Talk:Metal Detector
Contents
Theoretical underpinnings[edit]
This song has brilliant theoretical underpinnings which I half wish I understood. Maybe we could make a TMBG music theory to explain what makes a brilliant song, just as traditional music theory uses the great moments of the masters as sources. --HearingAid 21:34, October 7, 2005
- Hate to say it, but then we'd be stereotyping TMBG. It's like if we had a checklist for the next album or something, which is just odd. Despite my ramblings, I think it'd be a good idea. - Ecks 21:40, October 7, 2005
- There's a lot of movement between key centers, in this case G and E/C#m. Linnell in particular likes to move between a given key and a minor third above/below. Off the top of my head he's doing the same thing in Nothing's Gonna Change My Clothes, Purple Toupee, and countless others. It's always really smooth because the melody always naturally leads from one to the other. -Macdrown 19:26, March 12, 2023
Flans in the song?[edit]
Hey, I don't have the best ears in the world... can someone point out to me where Flans can be heard in the song? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Magbatz (talk • contribs) 23:45, May 23, 2006
- The backup singing, like right at the beginning "look past the ball", and then in the chorus, he comes in on "over the mine" and "watch it shine". Ecks 23:59, May 23, 2006
Folderol[edit]
I love this one, because, who else could successfully use and rhyme "folderol" in a song? HeWhoYerfs 11:18, 13 January 2007 (UTC)
Sound effect[edit]
Weird question, but what's that weird sound throughout the song? Like after: "...of the things that are found under ground..." (Probably wrong lyric, but whatever). It's been bugging me for a while. --Lemita 14:49, 21 February 2007 (UTC)
- I second this question. Keriostar 03:15, 21 June 2007 (UTC)
- It sounds like a dog barking! - Not Logged In - Goodtimes2 10:07, June 21, 2007
- I thought so, too. Also, I swear I heard a similar outside my window one time; it was pretty creepy. --Mr. 77 18:37, 29 August 2008 (UTC)
- It's obviously Big Bob-Omb guest rapping. --ZippZapp 01:33, 28 March 2008 (UTC)
- It reminds me of the Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz speaking (not translated by babelfish) from the BBC teleplay of Hitchiker's Guide. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.71.5.10 (talk) 19:40, May 28, 2010
All these years later, Flansburgh finally brought a little clarity to what that sound might be. Check it out here. --MisterMe (talk) 08:17, 24 April 2026 (EDT)
Allegory[edit]
I feel like this could be an allegory for all of TMBG's songs; if you look beyond what's obvious and cliche ("forget the volleyball" etc), and look a little deeper, you can see the world in new, different ways, that they talk about in their songs ("every sea shell has a story to tell if you're listening") —Preceding unsigned comment added by Walrusaurus (talk • contribs) 00:09, December 2, 2008
Book[edit]
So, has anyone been able to track down the book Linnell says is the inspiration for this song? I'm really curious to hear more about it. --Self Called Nowhere (talk) 02:57, 13 June 2018 (EDT)
Modern Sound[edit]
This song sounds like it could fit right into the band's newer stuff. I don't think it'd be out of place on The Else or as a newer Dial-A-Song release. It's a cool track. —Preceding unsigned comment added by AngleBlueprint (talk • contribs) 12:02, March 28, 2020
- It could also feature prominently on The World Is To Dig from 2026. These guys really are timeless, eh? --MisterMe (talk) 08:17, 24 April 2026 (EDT)