Factory Showroom is the sixth studio album by the band They Might Be Giants. It was released in 1996 (see 1996 in music) through Elektra Records.

The album reclaims the more diverse and electronic sound of their early work, moving away from the live, relentlessly driving rock feel of its 1994 predocessor, John Henry. It continued the group's trend of dividing critics - some saw it as a return to form, others as a slight creative drought. It didn't help that before this, the group had never released an original studio album with fewer than eighteen tracks on it. Factory Showroom features just thirteen (one a recycled b-side).

John Flansburgh (founding member, guitarist and songwriter) has publicly declared Factory Showroom to be his favorite of the duo's many recordings. Feeling that Elektra Records did not do enough to promote the album, among other disputes, They Might Be Giants left the label after its release.

Track listing

1. "S-E-X-X-Y"
2. "Till My Head Falls Off"
3. "How Can I Sing Like a Girl?"
4. "Exquisite Dead Guy"
5. "Metal Detector"
6. "New York City" (a cover of a song by Cub)
7. "Your Own Worst Enemy"
8. "XTC vs. Adam Ant"
9. "Spiraling Shape"
10. "James K. Polk"
11. "Pet Name"
12. "I Can Hear You"
13. "The Bells are Ringing"

Trivia

• "I Can Hear You" was recorded at the Edison Laboratory on a wax cylinder phonograph without the use of electricity.
• "James K. Polk" is a song about James Knox Polk, the 11th president of the United States. A sparser, drum-machine driven version had previously popped up on a 1990 EP for the song Istanbul (Not Constantinople).
• There is also a hidden track (Track 0) on the CD entitled "Token Back to Brooklyn". It is accessible by rewinding from the beginning of Track 1 ("S-E-X-X-Y"), and is not playable on all CD players. It can, however, also be heard on the rarities compilation They Got Lost along with the Internet-only album Long Tall Weekend.

External Links

• Factory Showroom page at This Might Be A Wiki