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When Johns Flansburgh and Linell of They Might Be Giants brought their essential nerd rock to The Pageant on Friday night, everything about the show reflected the long-running love the band and St. Louis have for each other. (They even called St. Louis their "spirit home.")
It was all TMBG, all night—two lengthy sets, and two encores. "We're the openers," they joked. "We're gonna blow the headliner away!" They also shared lots of stories and banter between songs, as if they were in a big auditorium filled with pals. Which, in a sense, they were.
The show started acoustically, with some covers—but of course when TMBG covers a song, they totally own it. Their sound is definitely their sound; you'd know it anywhere. Though the band's touring in support of its latest album, I Like Fun, the show covered a good stretch of the band's discography (which is really saying something, when you consider just how prolific they have been, and that they have been making music for almost 40 years).
The die-hard fans, of which there were many, were enrapt; it was clear that a lot of these folks are in the place in their life where they don't go out to shows a lot anymore, but they rallied to be here. These were people who might've seen TMBG back in the day at the long-gone Mississippi Nights, or at a Wash. Ave. club.
Always the artists but also always the gentlemen, John2 when returned to the stage for their first encore, they played a song they knew would get the audience happy, dancing, and probably a little nostalgic: Birdhouse in Your Soul.
Set List:
New York City
I Left My Body
Damn Good Times
Don't Let's Start
Mrs. Bluebeard
Your Racist Friend
Why Does the Sun Shine?
Letterbox
Ana Ng
Nothing's Gonna Change My Clothes
All Time What
The Mesopotamians
When Will You Die
Hey, Mr. DJ, I Thought You Said We Had a Deal
Older
I Like Fun
Tippecanoe and Tyler Too
James K. Polk
A Self Called Nowhere
Istanbul (Not Constantinople)
Underwater Woman
Spider
The Guitar
Number Three
Answer
When the Light Comes On
Twisting
Man, It's So Loud In Here
No One Knows My Plan
ENCORE
This Microphone
Doctor Worm
Birdhouse in Your Soul
ENCORE 2
Dead
If you like They Might Be Giants, you might be interested in The Oh Hellos on March 9, or Matt and Kim on March 27.
