20 albums is a feat that few artists ever achieve. And if you want to know the secret to They Might Be Giants’ longevity, look no further than the title of album No. 20: I Like Fun. Anyone who is familiar with their oeuvre, be it their landmark early albums — Flood, Lincoln, and their self-titled debut — or their more recent foray into children’s albums, knows that the two Johns, Flansburgh and Linnell, never take themselves too seriously. Heck, many might only be familiar with the band through their work from Malcolm In The Middle or Tiny Toons Adventures, but it all still speaks to the same cartoonish, jovial, and sharp songwriting that they’ve perfected over the last 35 years.
I Like Fun is set to drop on Friday, and ahead of that, the duo offers up the music video for the title track. Directed by Joren Cull, the clip takes a literal — albeit animated — interpretation of the song’s lyrics, with crying little pills shifting its recipient’s perceptions of reality. The titular idea is not the kind of absurdist fun that people might typically associate with TMBG, instead focusing on something a little more sly and macabre.
Check out the clip for “I Like Fun” above, and give the album a spin via NPR here.
