After thirty-three years as an alternative rock staple, John Flansburgh and John Linnell of They Might Be Giants are far from hanging up their hats. You might think the Brooklyn-based duo responsible for such hits as "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" and "Birdhouse in your Soul" would rest on their laurels, but their plans for 2015 include not one, but two new albums—one for children and one for adults.
Their most recent undertaking is the revival of their 1980s phone-answering machine 'Dial-A-Song', a service where fans could call in and hear a brand new song every week. But this time, along with a toll-free number (844-387-6962), they're going digital with an online re-launch of the project. As Linnell told Ophira Eisenberg, "We wanted to try something different, give ourselves a challenge. We weren't tired enough. So we're basically posting a new song every week online." The ambition of this 52-song, 52-video project hasn't escaped the duo. When asked how they would revisit Dial-a-Song in another 20 years, John Flansburgh answered, "From a hospital bed, Ophira!"
Since this is the second-time that the Johns have graced the Ask Me Another stage, it was only appropriate for the duo to put two more contestants through the wringer on their signature quiz, where every answer is anything but right and the winner is always wrong, wrong, wrong.
Interview Highlights:
On the digital revival of Dial-A-Song
"We're doing a new third millennium version where it uses some digital thing that I don't understand...It's called MP3s, John."
On Ruthlessly Quizzing Contestants
"We're actually nice people in person, but we're playing jerks on this show. You kinda got to get to know us better."
On the production of their two new albums: one for children and one for adults
"There's this one song we're working on called "Thinking Machine" and it was revealed as we were finishing it that Linnell thought it was for the kids record and I thought it was for the adult record. And I believe my response was a swear word."
Heard in They Might Be Wrong, Wrong, Wrong
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Transcript
OPHIRA EISENBERG, HOST:
It's time to welcome back to the show our favorite musical duo. They've come all the way from Brooklyn to Brooklyn.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: They Might Be Giants.
(APPLAUSE)
JOHN FLANSBURGH: Hello.
EISENBERG: Guys, 2015 - huge year for you. You're reviving Dial-a-Song.
FLANSBURGH: Correct.
(APPLAUSE)
JOHN LINNELL: Yes.
EISENBERG: OK. Remind us, for people who don't remember what that is, and why are you bringing it back?
LINNELL: Dial-a-Song was a phone machine in 1983 up through - I forget which year - which played songs by They Might Be Giants when you called the phone number, which was actually John Flansburgh's personal telephone number.
(LAUGHTER)
LINNELL: You know, we're actually doing a sort of a new, you know, third-millennium version where it's - it uses some digital thing that I don't understand.
FLANSBURGH: It's called MP3s, John.
(LAUGHTER)
LINNELL: Yes.
FLANSBURGH: We basically wanted to just try something different, give ourselves a challenge. We weren't tired enough so...
EISENBERG: (Laughter).
FLANSBURGH: We basically are posting a new song every week online, and it's at a website with the mysterious name dialasong.com.
(LAUGHTER)
FLANSBURGH: And there is a phone line, there's a toll-free phone line. It's 844 - what is it?
LINNELL: 387.
(LAUGHTER)
FLANSBURGH: 387-6962. And, yeah, it's exactly what it sounds like. You just hear a song.
EISENBERG: So 52 songs?
FLANSBURGH: Fifty-two songs.
EISENBERG: Fifty-two videos?
FLANSBURGH: Fifty-two videos.
LINNELL: That's right.
EISENBERG: Are you regretting this idea?
FLANSBURGH: Totally.
EISENBERG: Oh, really?
FLANSBURGH: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
LINNELL: Yeah.
FLANSBURGH: We're scraping the barrel.
LINNELL: Yeah. The songs are horrible.
(LAUGHTER)
LINNELL: Well, you know, Jonathan Coulton, we are sharing a stage with Jonathan Coulton, who's uniquely qualified because he also did thing-a-week project about 10 years back.
(APPLAUSE)
JONATHAN COULTON, BYLINE: It's true.
LINNELL: And I've got a question, Jonathan.
COULTON: Yeah.
LINNELL: Jonathan, did you actually have a backlog of songs when you started your thing-a-week project because we're just trying to copy your idea?
FLANSBURGH: Right. I think we're doing it wrong actually already.
COULTON: I didn't have a huge backlog of songs. I admit that I did cheat. There were a couple of weeks where I just couldn't get it together, and I had to - I had to do...
FLANSBURGH: You got Diane Warren in there, and she...
COULTON: Right? No. I had to do a couple - I did a couple of cover songs over the course of the year, which I feel like was cheating, and I did a couple of new recordings of songs that I had never recorded before. So it was a new recording every week, and I did write a lot of songs, and it was excruciating and terrible, but, you know, you're making up your own rules, so however you want to do it is fine, right?
FLANSBURGH: We are. You're right.
LINNELL: That's true.
EISENBERG: Now back, John Linnell, back when you guys did this in late '80s, right?
LINNELL: Yes.
EISENBERG: '85, '86?
LINNELL: Well, early 80s was when Dial-a-Song began in the early...
EISENBERG: OK. You guys would do some, like, fun marketing surprises, like, you'd be like okay, you can call free from work, like, when that was a thing.
LINNELL: That was a - yeah, I think John made up that expression.
FLANSBURGH: Yeah. TME (ph).
LINNELL: And caught fire.
EISENBERG: Do you have any surprises in store for this round, the digital round?
LINNELL: I'm trying to figure out how to do an actual 8-bit videogame with a song attached to it...
EISENBERG: Nice.
LINNELL: ...As an idea because I like that stuff because it's nuts.
(CHEERING)
EISENBERG: John Flansburgh, what do you think, another 20 years will you do this again?
FLANSBURGH: Absolutely.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: How will it be delivered this time?
(APPLAUSE)
FLANSBURGH: From a hospital bed, Ophira.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: And I know because you're slackers that you're also working on not one, but two albums.
FLANSBURGH: Oh, yeah.
EISENBERG: Two albums?
LINNELL: Oh, yeah.
EISENBERG: One for adults, one for children.
FLANSBURGH: Yeah, there's this one song we're working on called "Thinking Machine," and it was revealed as we were finishing it that Linnell thought it was for the kid's record, and I thought it was for the adult's record.
(LAUGHTER)
LINNELL: Yes, that's true.
FLANSBURGH: And I believe my response was a swear word.
EISENBERG: (Laughter) Nice. Well, let's get to the game called Wrong, Wrong, Wrong. Let's welcome Jennifer Keating and Dan Cardillo.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Hi, Dan.
DAN CARDILLO: Hi.
EISENBERG: Hi, Jennifer.
JENNIFER KEATING: Hi.
EISENBERG: Jennifer, what would you say is your trivia area of expertise?
KEATING: I would say music of the '80s.
EISENBERG: Music of the '80s.
KEATING: Yes.
EISENBERG: All right. Very good.
FLANSBURGH: Excellent.
(LAUGHTER)
KEATING: Why, thank you.
LINNELL: Nice choice. How you doing?
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: And what do you know nothing about?
KEATING: Anagrams of president's names.
EISENBERG: Yeah.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: Nobody does. There were so many people that are - turned off the radio and turned it back on.
KEATING: (Laughter).
EISENBERG: Dan, how about you? What's your area of expertise?
CARDILLO: That would be "Star Wars."
EISENBERG: "Star Wars."
CARDILLO: Oh, yeah.
EISENBERG: And what do you know nothing about?
CARDILLO: They Might Be Giants. Hey, guys.
(BOOING)
FLANSBURGH: Snap.
LINNELL: Well, this is your introductory course.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: Level one-zero-one. All right, so John Flansburgh and John Linnell, tell us about the true name of this game is called...
LINNELL: The name of the game we're about to play is...
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: So you've probably heard that saying, there's no such thing as a stupid question, right? Well, there are questions that you're going to get wrong no matter what. So that's what this game is all about. We'll ask you some questions and you're going to get them all wrong, so when you know the wrong answer, ring in. And the winner of this round will win their very own customized They Might Be Giants ring tone.
(CHEERING)
EISENBERG: And the loser will also get a ring tone by They Might Be Giants, but it's not going to be as catchy.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: All right, so take it away, John Linnell.
LINNELL: OK. Question number one. The Declaration of Independence was signed on what date in 1776?
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
EISENBERG: Jennifer.
KEATING: "How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying."
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
LINNELL: Not "How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying," and not July 4, either. That was when the document was approved and adopted by the Continental Congress. Most of the delegates didn't sign it until August 2, and the thing you said is the name of some musical.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: All right. It's going great - John Flansburgh.
(LAUGHTER)
FLANSBURGH: People, listen up. This is the next question. In what famous American museum would you find George Washington's wooden teeth displayed?
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
EISENBERG: Jennifer.
KEATING: The Smithsonian?
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
FLANSBURGH: George Washington's teeth - they weren't wooden in the first place. It was just a myth. So the answer is the museum of nowhere.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: Yeah.
FLANSBURGH: Check it out.
LINNELL: Cyndi Lauper had four hit songs off her debut album "She's So Unusual." Please sing us the chorus of the first hit single written by Lauper.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
LINNELL: Dan.
CARDILLO: (Singing) She's not unusual to be loved by anyone. Ba-da-da-da.
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
LINNELL: Sorry. It's not - whatever that was.
(LAUGHTER)
LINNELL: The correct answer is "Time After Time," which Lauper co-wrote.
CARDILLO: This is fun.
EISENBERG: Yeah, I know.
(LAUGHTER)
FLANSBURGH: Contestants, on what continent would you find the largest desert in the world?
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
EISENBERG: Dan.
CARDILLO: Asia.
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
LINNELL: Not Asia. A desert is an area that gets little or no rain, and most of Antarctica - nearly 14 million square kilometers - qualifies as a desert.
CARDILLO: Wait, isn't that - isn't it tundra down there?
LINNELL: I'm trying to use my condescending voice in my responses. I'm really cultivating. Because you know nothing about They Might Be Giants, I should tell you we're actually nice people in person...
(LAUGHTER)
LINNELL: ...But we're playing jerks on this show.
FLANSBURGH: You kind of got to get to know us a little bit better.
EISENBERG: Dan is challenging you, though. He's saying it's mostly tundra.
LINNELL: I have no idea. I'm just reading a piece of paper that...
(LAUGHTER)
LINNELL: ...Says that Antarctica qualifies as a desert. It says it here. All right, last question. How about some math? The rapper Ja Rule was born on February 29, 1976, which was a leap year. How old will he be in 2016?
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
FLANSBURGH: Dan.
CARDILLO: Five.
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
(SOUNDBITE OF BUZZER)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Wrong.
LINNELL: He'll be 40, like everyone else born in 1976.
(LAUGHTER, APPLAUSE)
FLANSBURGH: Thank you for playing our game.
EISENBERG: I feel like we have an interesting situation. Puzzle guru John Chaneski, how did our contestants do?
JOHN CHANESKI, BYLINE: Well, here's the thing.
EISENBERG: Yeah.
(LAUGHTER)
CHANESKI: Dan got more questions wrong.
EISENBERG: Yeah.
CHANESKI: So I think maybe he wins, but I like "How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying" as my favorite musical, so I'm prepared to give it to Jennifer.
(APPLAUSE)
COULTON: That sounds fair.
EISENBERG: OK, John Flansburgh, Jennifer is the winner. Let's hear her ring tone.
FLANSBURGH: (Singing) Jennifer Keating, it's your phone ringing. Jennifer Keating, it's your phone ringing. Your phone's ringing.
EISENBERG: Nice.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: And now we get to hear Dan's less catchy winning ring tone.
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) Dan Cardillo, pick up the phone. Pick up the phone. I said, Dan Cardillo, pick up the phone. Pick up the phone. I said Dan.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: They Might Be Giants has a little tune for you that you may be familiar with called "Birdhouse In Your Soul."
(APPLAUSE)
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: (Singing) I'm your only friend. I'm not your only friend but I'm a little glowing friend. But really I'm not actually your friend. But I am. Blue canary in the outlet by the light switch, who watches over you. Make a little birdhouse in your soul, not to put too fine a point on it. Say I'm the only bee in your bonnet. Make a little birdhouse in your soul.
I have a secret to tell from my electrical well. It's a simple message and I'm leaving out the whistles and bells. So the room must listen to me, filibuster vigilantly. My name is blue canary one note spelled L-I-T-E. My story's infinite. Like the Longines Symphonette, it doesn't rest.
Blue canary in the outlet by the light switch who watches over you. Make a little birdhouse in your soul, not to put too fine a point on it. Say I'm the only bee in your bonnet. Make a little birdhouse in your soul.
I'm your only friend. I'm not your only friend, but I'm a little glowing friend, but really I'm not actually your friend, but I am.
There's a picture opposite me of my primitive ancestry, which stood on rocky shores and kept the beaches shipwreck free. Though I respect that a lot, I'd be fired if that were my job after killing Jason off and countless screaming Argonauts. Bluebird of friendliness, like guardian angels its always near.
Blue canary in the outlet by the light switch who watches over you. Make a little birdhouse in your soul. Not to put too fine a point on it, say I'm the only bee in your bonnet. Make a little birdhouse in your soul.
And while you're at it, leave the nightlight on inside the birdhouse in your soul. Not to put too fine a point on it, say I'm the only bee in your bonnet. Make a little birdhouse in your soul.
While you're at it, leave the nightlight on inside the birdhouse in your soul. Not to put too fine a point on it, say I'm the only bee in your bonnet. Make a little birdhouse in your soul.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Coming up after the break, we'll have a game inspired by that Nobel Prize-winning scientist Sting, so stay tuned. This is NPR's ASK ME ANOTHER.
(APPLAUSE) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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