Why Is The World In Love Again With TMBG Flood

By Mercedes Caldera-Perez

The Centennialight

Flood, released on January 2, 1990, is They Might Be Giants third studio album. It is their most popular, and was made gold-certified in 1993 before becoming a platinum record later on in 2009. 

They Might Be Giants (TMBG) is a music group from Brooklyn, NY. Formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell, the American alternative group has been active for 43 years, producing 23 studio albums over the course of their run time. 

35 years later, the album remains a well beloved record from fans and casual listeners alike. Some of the most popular tracks off the album being “Birdhouse In Your Soul” as well as “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)”.

A common theme in a lot of TMBG songs is the lack of any clear meaning, or no real meaning at all. Fans have theorized many different meanings for the song Birdhouse, such as thinking that  the song is about finding happiness as bluebirds often represent happiness and good fortune. 

In 1994 Linnell commented on the song's meaning, “I mean, for example, ‘Birdhouse In Your Soul’ is a song about a nightlight. That's it. It’s written from the perspective of a nightlight serenading the occupant of its room.” 

For promotion, bird shaped nightlights were sold as referenced in the song. 

Although many credit the Johns for the creation of “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)”, it is actually a cover of a song of the same name that dates back to 1951. The popular cover is a wildly different take on the original song by The Four Lads.

The original is more reserved and performed with a quartet while the version from Flood is a lot more lively with a faster pace and many more instruments. As of now, the song has been performed by TMBG live for a total of 1494 times.

The band is currently on tour across the US with THE BIG TOUR, touring the South in March and the West Coast in May. A couple of Floods tracks are staples within the ever changing setlists of the tour's shows, one being “Sapphire Bullets Of Pure Love" which is played by the band in reverse!