Indie rockers-turned-kids-music-masters They Might Be Giants face an interesting dilemma when go on tour, and by extension, appear on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Tuesday. Do they play for the kids or for the adults?

Usually, bands draw from their current release, which in this case is the wildly entertaining children's album/DVD Here Comes Science, currently on high rotation with my rugrats. Competing against that is the 20th anniversary of the (recently certified platinum) album Flood. If I'm a betting man, I'd place it on the latter, meaning we'll probably get a little "Birdhouse in Your Soul" (or possibly "Particle Man").

Their current tour schedule is a marvel in schizophrenia, with three different kinds of shows being marketed across the country, sometimes with all versions making an appearance in a given town. First there's the rock show, which is a traditional TMBG joint, involving all their hits throughout the years, minus the kids stuff. Then there's the Family Show, occurring early in the afternoon and incorporating music from all four of their albums made for kids. Finally, there's the special Flood Show, a celebration of the aforementioned 20th anniversary featuring renditions of all the songs from the band's most popular album.

Meanwhile, The Mountain Goats' John Darnielle has always displayed a fascination with religion, so hearing his take on bible verses is not a tremendous leap for the band's latest release, The Life of the World to Come. Each of the 12 songs takes lessons learned from 12 different verses from the Bible (each titled accordingly), yet somehow manages to veer clear of being preachy, or even Christian for that matter. Don't tell that to Stephen Colbert, though. When Darnielle and band appear on The Colbert Report Tuesday, there's sure to be (faux) bonding over their favorite biblical passages.

Elsewhere, Australia's heavy metal purveyors Wolfmother have been tapped to be the house band all week for The Daily Habit (Fuel TV), debuting three new songs from their forthcoming release Cosmic Egg along with two fan favorites. Tuesday, Conan welcomes the newly revived Anvil, fresh from their documentary success (Anvil! The Story of Anvil). And finally, 70's yacht rock legend Christopher Cross answers the call from Jimmy Fallon to play "Ride Like the Wind," an idea that we support only in that a) he's backed by The Roots, and b) it's not the song "Sailing." Seriously, no "Sailing." Ever.

Playlist: Picks for the week
Monday, October 5
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Pink (REPEAT)
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Steve Martin
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Wolfmother
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Christopher Cross (special performance of "Ride Like the Wind" backed by The Roots)
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Pete Yorn (REPEAT)
Tuesday, October 6
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Gossip
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: KISS
CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: The Avett Brothers
COMEDY CENTRAL: The Colbert Report: The Mountain Goats
THE CW: 90210: The Script
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Wolfmother
NBC: The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien: Anvil
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: They Might Be Giants
Wednesday, October 7
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: KISS
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Rosanne Cash
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Wolfmother
NBC: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon: Lenny Kravitz
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Juliette Lewis
Thursday, October 8
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Motorhead
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Wolfmother
NBC: The Jay Leno Show: Ben Harper & Jack Black
Friday, October 9
FUEL: The Daily Habit: Wolfmother
SUNDANCE: Robyn Hitchcock: I Often Dream of Trains: Robyn Hitchcock
Saturday, October 10
NBC: Saturday Night Live: Regina Spektor
PBS: Austin City Limits: Ben Harper and Relentless7

drake lelane
curator of the music/soundtrack blog thus spake drake

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