Eccentric rock duo They Might Be Giants will release their first album in three years this spring, just months after dropping their “Eyeball” EP, Stereogum reported.
“The World Is to Dig” drops on April 14, marking the group’s first full-length release since 2021’s Grammy-nominated “BOOK.” The album’s lead single, “Wu-Tang,” pays homage to the Staten Island hip-hop collective.
The power-pop track features the band’s two Johns singing the song’s title repeatedly as they increasingly hit higher notes throughout the chorus.
According to a press release, the song explores the Wu-Tang Clan as “a transformative force and a guiding light through inner conflict and personal struggle.”
“Many years ago, we discussed the idea of celebrating an artist or a style of music, but in the form of a completely unrelated genre of music,” said the band’s John Linnell.
“The original idea was a Tin Pan Alley-style song extolling the greatness of heavy metal. ‘Wu-Tang’ was written more or less along those lines, partly inspired by their TV biopic, but void of any musical reference to the great hip-hop collective. Are we fans? Sure! Would we ever attempt to emulate their sound? Not publicly.”
“The World Is to Dig” will feature 18 new tracks. An exclusive 180-gram vinyl color variant of the LP will be available at indie record shops on April 17, according to Consequence of Sound.
In support of the album, They Might Be Giants announced the latest leg of their “The Bigger Show Tour” which is set to kick off on April 17th with a two-night stint in Woodstock, before they head off to gigs in Brooklyn, Chicago, Boston, Detroit, Philadelphia and Indianapolis.