Audio: Experimental Film
Album: The Spine
Release Date: 2004
Sometimes, the perfect collaboration happens. Sometimes, two things you follow and admire can come together to create something beautiful in every way. Sometimes, Homestar Runner and TMBG can create music videos together.
That’s exactly what happened with today’s song (and various others), “Experimental Film”, which was animated by the brothers Chaps, the creators of Homestar Runner. If you don’t know what HR is, it is an early 2000s flash animation show featuring numerous original characters. The show remained popular through the 2000s and 2010s and is still running on and off to this day.
Moments of Interest: It always seems like TMBG’s most successful tracks consist of only the main instruments: Dan and Danny on guitar and bass, Marty on drums, Flans on guitar and Linnell on keyboard and piano. I suppose the reason it sounds so good is that there isn’t anything else besides exactly what you expect.
Let’s talk about this song’s numerous strengths:
Guitar: Flans and Dan did just a beautiful job writing their guitar parts. They’re constantly switching things up and keeping things fresh, but never in a rushed or complicated. They go from long quarter notes to electrifying sustains layered on top of each other to that amazing sixteenth note phrase. The sound of that ringing through my ears to close out the chorus is just perfection.
Bass: I never really think about the bass in this song because of the guitarwork, but Danny did a great job here as well. He matches the piano and drums really well, throwing in his own little rhythms and melodies underneath the real focus, adding in flavor for someone to find as a nice little treat.
Drums: This being Marty’s debut track for many fans, he did a great job. He keeps the beat well and doesn’t ever stray too far away from the core rhythm, like all great drummers know how to do. But there’s this sense of playfulness he carries through the song with things like the tambourine, his use of the toms and cymbals and his pulse-work, all of which contribute to the greatness of the song’s drum section.
Keys: Linnell played both keyboard and piano in this track, both of which kind of shine throughout the song in various ways. For instance, at the very start of the song the piano is there providing the main melody along with the drums and bass. Linnell’s bass to high note melody is a constant for this song, and I generally think of it when the song crosses my mind.
Vocals: As far as the lyrics go, they are really good. But that’s fairly normal for a Linnell rocker, and it’s really not my area of expertise, so let’s talk about the vocals musically. Linnell’s voice throughout the song remains clear and songbird-like, especially during that chorus. Speaking of the chorus, his backing vocals are one of my favorite aspects of the song; during the chorus when they come in yelling “Yeah!” is the cherry on top for me.
Favorite Aspect: I could choose from a list of things I love about this song, but I think I’ll just cut out the middle man and say the entire chorus is my favorite. When I’m thinking of examples for the perfect chorus, more often than not this song pops up in my head. It’s well-balanced, satisfying, powerful, and sonically beautiful.
Let’s face it: those guitar lines during the chorus are the best part… or maybe the backing vocals… or the normal vocals…
Score: Even amongst the top TMBG songs of all time, this song stands out for me. It combines two things that I know and love well and creates something that I can watch and listen to on repeat. This is one of the TMBG songs of all time; “Experimental Film” is PERFECT.
Upcoming: Dr. Evil [A User’s Guide to They Might Be Giants]
