Shows/1994-10-23

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Setlist: (incomplete and out of order)

They Might Be Giants
— with Frank Black, Frente! opening —
Tower Theater in Upper Darby, PA
October 23, 1994 at 7:30 PM


Fan Recaps and Comments:

Tickets were $18.50.

Review by Dan DeLuca, Philadelphia Inquirer, Oct. 25, 1994:

Non sequiturs flew through the air. Teenage boys and girls moshed to that crazy polka beat. And two nerdy guys named John sang songs with such titles as "Birdhouse in My Soul" and "The Statue Got Me High," Sunday at the Tower Theater.


That's right: They Might Be Giants was back in town. And this time, the pair of Johns - Flansburgh is the bespectacled one hopping as he plays guitar, Linnell is the skinny one on accordion, keyboards and baritone sax - came across as more than melody-mad, tinny-sounding geeks. Post-modern irony was in full effect when they sang such tunes as "Extra Savoir Faire" a lament of a self-enamored stud "totally testosterone-driven but still in touch with his inner child." And as long as Linnell and Flansburgh's idea of a good time is to repeat a song, but twice as fast, TMBG is in no great danger of sounding like a conventional rock band.

But with their new album, John Henry (Elektra), the Johns have become a musical force to be reckoned with. And their added muscle was felt on Sunday, with ex-Pere Ubu bassist Tony Maimone and drummer Brian Doherty putting the songs over with power, with the help of a two-man horn section. They rendered such songs as the scientifically minded "Destination Moon," the mollusk's-eye-view "Snail Shell," and the serious "Your Racist Friend" musically, as well as lyrically, rewarding. Even silly '70s covers such as Steve Miller's "The Joker" and Edgar Winter's "Frankenstein" were offered with enough instrumental panache to keep the goofiness from becoming unbearable.