Different When Played Live

As They Might Be Giants' music is very produced, live shows are a different experience from their records. In most cases this just means that a more unusual instrument is replaced with guitar, but some songs have more significant surprises when performed live: additional lyrics, a transposition, or a completely alternate version altogether.

• Alphabet Of Nations has an additional bridge, listing countries from Azerbajan to Guatemala. This alternate version was later released on the 10th anniversary edition of No!.
• Ana Ng's spoken bridge is often sung, though its tune varies. The phrase "human hair" is also sometimes sung in place of "humid air".
• Birdhouse in Your Soul is played in D major (with the original being in C major), and the bridge contains an extra melody which references Summer In The City.
• Black Ops becomes a faster rock version. This alternate version was given a studio treatment in 2015.
• The Darlings Of Lumberland: in one performance, John Flansburgh changed a line from "A little melody if time permits / Hold my cold dear hand for a bit" to "A little melody from John Linnell / Hold my cold dead hand for a spell".
• The Famous Polka is almost always performed as an instrumental.
• How Can I Sing Like A Girl? is sometimes performed by only the Johns with a guitar and accordion.
• I Walk Along Darkened Corridors is expanded, becoming a bombastic rock ballad with a guitar solo at the end.
• I'm Having A Heart Attack adds spoken-word lines from Flansburgh (usually starting with "Girl, you know it's true").
• Istanbul (Not Constantinople) almost always gains an extended improvisational intro, and includes a very fast jam after the song. When the song is ending the set, it usually includes a double or triple fake-out ending.
• During Lie Still, Little Bottle, Flansburgh keeps time with a stick. This arrangement pre-dates the version heard on Lincoln.
• Marty Beller Mask is played in B minor, rather than A minor.
• Maybe I Know is sometimes performed acoustically with just John and John on accordion and guitar.
• O, Do Not Forsake Me was performed much faster with Flansburgh singing at some shows in 1995.
• The bridge of Particle Man is usually broken down by Linnell, who sings part of a non-TMBG song before returning for the final verse.
• Road Movie To Berlin includes the "King of Liars" verse that's present in Flood's liner notes but left off the recording,
• Some performances of Robot Parade fuse the original slow version and the faster "Adult" Version, beginning slowly and gradually picking up speed.
• In the 2020s, Sapphire Bullets Of Pure Love began to be performed sonically backwards, recorded, and then played in reverse later on in the show.
• Spy is improvised on stage with a "conductor" leading the band in the outro. It has been used to segue into several different songs and covers, and as a medley with Mr. Tambourine Man.
• She's Actual Size is often performed with a pause for an elaborate drum solo.
• They Got Lost is performed significantly faster and names the band's current lineup.
• Toddler Hiway gained a new verse and bridge when performed live by The Avatars of They.
• In Twisting, the name of the band (whose records/tape she won't take back) changes.
• Where Your Eyes Don't Go was usually played faster and in 4/4 time; Flansburgh and Linnell played guitar and accordion with no other accompaniment. Once they began touring with a full band, the song has been performed with a full arrangement and more closely resembles the studio version.
• Whistling In The Dark is usually played in the key of G Minor instead of E Minor. The song sometimes starts a cappella, and the second verse starts slow and speeds up in pace to the usual tempo.
• For over two decades, Why Does The Sun Shine? had an alternate, faster version exclusively live. This ceased to be the case when this alternate version was recorded in a studio for Here Comes Science.
• With The Dark is sometimes performed as its alternate version, where the slow beginning part is extended into an entire song.