He's got a watch with a minute hand, millennium hand and an eon hand

Why is the world in love again?

Why are we marching hand in hand?

Why are the ocean levels rising up?

It’s a brand new record – for 1990!

They Might Be Giants' brand new album – Flood!

I’d say generally that I like my musicians to take their music seriously – if you’re going to do something, then you might as do it well.  Having said that, whilst in my life I personally try to do things at least acceptably, I’m also not a man who takes himself too seriously, so I have a space in my album library for a bit of fun.  But having said that, it’s rare that an album comes along that ticks all the boxes – but They Might Be Giants managed it, in 1990, with their brand new album – Flood! 

“Birdhouse in Your Soul” was the first single released before the album, which impinged on my consciousness but not greatly so – it seemed pleasingly quirky, but no more than that.  Then, in the run up to our finals, Steve Chowne bought the album (on cassette – ah, those were the days!) and I was instantly hooked, borrowing it so much he barely got to listen to it.  This continued until the end of the year came and we all went our separate ways, Steve (completely unreasonably) taking his album with him.  I obviously missed it so much that I didn’t go out and buy it for another couple of years, but it was a joyful reunion when it finally came.

As Wikipedia so aptly puts it, “Flood features a range of stylish eclecticism” – or as I like to phrase it “it’s a load of enjoyable sing-along nonsense”.  Highlights for me are “Istanbul” (but not Constantinople), “Particle Man”, “Someone Keeps Moving My Chair” and “Minimum Wage” (weighing in at 47 seconds long – with the entire lyrics comprising the words “Minimum Wage”) but it’s more an album to entire in its entirety, bathing in its stylish eclecticism.

So, obviously Flood was the start of a lifelong love affair between myself and They Might Be Giants, right?!?  Well, not quite.  Despite the fact that they’ve released 18 (EIGHTEEN!!) albums since Flood, I have listened to at most a couple of them (which I seem to recall I enjoyed) but bought precisely none of them.  It’s weird the way things work out at times, isn’t it!?!

As a minor aside, I’d like to make it perfectly clear I’m not a fan of comedy albums, but I will make an exception for Flight Of The Conchords, which is well worth a listen in my opinion.  

It is the distant future – the year 2000!