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 Caught in the Carousel - Music Reviews and More
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They Might Be Giants
Here Come the 123s CD/DVD
Disney
During a discussion with a friend of mine about how kids these days all seem to be doing the same things—soccer, baseball, Kumon, Burger King—she said, “If I had a kid I’d steer them in a weird direction.” In other words, it’s easy to have your kid do what everyone else is doing, but that kind of social uniformity, though it may partially guarantee a child a rudimentary, albeit theoretical understanding of teamwork and physical fitness, it doesn’t make them interesting. I’m no parent either, but you can bet that if I had a kid, things wouldn’t be normal around my house. No processed food, no Little League and no bad music. It might not be fair to force P.I.L. or The Fall on a little one, but thankfully, there now exists a great alternative to the normal garden variety of children’s music. Which brings us to They Might Be Giants’ Here Come The 123s, a twenty-four track collection of educational, catchy and hilarious numbers from the formidable Brooklyn-based duo John Flansburgh and John Linnell. They Might Be Giants’ first foray into the milieu of children’s music came in the form of their 2002 effort No! which was met with widespread critical and commercial acclaim. A few albums (Here Come The ABCs) and a few theme songs later (“The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” “Higglytown Heroes”) They Might Be Giants are back with Here Come The 123s an upbeat and melodic collection that makes numbers sound like the greatest things in the world. The ragtime breakdown of “Number Two” is all about parents and kids; the swirling disco of “High Five” is an ode to friendship and “One Everything” which explores the unity of the omniverse (don’t worry—your kid will get it) pretty much rocks. Elsewhere, the Dust Brothers show up to produce “Seven” which depicts the number as a kind of unwanted, eat-all-the-stuff-in-your-house-kind of guy; “I Can Add” hands out kudos for mathematical accomplishments and “Ooh La! Ooh La!” borrows the rhymes of the Double Dutch and turns it into an even more playful romp.
The DVD companion is for the most part identical in track sequence as the CD and it’s tons of fun. There are sock puppets from the Deeply Felt Puppet Theatre, creative Japanese animation and even a clip done by the Brothers Chaps at Homestarrunner.com.
An engaging and truly captivating viewing experience.
—Alex Green
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