Talk:The Else/Archived Discussion

From This Might Be A Wiki

Since the description said that the podcast had preview tracks and Beard was the only new one, wouldn't you think that the next album will have it? -Ecks

Alright. Sound good to me-- I just didn't know there was any word relating it to the new album. Putting "Beard" back now... Magbatz

Is anyone else extremely excited about TMBG working w/ the dust bros? I love what they did with the beastie boys, beck and their work on the fight club soundtrack. This could really kick ass.

Wait....TMBG covering the Ultimate Showdown? How likely is that? I wanna know, I'm a Lemon Demon fan. Blindfold

5,000,000,000,000 to 1. -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 14:10, 21 Mar 2006 (CST)

I doubt TMBG would put the cover for the next album, because they already did an Ultimate Battle... the Ultimate Battle For The Planet Of The Apes, silly.
Personally, I'd hate to see TMBG cover the Ultimate Showdown. Nothing against LD, but I'm really sick of all of the internet hype around that song. -Cronny
Me too, actually. I blame the hyped idiots on the internet. I don't have anything against Neil himself. Blindfold 12:44, 29 Apr 2006 (CDT)

I'm Just Looking Forward To A New Album

I hate hate hate HATE the fact that the Dust Bros. are butting in. -- TheBlunderbuss 10:23, 27 Apr 2006 (CDT)
They're not butting in if TMBG wants them on the album. -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 16:59, 28 Apr 2006 (CDT)

I sort of agree. But I'll see further down the stream, maybe I'll have a different opinion. I dunno. Staplefish

I honestly don't think that Why Did You Grow A Beard will be on the new album... And I also don't think there's all that good an argument for it being on the album, either. 1. The Beardo tour could have just been named for the song because it's celebrating and centered around the new podcasts and 2. It's on the Podcast Highlights CD, so there'd be no point in putting it on a studio CD. I just don't see it happening. Yes, They've done things like putting half a CD on a "rarities" collection (*cough*They Got Lost*cough*) but I really can't imagine Beard being on a brand-new CD. But maybe that's just me. -Oreosarecrack

Why the japanese? It says on the intro page at http://www.tmbg.com -Antgeth

Digital Voices[edit]

Both new songs have Linnell with a modified voice. While this is may not replace his regular voice, it's an odd trend that really first began with Robot Parade, Bastard Wants To Hit Me and such. Does anyone have any insight into this? -Ecks

Well, I personally love Linnell's voice, so I hope it doesn't replace his normal voice. I have noticed a lot of digitation (is that a word?) in the vocals of Linnell lately, though. No offense to Flans, but Linnell's voice is very unique compared to many other bands and I don't think that he needs any synth to make it any more unique. Plenty of bands use synth vocals (Daft Punk) but only TMBG has Linnell! --ArAn 01:02, 11 Feb 2006 (CST)
Robot parade is actually sung by Flansburgh. Although it is a new trend, don't expect these songs to outnumber songs that aren't. But why is the synth'd voice bad? I thoroughly enjoy "miniature sidewalk whirlwind" and HDitF. It's just different, and TMBG is famous (among the "enlightened" [=P]) for being different.--tehbagel 14:18, 30 Mar 2006 (CST)
I dunno, I'm used to a non-warped voice from TMBG, and it's just the number of songs like that recently that's sort of getting me. -Ecks
I don't like the whole synth direction they're going into. What happened to super-simplicity? I loved their performance of Particle Man when it was just the two of them in the dark, with a metronome on a stool. They'll NEVER write another song as awesome as Statue, not with such Randy Newmanesques as "Mini Sidewalk Whirlwind." I want more of the same that led Weird Al to parody their style in "Everything You Know is Wrong." -- TheBlunderbuss 10:23, 27 Apr 2006 (CDT)
Well, keep in mind that the Podcast tracks more than likely are demos (MSW has soooooooo much potential, especially the way JL set it up for a digital... explosion). -Ecks
Yeah, I think it's more of them messing around with the songs because it's on the podcast. I think they figure since it's being given away, it doesn't really matter if they mess with stuff and be a little more creative... I don't think they're gonna replace real voice with digital voice or anything like that. I just think they kinda like messing around with it. -Oreosarecrack
I really hope they find a way to lose the digital voice (or at least lessen it) in Miniature Sidewalk Whirlwind-- and also the flute (how 'bout replace it with some accordion). Like you said, it has really great lyrics and the sound of it could be so great, and hopefully They can revamp it with the Dust Brothers.
No way! I love the flute and digitized voice on that track! I think it is one of the best songs that has been debuted on the podcasts.--tehbagel ( o ) 19:19, 4 May 2006 (CDT) You're right! --an ip

In case anyone wants to hear, I do have an opinion on the digital voice. Songs like Robot Parade, well, having a digital voice in that song is almost mandatory. BUT recently, I have noticed that there are more and more songs with Linnell's voice being digitalized and there's less accordion being used. Maybe it's just because the man's getting old. Wait...Weird Al is the same age as him, and he's still jumping around with his accordion...no, they're two totally different people. Like I said, Linnell's probably just getting old. But it bothers me, because, just like The Blunderbuss up there, I do miss that simplistic style They used to have, and They won't write another song like The Statue Got Me High. Heck, with the amount of accordion They're NOT using, I can abandon hope altogether for another sweet track like Subliminal. Most fans need to face the fact that the boyhood days of Purple Toupee are over and done with. I have, and I'm not adjusting well. But Flans is still Flans (We Live In A Dump is amazing!), but Linnell needs to get back to basics in order to redeem himself (for my tastes, that is). - Overjoy

The Title Revealed[edit]

The title is actually "Legendary Rock Album", according to John Relph's discography.

I'm not confirming/denying anything about that title, but he's not exactly affiliated with the band or management or in line with any inside source (as far as I know), and my guess is that he just took it from the TMBG news site, which says "Currently they are finishing a legendary new rock album with legendary producers the Dust Bros. and the legendary Pat Dillett." Could be the album name for all I know, though. ~ magbatz
With the cryptic message now being posted on theymightmegiants.com, I think that it is safe to say that the album is as of yet untitled. At least that is what I read from the inclusion of "???". ~krueger

February release[edit]

"2007???2" - Could that mean a February release?! ~ magbatz 19:13, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Yeah, I'm thinking that means February too, but I think it's more likely the children's album (said to be released in the Spring) or one of the two upcoming picturebook/CD combos (the first of which they begin recording this month). --badqueso 19:30, 21 December 2006 (UTC)
That article is incorrect, TMBG wrote on their website in 2004 that the picturebook/CDs would be recorded "this winter" (referring to winter 2004). The article must've assumed that TMBG wrote that very recently. -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 20:41, 21 December 2006 (UTC)


Before 123s?[edit]

Do we know for sure that this is coming out before Here Come The 123s?

Since they're still working on 123s according to the recent interview, it's most likely The Else is coming out first. -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 02:29, 27 February 2007 (UTC)
also I think that because I heard that they were going to be releasing a rock album before I heard about hear comes the 123s. It's probably more likely that the else will come out first. MRH0RRIBLE
That's good to know, IMHO--while Here Come The 123s! will, of course, be excellent (as most all TMBG stuff is), I'm definitely more excited about The Else. We definitely need some more straight-up alterna-rock. ~Anna Ng hears your words. 19:04, 7 April 2007 (UTC)

Only 13 tracks?[edit]

If there are only 13 tracks on this, I really hope there's nothing remotely filler-like. Although, to be fair, TMBG filler is usually fairly listenable anyways. I'd rather have 20 tracks with filler, though. - LSK

Flans did say "All killer, no filler." And would you really want 20 tracks with some filler than a completely solid no-filler album, start-to-finish? I definitely wouldn't; they've been releasing more than enough content lately through the podcast to tide me over and compensate for a lack of filler (hah). I'd say leave the best of the best for the album, and who cares how many songs are on it (unless it's only seven or something...then there'd be trouble). :D -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 21:27, 6 April 2007 (UTC)
I don't care about how many tracks there are, personally...I LOVE Factory Showroom, and it only had 13 tracks too. (Okay, so it had ONE song I'd call filler, but still.) Just remember: quality over quantity. Now, if the quality was inconsistent and the album generally sucked, yeah, that'd be a problem. But having heard Bird Of the Bee Of The Moth and having looked at the lyrics of The Cap'm and Careful What You Pack (which I'm totally looking forward to--great lyrics!), I really doubt that'll be an issue. ;) ~Anna Ng hears your words. 18:58, 7 April 2007 (UTC)
And another thought, if it's 13 "new" tracks, maybe that means 13 new, and a few old ones from the podcasts or whereever. It doesn't mean there's only 13 tracks total. Akagi 00:23, 18 April 2007 (UTC)
Flans confirmed it's actually just 13 tracks, I think on the Joe's Pub interview. -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 00:34, 18 April 2007 (UTC)

Pronunciation?[edit]

Is "Else" pronounced with one syllable or two?--Josherz 20:14, 2 March 2007 (UTC)

One! [~Christina Miller, March 2007]
Two!
How do you pronounce "Else" with two syllables? Else-y? -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 20:44, 2 March 2007 (UTC)
Not sure. I just like showing off my mad counting skeelzes. ~ magbatz
If you pronounced it like a woman's name, EL zuh, that is two, [~Christina Miller, March 207]
One. Two syllables wouldn't get mistaken for "Elf" over the phone. Spiraling Shape 00:36, 21 March 2007 (UTC)
I can see no way that "Else" could POSSIBLY be pronounced with two syllables. It's just "ELS" or "ELZ". Not "ELL-iss" or "ELL-zuh" or "ELL-us". And as Spiraling Shape noted, a two-syllable word wouldn't be mistaken for "Elf". ~Anna Ng hears your words. 19:00, 7 April 2007 (UTC)

That's nothing. I know a girl who pronounces "school" as TWO syllables. "Schoo-ul". Insane.--tehbagel ( o ) 15:48, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

April/May[edit]

Because TMBG is touring in May isn't it likely that The Else is coming out in April or May? - Goodtimes2

Well, on the Joe's Pub's page it says: "THE ELSE CD RELEASE - Am I Awake" for download, so i don't know if Am I Awake is gonna be on the album or not - Goodtimes2

No, that's just because they have "THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS CD RELEASE" as the artist for the show. -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 15:04, 31 March 2007 (UTC)

excited![edit]

man, guys. im psyched that they finally have the expectd release date. This is my first album since becoming a huge TMBG fan (narrowly missed The Spine), I am totaly set for catching promotions on Conan or whatever... only 47 more days, I think. Jade march 29th 007

noteworthy?[edit]

" ABOUT "THE ELSE"

Full of musical surprises, lyrical twists and sonic turns, The Else is a full return to form for the band, who started their illustrious career twenty five years ago.


While The Else finally captures their notoriously talented live band in all their barnstorming glory, the complete effort is actually an electrifying mix of homebrewed sonic madness and studio mastery. Over a year and a half in the making and recorded on both coasts, the album was created in collaboration with LA producers the Dust Bros. (Beck, Beastie Boys, Hanson) and NYC engineer/producer Patrick Dillett (Mary J. Blige, David Byrne, Soul Coughing). The album is being release on the band's own imprint Idlewild thru Zoe/Universal.


'Perhaps it's old fashioned to worry about making a full album really hold together as a musical experience, but that was our goal," explains TMBG co-founder John Flansburgh from his Williamsburg apartment. "We were very lucky that we could approach this project without deadlines or release schedules hanging over our heads. We wanted to be sure this was an album that was our best effort from beginning to end and I am very excited to report I believe we've actually done it!'"

this is from Star Hill's webpage.

Thanks a lot for pointing that out, it just made me giddy for the album. :D -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 10:27, 30 March 2007 (UTC)
Very cool, very exciting! ~ magbatz 13:51, 30 March 2007 (UTC)
After several intense hours of argument between CapitalQ and myself, it has been concluded that this album will be the best body of work created by TMBG since Don't Worry Kyoko. --liam (wtf?) 15:54, 31 March 2007 (UTC)

iTunes[edit]

garr... not fair. The Else is now schedualed to be released May 15th on iTunes, which is nice. But I don't have an iTunes account. I tried to get one but they want a credit card number, which I don't have, and I just turned 18, and apparantly they are only for 19+ers. I am going to have to wait months after everyone else. Jade

Yeah, I don't think it's fair. I'm in a position where I have no bank account or credit card (because I'm only 15), so I can't buy anything online without using someone else's account, and plus even if there were free downloads, I don't have my own computer yet, so I still couldn't. So everyone's getting the new album two months before us. I feel your pain, man. Akagi 23:52, 27 April 2007 (UTC)
iTunes takes PayPal, which you don't need a credit card to create. You might know someone with a PayPal account who could send money to yours through it, I suppose. Akagi, what about burning a CD from someone else's computer? -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 00:19, 28 April 2007 (UTC)
Oh, it takes PayPal, huh? Well, that could work, I used to use my mom's PayPal. Except now we got into kind of a fight, so that's probably not gonna happen for a while. But yeah, I guess if someone else had PayPal I could do that. I feel like I'm missing out on so much by not downloading things. o_O Akagi 00:32, 28 April 2007 (UTC)
You can also buy iTunes money in pre-paid cards from places like Best Buy and avoid all kinds of online money transactions. --badqueso 03:58, 28 April 2007 (UTC)
Another way to get iTunes credit is to use a CoinStar machine. They're coin-counting machines that you can find in grocery stores (there's one at the Shaw's where I work). They have a fee to turn your counted change into cash, but if you turn it into an iTunes certificate instead, there's no counting fee. I use a combination of that and PayPal to put money on my account.
Umm if im not mistake in the Canada store you can sign up without a credit card, i know I did. I think if you just buy a pre-paid card in a store, then try to add it it will let you create an account with that instead. But maybe you can't do it like that anymore. Cody-Schmidt
If you're unlucky enough to still have AOL, your AOL account info will work. Mind you, this is AOL internet, not AIM. If not, I can tell you that my sister got my dad to set up her account. iTunes automatically sends a receipt to your log in email address when you buy something, so I suppose your parents could use that to make sure you don't buy any music without approval. BTW, I'm not surprised it wouldn't let you go through the American store. I heard a guy talking about that on a podcast one time, and when he was living in Australia for a time, he had two iTunes accounts: one linked to his American issued credit card and one to his Australian issued card and the only way he was able to get to the Australian store was to set up his Australian account. — User:ACupOfCoffee@ 16:57, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

Track Listing[edit]

Woah, Contrecoup? Odd to see a song that started out as a writing assignment make it onto an album. I wonder if it was (re)mixed by the Dust Bros. Also: I have heard 5 of these songs, and I think it will turn out good. --badqueso 04:07, 2 May 2007 (UTC)

Well, it had to make it onto an album sometime, otherwise poor Linnell would never get his Moby Dick and chocolate! :P Spiraling Shape 13:05, 2 May 2007 (UTC)
I'm not totally surprised by Contrecoup. Remember the deal with the woman who gave him the original challenge -- The song has to appear on some sort of album, where the liner notes will be officially printed. --Duke33 14:08, 2 May 2007 (UTC)
The titles look interestingly dark/mysterious at first glance. Fun. -CapitalQ ♫ talk ♪ 04:20, 2 May 2007 (UTC)
My intuition tells me that The Mesopotamians is going to blow my mind. Less than two weeks now! ~ magbatz 04:25, 2 May 2007 (UTC)

Contrecoup kind of took me by surprise, I've heard it so often on the clock-radio that I can hardly stand it anymore, hopefully they remixed it or something. Jade

Oh Man, this sounds sweet, but no podcast tracks! Well they still have a shot on the bonus CD. That must of been why they pushed the release date. I was surprised by Contrecoup also i was thinking "That Must be a mistake!" Oh well I'm just really waiting for Bee Of The Bird Of The Moth! Goodtimes2

How awesome is it that Contrecoup is followed up by a track called Feign Amnesia? User:flood222

I am totally stoked that Countrecoup will finally be on an album!--tehbagel ( o ) 17:11, 2 May 2007 (UTC)

Is it just me, or do these titles seem a little...philosophical and serious? I mean, they sound almost like they could be Rush songs or something (or a lot of other bands, really, I've just been listening to Rush lately). I hope the songs themselves still sound like TMBG...Take Out The Trash sure didn't... Spiraling Shape 22:19, 3 May 2007 (UTC)

Album cover (no offense)[edit]

Oh jeeeze, is this the album cover?! I have to say it's kinda dissapointing. NO OFFENSE. I don't mind this cover, It's kinda different... but I loved the artwork for The Spine. I hope the music impresses me. I'm sure it will. :) By the way, where'd you guys find this album cover? I'm curious. :D --Lemita 00:11, 5 May 2007 (UTC)

I actually really like it. And this was found by MooseBlaster somewhere in the iTunes store-- I think he says what he did on his talk page. ~ magbatz 00:18, 5 May 2007 (UTC)
Yes, that'd be exactly it - followed by me digging it up on the download site. Do you think this means that it'll actually be iTunes and TMBG download exclusive rather than just iTunes exclusive? -- MooseBlaster 17:55, 9 May 2007 (UTC)
I love the album cover! And apparently there was a pre-order function for The Else on iTunes that was taken down shortly after being put up. I'm kind of curious as to why that happened, though. Akagi 00:26, 5 May 2007 (UTC)
Retrieved from "https://tmbw.net/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:The_Else/Archived_Discussion&oldid=261423"