Eyeball

They Might Be Giants

Ashley Sudeta

Happy new year! It’s 2026 and we all know what that means. That’s right, it’s been over a year since the original deadline by which iconic rock band They Might Be Giants promised to release their twenty-fourth album. After not releasing album 24 in 2024 as John Flansburgh (songwriter, singer, musician, and the one who runs their social media) originally teased on Tumblr, it looks like it will now be out this April. To tide fans over until then, they released the EP “Eyeball” on January 15—and what a nutritionally complete snack it is!

“Eyeball” is well rounded and contains everything a TMBGhead needs to grow big and strong. There’s a Linnell song, a Flansburgh song, an instrumental, and a remix. It’s perfectly curated to show off the band’s modern sound.

The title track features John Linnell and John Flansburgh singing about eyeball-based mind control. It’s punchy, with bold piano and lyrical references to “Rock and Roll Music” by Chuck Berry. Flansburgh’s “The Glamour of Rock” provides a slower, more dramatic tone. The mundanity of doing laundry juxtaposed with Flansburgh’s melodramatic lyricism makes me wish my washing machine had a window so I, too, could be “hypnotized by the cave of the clothing.”

While I’m usually not a fan of instrumentals, “Peggy Guggenheim” is my favorite track on the EP. It’s an energetic, superspy-soundtrack type piece that conveys action without words. TMBG grew from originally being two men and a drum machine to having a full band and a horn section, and they’re using every instrument to its full potential.

I think I wanted to dislike this EP, since I was hoping for a full album. However, the more I listen to “Eyeball,” the more solid it seems. I’m sorry for doubting you, TMBG.