State Songs by John Linnell

Pros: An artsy concept taken to a goofy extreme
Cons: A few questionable choices. Too many instrumentals

Concept Album. It's a phrase that can strike fear and trepidation into the hearts of even the most seasoned record buyer. For every Ziggy Stardust or The Wall that manages to find success through a unifying concept, there are dozens of ...

Pros: The aforementioned tracks.
Cons: The instrumentals aren't very good, too little to do with the actual states.

I ordered this album along with a boxful of other TMBG goodies. (A mug, and their video compilation, which is super cool.) After my friends had opened the box and derided me for buying an album entitled "State Songs", I took it work for a...

Pros: A unique idea with several very catchy, well-written, and otherwise wonderful songs.
Cons: Some of the songs are so horrible, I refuse to listen to them.

I received a CD as a gift which included, among other songs, John Linnell's "West Virginia." This quickly became my favorite song on the CD, and I tried to remember why I hadn't purchased State Songs a couple years ago when it came out. I remembered...

Pros: Plenty of strong songs, unique sound
Cons: Some songs you just don't like

This is a great album. It often feels like a repository for John Linnell's "too weird for TMBG" songs, as they aren't, for the most part, tinged with the alt-pop that TMBG's music has carried as of late. Tracks like the accordion solo...

Pros: Clever, interesting flavor, well-executed concept
Cons: Atonal at parts, Plodding rhythm during some songs

John Linnell, one of the two founding members of They Might Be Giants, has finally released commercially the first part of his ambitious project, State Songs. His goal is to eventually have a song about each state in the United States. For now, though,...

Pros: Great Music, catchy tunes, across the board fun
Cons: lyrics are sometimes decidedly odd, may limit its appeal

Wow. I don't know what I was expecting when I bought this album. I bought it based off of a handful of short demos on the TMBG website (For those of you not in the know, John Linnell is one of the Twin Quasars of rock known as "They Might Be...

Pros: A Fan-favorite, and rumors of 2 more albums!
Cons: Some songs are downright weird, and not everyone seems to like this.

Yes, they're weird, like a guy who put together an album based on a series of inside jokes that nobody understands but a small, exclusive group of friends who ride the tour bus with the Johns. But man, the songs are great.
Upon first hearing them,...

Pros: It's John Linnell.
Cons: You miss Flansburgh when it's time for the guitar

I hate to think that the reason I prefer Linnell is because he's marginally better looking than Flansburgh. I hate to think I'm that shallow. So lately, to assure myself that I'm not, I've been exploring their solo projects (Flansburgh's is a band called...

Pros: Great songs from 1/2 of the greatest band ever, They Might Be Giants
Cons: Linnell most likely won't release another State Songs album

John Linnell is one of the best musicians around, and it is clearly shown on the State Songs album. Not only is he skilled at songwriting and the ever-difficult accordion, he uses his imagination to make his music spontaneous and more enjoyable for the...

Pros: Quality Catchy Tunes
Cons: Nothing Truely Exceptional

There's nothing especially new about State Songs, even some of it's songs have been around for a while in bootlegs and Dial-A-Song recordings. Even the new ones don't really break any new ground from Mr. Linnell's TMBG workings. That being said.. State...