pretty bad job of showing drum hits in the waveform. I mean, the thing is no 180 gram Steve Hoffman mastered revelation, but for TMBG on vinyl I'll take what I can get. The one album that badly needs a good remaster is The Spine, though. The CD sounds so awful. Also, thanks for telling me about Apollo 18, I'd love to own it, but considering a re-issue is in the works it's currently 3rd on my "must own" cue (behind Soul Coughing's "El Oso" and My Bloody Valentine's "Loveless") --Yamfox 22:31, 13 April 2012 (EDT)

Spider sampled

Spider is sampled about 3:00 into this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQtWY-ZxFTw --Yamfox 22:50, 11 January 2012 (EST)

magnet guest editors

though it is perhaps not exactly current events material, John Linnell was a guest editor on the Magnet magazine blog yesterday, and he put up a really neat video about deep space exploration from 2009's TED. Here's the thing! -Apollo (colloquia!) 15:54, 16 January 2012 (EST)

Further proof that John Linnell is the most ADORABLE/NERDY PERSON EVER TO EXIST. (Because, you know, that has not been documented enough yet.) --Self Called Nowhere 00:31, 18 January 2012 (EST)

well apparently this was just from the thing they did in 2009—i was mislead by a tweet of carolyn's, and i guess i didn't notice the date. WOOPS. -Apollo (colloquia!) 23:09, 19 January 2012 (EST)

WMNF

I'm at work, so i can't check it right now. Can someone else check, and see if TMBG was on this recording of WMNF's afternoon show? --Duke33 12:34, 8 February 2012 (EST)

that's what the 2012-02-07a page is... -- 12:58, 8 February 2012 (EST)

Ah, I hadn't seen that page yet. --Duke33 13:46, 8 February 2012 (EST)

WNRN appearance

Did anybody snag this appearance yesterday? It was already over by the time I woke up. --Self Called Nowhere 23:26, 17 February 2012 (EST)

It's up on their site now. Pretty long set, and it was good. The only bad thing was that the DJ kept goofing on Linnell's name and the name of the songs. --Duke33 10:26, 18 February 2012 (EST)

New "song"?

They just posted this today...should we make a new song page for it? What would the title be? "Hey Man, I Saw Your Band"? It's more like an announcement than a song, especially with Linnell's narration near the end. Also, there's a bizarre less-than-one-second image of two chihuahuas in there. [3] --MisterMe 17:02, 29 February 2012 (EST)

A show with O We as the theme!

Figured this was noteworthy - I live in Southern Vermont and there's a television show here with "O We" as the theme and with a couple TMBG references. It's pretty funny too: [4]

Source?

Can someone give the source to this news? (March 5, 2012): "Asbestos Records has announced that they will be pressing vinyl copies of Flood and Apollo 18 this year!" --Yamfox 19:16, 5 March 2012 (EST)

Looks like that information was posted here, on their FB page. https://www.facebook.com/AsbestosRecords/posts/10150588957492322 -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 21:38, 5 March 2012 (EST)

older live shows download gone for good?

so going through a TMBG phase again and there's a lot to catch up on. Through the wonders of google I found this page http://www.theymightbegiants.com/archived-shows/ but all the links go to theymightbedownloads.com which doesn't exist anymore. Did these files get moved to somewhere else and just didn't get updated? I'm assuming these are the same shows that they were selling online a few years back.

Why hasn't anyone made a site for the stumpbox disks yet, been looking for those for at least 15 years now with no luck.

those shows are no longer available to purchase, and i believe brad spoke with the band's management, which stated they would probably not be available in the future, either. as far as stumpbox goes, i know quinn has asked about hosting the files on her site and gotten a firm "no". (there are some other neat things on her site, though, like radio appearances and a few cool shows and you can find those here.) you might find stumpbox somewhere if you ask around in other facets of the tmbg fandom, but i think there's a rule against posting links to that sort of material uploaded to filesharing websites on tmbw. -Apollo (colloquia!) 15:43, 7 March 2012 (EST)

Azure

Where has the time went? Can everyone believe that our Azure skin is 5 years old today??? --Duke33 16:01, 17 March 2012 (EDT)

TV Stuff

Couple of recent media appearances that were pretty cool: last week, when Bruce Springsteen was on Jimmy Fallon, The Roots played "Boss of Me" as his walk-on music (never thought I'd hear the Roots cover TMBG, but here you go!). Also, "Robot Parade" played during the end credits of last night's Simpsons. --Oddjob 11:49, 19 March 2012 (EDT)

Apollo 18 interactive fiction tribute

weird thing that a lot of people put a lot of work into, probably doesn't belong on the front page but seems good anyway: http://pr-if.org/event/apollo-18/

Official Discussion for "This Day in TMBG History" TMBW Project

Hi guys! If you follow @tmbg on Twitter, you may have spotted some busyness earlier today about a "Today in TMBG" project for TMBW when John Flansburgh came up with the idea...

Discussion moved to Talk:This Day In TMBG History! -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 17:40, 27 April 2012 (EDT)

four whole seconds

let's call this edit "archival" -Apollo (colloquia!) 15:47, 8 May 2012 (EDT)

in other news: "They Might Be Giants ‏@tmbg Today's studio totals: three songs tracked. seven cups of coffee consumed." (that was fast) -Apollo (colloquia!) 21:28, 8 May 2012 (EDT)

What's this?

http://tmbg.com/files/Untitled.m4a It appears to be from November. ~ veggieman 21:25, 9 May 2012 (EDT)

iirc it was something that was posted on twitter, but i could be wrong cause i don't use twitter and heard about it secondhand. -- 21:29, 9 May 2012 (EDT)

ant is right about that, just something from twitter; flans and someone else singing "crocodile rock" or something. -Apollo (colloquia!) 21:33, 9 May 2012 (EDT)

The "someone else" is Joco IIRC. --Self Called Nowhere 21:48, 9 May 2012 (EDT)

It is indeed Jonathan Coulton, and they were singing in the van while Coulton was driving the two of them to the John Hodgman show in Seattle that night. -J-Gatz 14:59, 10 May 2012 (EDT)

TMBG Planetarium Laser Show

Really! Even though it's the Disney stuff, which I am not exactly overwhelmingly fond of, I REALLY WANNA GO. Maybe this is gonna be a thing all over the place now. But yeh, if you're in Nashville, check it out! --Self Called Nowhere 00:38, 10 June 2012 (EDT)

There is a similar setup at the Orlando Science Center's planetarium through August, though oddly it doesn't specify which songs will be featured...but we can probably assume it's the more kid-friendly and science-relevant material. Check it out here. --MisterMe 11:19, 15 June 2012 (EDT)

Here's some other ones at hereand here, although they might be the same thing. I guess TMBG planetarium shows are the thing now!--Oldpinebox 17:01, 15 June 2012 (EDT)

Oh, and here's a video: Watch it on --Oldpinebox 17:02, 15 June 2012 (EDT)

I believe this is the source of the recent crop up of TMBG planetarium shows. This company produces laser shows for planetariums and they launched the TMBG one in March. There is a full play list included in the link. --BlueCanary 11:06, 16 June 2012 (EDT)

Zine!

HEY GUYS. Sooooooooo, because I clearly wasn't devoting enough of my life to TMBG already, I've started a TMBG zine. It's mostly Linnell-focused, naturally, but will have some general TMBG content too. You can get copies direct from me or through my Etsy shop. Huzzah! --Self Called Nowhere 22:49, 25 June 2012 (EDT)

Separate show pages

So, as you might have noticed from RC being all clogged up with it right now, I've split up onto separate pages days with two shows. From 2006 and later they already have their own pages, but 2002-2005 had them on one page. So, that's now fixed. The only thing is your show attendance figures might be wonky now--Ant is moving everybody over to the B shows (we picked that because A shows are sometimes kids' shows and we figured people were more likely to have gone to the rock shows). So if you actually went to the A show, or to both, you'll need to fix that--sorry for the hassle. But, now your show count pages will be accurate! --Self Called Nowhere 03:34, 19 July 2012 (EDT)

2012 official Johns pic

Flansy just "gave" us permission to use their new pic on the wiki. So I uploaded a version of it, but realized that 1) I am not 100% sure of the formatting and 2) the Main band page needs to be updated. It still has the Join Us tour as "upcoming." Any helpers/takers? --CJSF 3:18, 20 July 2012 (EDT)

for one thing, i think flans meant Wikipedia, not tmbw. we don't have any image rights policies here, we just kinda use whatever. i think the pics we use right now on the individual pages are fine because they're a bit more professional (suits, yo!) and very nearly as current. i'm not sure that this is the most appropriate thing for the page on the band itself, though perhaps in the most current history section. i was working on a new revision of the tmbg page but i kinda dropped the ball. i'll get back on it. -Apollo (colloquia!) 15:25, 20 July 2012 (EDT)

That was pretty good on such short notice! Great job. --CJSF

to be fair, i wrote a large portion of it a few months ago. just had to do a little updating and make a few additions. but thanks! :) -Apollo (colloquia!) 16:07, 20 July 2012 (EDT)

TMBG Tourist's Guide to NYC

So I'm planning to make a new section of my site that will be a guide to TMBG-related places to visit in New York. Any ideas for things I should include? Things I've already thought of: Direct from Brooklyn video sites, the cafe from the Flood promo, the "for more copies send $2 to" address for the flexi, Darinka, the "Four of Two" clock. So, yeh, please give me suggestions if you have them. --Self Called Nowhere 16:39, 20 July 2012 (EDT)

LA times is late to the party

this piece about science-related videos does some hcs-related flans-quoting, three years later. kinda interesting but maybe not really current events-worthy. -Apollo (colloquia!) 17:39, 4 August 2012 (EDT)

The Darinka Archive

The Darinka Archive was recently stored in the Fales Library (NYU). Looking at the table of contents, this looks like it could be a real TMBG goldmine (photos, posters, flyers, audio recordings). As a historian, I would love to dig through these files but sadly, I live about 3700 miles away. Any New Yorkers here care to go take a look? - Wout 06:49, 12 October 2012 (EDT)

that's so neat! i live not-too-far from new york so i would definitely like to check that out at some point and if i do i will be sure to capture everything digitally (of course, that's assuming no one else will have done it yet). thanks for putting up the link! -Apollo (colloquia!) 07:13, 12 October 2012 (EDT)

!!!! i too live not too far from new york and i want to dig through old cassette tapes too. THIS IS SO EXCITING -j2 this kitten is all over me it's adorable but hard to type

This is awesome, looks like four TMBG cassettes are in the collection... could be anything. The library is only open on weekdays (until 6pm), and it's by appointment only - I would have gone this weekend if it were open. :[ A laptop computer is allowed in their reading room, according to their site, so someone sly could potentially record these tapes (if they're allowed access to listen to them). -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 19:58, 12 October 2012 (EDT)

any updates on this? -Nosaj56 20:11, 11 March 2013 (EDT)

the library is only open to "scholars" or something stupid, so there's not really a way for us plebes to get in easily, as far as i know. especially with the appointment-based thing. which is superlame! i dunno if brad could arrange for someone to be let in on Official TMBW Business, but that's probably a stretch. -Apollo (colloquia!) 20:15, 11 March 2013 (EDT)

2013 Tour on main page?

Could we replace the No! Anniversary .. uh.. "thing" with some kind of show calendar/listing for the upcoming 2013 tour dates or something? I don't know how to do it well or correctly, but I am sure there are wiki'ans here who could. Just a thought. -CJSF 22:24, 23 November 2012 (EST)

not everything warrants a headline. similarly, the headline doesn't need to be there. it can just be removed. -Apollo (colloquia!) 23:42, 23 November 2012 (EST)

Seemingly Odd Usernames?

I've noticed that there are new accounts created, on a fairly regular basis, with names like "Butchquiri0xdbnwrpglSmith" or somesuch similar. I at first was suspicious that they were spammer accounts or bots, but I haven't seen anything added or edited by them at all. Is there a way to tell what these accounts are or if they are legitimate? -CJSF 13:18, 4 January 2013 (EST)

they are spambots 99% of the time, but are foiled by autoconfirmation (iirc, it's been a while). -- 15:09, 4 January 2013 (EST)

I've put in a lot of measures to combat spam, but it's obviously not 100% foolproof. What yo aren't seeing is that I'm actually stopping a lot of them from getting created. I'm not sure how much more I can do. At least they're not doing anything malicious most of the time. --Duke33 20:30, 4 January 2013 (EST)

Social media

WikiAdminFolk: I know that the old MySpace bulletins were archived. They're occasionally interesting to read as mini time capsules. But it got me wondering if there was a similar archiving going on of other TMBG-related social media postings on Facebook, Twitter, the TMBG Are OK tumblr, Instagram, etc. I realize it's usually Flansburgh who creates/authorizes the posts, and not all of them would be necessary to retain (i.e., cat photos, science stories). But there have been some intriguing quotes out there that might be worthy, and certainly anytime the band premieres a new video (like the new Alphabet of Nations a few months ago) or announces tour dates/albums. Any thoughts? --MisterMe 23:04, 6 February 2013 (EST)

not that i'm a wikiadminfolk, but i think that due to the nature of social media, it might be better to just catalogue the important information (via ce, etc) and move on. myspace bulletins were sometimes "news updates", and they were definitely more newsletter-style than other social media postings, especially because they were all fairly equally relevant, from an objective standpoint (as opposed to, say, cat videos vs. tour date announcements). obviously some quotations do deserve preservation at the wikian's discretion, but i think it's safe to keep that to an article-by-article type of arrangement. not to mention, the sheer quantity would be massive, and a large amount of information is cross-posted (with variation) between multiple sources. including the TMBG newsletter, which is archived by tmbw (though tmbab might be having some trouble with that one, currently?). for the time being, facebook, twitter, and tumblr aren't going anywhere, so i think they sort of serve as records of that information in and of themselves. myspace, on the other hand, is fairly obsolete, and while this may have been unexpected when the bulletins were archived, it certainly makes those records more historical. i'm not sure, i like the idea of it but at the same time it seems hugely impractical. -Apollo (colloquia!) 23:22, 6 February 2013 (EST)

The New Shows- OK for Kids?

OK, gang, I am fully prepared to have my brains beat in on this one: We are seriously considering taking our almost-8 and just-about-5 year old to see TMBG as they swing through the Deep South in a few weeks. Will child protective services be called to step in? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 12.48.222.101 (talk)

virtually all of the announced shows specify an age requirement... usually at least 14 or 16+. while i've seen venues be lenient about that before, i'm guessing they won't be that lenient. -- 13:48, 19 February 2013 (EST)

venue limitations aside, john flansburgh has personally stated that he does not think adult tmbg concerts are appropriate environments for the young'uns. not because of tmbg itself, just because audiences are unpredictable. at least a few people almost invariably get either drunk or high at concerts, regardless of the band. here's the quote (from tumblr):

Please, please, please get a sitter. There are a lot of issues with playing our adult show with kids present—so many that I can barely say it again. It’s not safe about half of the time, which means we can’t mediate the issue at all. On the other side of the show where kids have snuck in are really vocal, really angry parents who think they should have been warned about (fill in) volume, pot smoke, booze, swear words, aggressive dancers, flying glass, broken glass, drunks, strobes, etc., etc.

No one can protect a 10 year old from a moshing 230 pound drunk man who just got off their meds and he’s in the crowd at least every week. It’s not safe. It’s not safe. It’s not safe.

i'm not sure whether a rock show is the best climate for really young kids. kids' shows are just about as fun, though i don't think they're doing any(?) this tour. maybe just wait a few more years. -Apollo (colloquia!) 16:31, 19 February 2013 (EST)

I wouldn't recommend bringing kids under 14 to They Might Be Giants concerts. It's becasue of the band at all, they are all-around very family friendly. It's just that in reality, they are a glorified bar band (but i love them either way). They regret the fact that their audience is very unpredictable very much. They said on FAQ page that their audiences practice the rituals of moshing and what they call "pass the dude."

Nope nope nope nope nope nope. Don't do it. BlockyCuzco 01:26, 26 March 2013 (EDT)

Keyboard Tabs

I think these will be useful for bands who want to use Guitar, Bass, Drums, AND Keyboards to play TMBG songs. I know the last time someone created an official tab was 2013, but it might be a try. BlockyCuzco 19:36, 11 March 2013 (EDT)

could you specify as to what exactly you mean by keyboard tabs? the vast majority of our "guitar tabs" are simply chordsheets, which (for people like me who don't play guitar) are very handy for using on a wide variety of instruments. -- 19:39, 11 March 2013 (EDT)

Think of a song with both Guitar and Keyboard. How do you do both at a time? For example, I'm working on Triops Has Three Eyes's Keyboard Tab in case it's allowed. There's this wah synth and guitar that play at the same time at multiple points. I convert the chords you hear from the synth to piano chords. I know there are few songs with Guitar and Keyboard (that I've ever heard), but there are possibilities. BlockyCuzco 19:52, 11 March 2013 (EDT)

i'm pretty sure that for at least the vast majority of our guitar tab pages, the chords we include are all the chords, no matter what instrument they're played on, and rarely do multiple instruments play different chords simultaneously. -- 19:55, 11 March 2013 (EDT)

That's true. The "guitar" tab for Violin isn't actually the official instrument. However, some credits say Guitar and Keyboard at the same time. But it seems the guitar tabs focus on one note at a time. I looked at some. BlockyCuzco 20:03, 11 March 2013 (EDT)

whatever the case, i think the solution is improving the "guitar tabs", not making a whole new namespace. -- 20:05, 11 March 2013 (EDT)

Picking out the correct notes for multiple note chords quickly seems like a hard task. Not to mention you have to really press down to get it right. :/ BlockyCuzco 20:09, 11 March 2013 (EDT) Also, it seems hard to me to remember exactly what key is triggered by what string. BlockyCuzco 20:14, 11 March 2013 (EDT)

i've had trouble with going from guitar tabs to keyboard/other instruments, too, but i've found that a general knowledge of chord structures/keys of songs helps (or even just having a tab of wikipedia handy). you don't actually have to remember which notes are equivalent on guitar and piano, you just go up a half-step from the string for each fret. the strings go up by fifths. you just have to know E. -Apollo (colloquia!) 20:19, 11 March 2013 (EDT)

Studios

I'm surprised there doesn't seem to be much reference in the wiki to studios that the band has recorded at. In particular, I'm interested in studios where only TMBG and related acts have recorded at, such as Collyer Brothers Studio, Hello Studio and The Governor's Bluff. Perhaps we can start linking to studios that the band has recorded at on the release pages, and have at least basic info (ie location) and a list of releases worked on there? -Joltman 08:29, 14 March 2013 (EDT)

i definitely agree with this (we may note i recently added some short bits about collyer brothers and the governor's bluff to the johns' pages). i think we should generally have more information about studios on the wiki as well as general album credits. i think we should probably list credits for an album on the album page itself, in much the same way wikipedia does, though not necessarily in a list format. BUT YEAH, compiling information about the studios they've recorded at, or at least their personal studios, would definitely be a Good Idea, and those could possibly warrant their own articles, i think. eventually.

as far as hello goes, i think we need quite a lot more information on hello, generally! i recently wrote the wikipedia article on hello (previously it had just been a copy/paste from us) and it is somewhat more complete, i think. so maybe some of that information could be merged in. -Apollo (colloquia!) 10:27, 14 March 2013 (EDT)

I noticed the Join Us notes say "Recorded at a secret location in Brooklyn". What's the secret location? — User:ACupOfCoffee@ 02:57, 2 April 2013 (EDT)

Mr. Dillett's unnamed studio. ~ veggieman, up later than he should be 03:10, 2 April 2013 (EDT)

Buick Encore Commercial

I really wasn't sure if this warranted a front page note, but there's a commercial airing (quite frequently during the NCAA basketball tournament, I might add) for the Buick Encore which prominently features The Guitar. Of course, it's on Youtube. --Mosesofthecows 11:50, 24 March 2013 (EDT)

Clock Radio

With the apparent demise of the Clock Radio, perhaps somebody (or some-bot-y) needs to go through all the pages to remove and/or "clean up" the CR refs? For example, on which "dial" the song was available. Plus there are plenty of pages that have "trivia" text on them like if the song had glitchy playback, which now wouldn't really matter. But then again, maybe they could all be preserved with a minor change to read something like, "On the now-defunct Clock Radio service, this song was known to have glitchy playback." Just a thought. --MisterMe (talk) 13:38, 19 April 2013 (EDT)

i don't think they need to be removed from the "releases" section. Dial-A-Song is listed there and the songs aren't on das any more either. the glitchy playback lines were never really necessary. -Apollo (colloquia!) 19:46, 19 April 2013 (EDT)