Most of the time, if I see an album has 18 tracks on it, my heart sinks. I almost always end up thinking, “If they got rid of half of this record, it would be brilliant.” The great thing about They Might Be Giants, however, is that their songs are often so concise that they never outstay their welcome. On The World Is To Dig, remarkably the duo’s 24th full-length release, that positive trait is masterfully retained. Tracks like ‘Telescope’ lean into a Rain Dogs-era Tom Waits aesthetic while clocking in at a mere 50 seconds, and the lively ‘Character Flaw’ stands alongside their most commercially viable work from classic albums like Lincoln and Flood.
Another standout is the brilliant ‘Wu-Tang,’ the second track on the record, which features clever, unpredictable word-rhythms from John Linnell’s vocal delivery. It is an undeniably joyous track. Other highlights are plentiful, including ‘In The Dead Mall,’ which feels like a collaboration between Mike Cooley of Drive-By Truckers and a glam-rock outfit, and the double-whammy of the reggae-tinted ‘New Wave Will Never Die’ and ‘Overnight Sensation (Hit Record),’ the latter serving as a direct paean to that specific musical genre.
The wonderfully punny ‘Let’s Fall In Lava’ is a fun, Brian Wilson-esque number punctuated by oddball lyrics: “We’ve had a devil of a time getting here / But now that’s all behind us and here’s our destination / Let’s fall in lava, jump into magma / We came here for a reason, so now let’s face the lava and fall.” If nothing else, They Might Be Giants can never be accused of being predictable.
Opening track ‘Back In Los Angeles’ and ‘Slow’ both possess a woozy, dizzying quality that conjures up late nights and the subsequent struggle to navigate home. Meanwhile, ‘Hit The Ground’ features an urgent, jittery rhythm section that recalls Queen’s ‘Another One Bites The Dust’ while simultaneously capturing the summery essence of the Bill Withers classic ‘Lovely Day.’
The World Is To Dig was released almost a month ago on Idlewild Recordings, but it would be a mistake to overlook it. Here we have a pair of musicians still crafting fabulous music more than 40 years after the band’s formation. As always, some songs resonate more than others, but there are no filler tracks here; it is a record that invites you to sit back and marvel at the duo’s seemingly never-ending ingenuity.