Alternative duo They Might Be Giants performed this weekend on February 8 at the Bowery Ballroom in New York as part of their 30th Anniversary Flood Tour 2020. The 35-song setlist was teeming with hits from their 1990 album Flood.
A total of 19 songs from the album make up most of the performances, but they also include a medley of tracks from across their discography. The song selections follow a series of tracks that span the band’s entire career.
The show was divided into three sections: “The Quiet Storm,” “Band Returns” and “Flood.” This is different from their previous shows, where they usually start off with the “Flood” section before transitioning into “The Quiet Storm” section. The duo opened up with a cover of cub’s “New York City,” followed by classics such as “Museum of Idiots,” “Let Me Tell You About My Operation,” “Older,” “Fingertips” and “Why Does the Sun Shine?”
Continuing with the reverse sequence trend they have going on, TMBG also did a special “backward” rendition of “Sapphire Bullets of Pure Love,” playing the song in reverse as to demonstrate the “right” way to play it.
They treated the crowd with a couple more covers, including The Four Lads’ “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)” and “Maybe I Know” by Lesley Gore. Luckily, songs from Apollo 18, The Spine, and John Henry made the cut. The duo continued to perform classics like “The Guitar (The Lion Sleeps Tonight),” “Turn Around,” “Damn Good Times” and “Wearing a Raincoat.”