Quirky rockers John Linnell and John Flansburgh might be giants, but they are also definitely one of the hottest theme-songwriting teams in Hollywood.
Linnell and Flansburgh, who are better known as the band They Might Be Giants, were responsible for the opening song in “Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me” and recently recorded the theme song for WB’s new series “The Oblongs.” They also rewrote all of the music for Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show.”
But the duo’s theme dreams have reached new heights with “Malcolm in the Middle”; they provide most of the music for Fox’s critically acclaimed comedy.
“They have such a great sense of humor in all of their music,” said Tracy Katsky, vice president of comedy at Regency Studios, which produces “Malcolm.” “They have a distinctive sound and they bring such a great style to the show, musically. It just feels different than the other comedies we watch.”
Theme-song composition is an unlikely feat for the Brooklyn-based They Might Be Giants, who helped define alternative rock in the mid-’80s with the seminal hits “Birdhouse in Your Soul,” “Particle Man” and “Istanbul (Not Constantinople).” But the band is definitely enjoying the success.
“I’m really pleased that it’s a hit,” Linnell said of “Malcolm.”
“It’s going to look great on our resume,” he added jokingly.
Katsky, who said They Might Be Giants was one of her favorite bands in high school, thought of the band for “Malcolm” when she learned they were signed to Restless Records, which is partially owned by Regency.
“I called Linwood [Boomer, executive producer of “Malcolm in the Middle”] and said, `Have you ever heard of these guys?’ And he was a huge fan too,” Katsky said. “So we sent them a script and they liked it.”
At a news conference earlier this year, Boomer said he had three Giants CDs in his car stereo when Katsky called. “That was one of the things I was most excited about before we ever started filming it,” he added.
For the show, which revolves around a child genius, They Might Be Giants have recorded a large library of music, which is used during about two-thirds of each episode. When “Malcolm” debuted, the duo had recorded the music for five episodes. Since then, they have spent about 15 hours recording each week, but the amount of music for each episode varies.
“It’s a huge job,” Linnell said. “We have to keep writing the stuff, week after week. And then sometimes they have specific requests for us.”
Like anything the guys have done in their 15-year career — such as Linnell’s recent solo project, “State Songs,” an album on the Rounder label of 15 rather unusual state anthems packed with wacky sounds and circus pop — the “Malcolm” theme music is a gigantic step in another direction.
“It’s a crazy project — very different from our thing,” Linnell said. “Once we started cooking up music, they got more specific about what they wanted. It came down to stuff people don’t associate with They Might Be Giants. There’s a lot of ska and contemporary dance music that we’re doing, which is pretty hilarious. I think we’re the last band people would think could do some good hip-hop beats.”
The TV-writing arrangement is unusual. “There have probably been a lot of shows that have enlisted a band to do a theme or score, but they have never seen the light of day,” said Michael Kahn, a manager for the Giants. “It’s rare when the show becomes a hit.”
Katsky said the group’s appeal has a lot to do with their ability to write material quickly.
“Composing for a show week to week is really hard,” she said. “And they’ve just risen to the challenge so well. We really lucked out with them. They are just fantastic.”
When They Might Be Giants aren’t recording music for “Malcolm in the Middle” or their next studio album, they are creating commercial jingles for companies like Weber Grills. The songwriters even pop up in Hollywood every now and then.
“We’re apparently going to the closing party for `Malcolm in the Middle,'” Linnell said. “But we’re still spending most of our time in New York. We’re not planning on moving to L.A. Ever.”
