{"id":1051,"date":"2011-09-01T08:00:56","date_gmt":"2011-09-01T15:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/billchapin.net\/allthecitylights\/?p=1051"},"modified":"2015-01-12T09:31:52","modified_gmt":"2015-01-12T17:31:52","slug":"racking-up-plays-canajoharie-by-they-might-be-giants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/billchapin.net\/allthecitylights\/2011\/09\/racking-up-plays-canajoharie-by-they-might-be-giants\/","title":{"rendered":"Racking Up Plays: “Canajoharie” by They Might Be Giants"},"content":{"rendered":"

These are the posts where I gush about some song that I\u2019ve got a huge crush on at the moment, and you put up with it and listen because you\u2019re a good friend.<\/em><\/p>\n

“Canajoharie,” They Might Be Giants<\/a><\/h3>\n
\"\"<\/a>
John Linnell and John Flansburgh are still They Might Be Giants. (via theymightbegiants.com)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Twenty-nine years. That’s how long They Might Be Giants have been making absurdist nerd rock, beginning back when I was still in my formative geek stage. And if you’re wondering whether the Johns still can still write a popular anthem for the unpopular crowd, look no further than “Canajoharie” off the band’s 15th album, Join Us.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Canajoharie is a small town near the Catskills where John Flansburgh and John Linnell both have vacation homes.\u00a0The lyrics are classic TMBG, toying with scientific concepts and introducing a narrator who has to reassure his audience, “I’m not insane.” In what I think is a reference to the fossil-rich Canajoharie Gorge<\/a>, Linnell describes a vision\u2014revealing that this spot in upstate New York is where the first prehistoric amphibian crawled out of the ocean\u2014so vivid that it manifests itself as a giant fin that grabs a hold of his arm.\u00a0“It was right through those trees … ,” he sings. “That’s where the thing tried to drag me in. Don’t look at me. Look at where I’m pointing”\u2014which is such a hilariously evocative scene: You can’t help but imagine yourself there in the song, glancing at Linnell with a skeptical, cocked eyebrow. Given this is TMBG, it’s no surprise that the song is full of such absurd, amusing little lyrical moments:<\/p>\n