An evening out. At the historic National Theater in downtown Richmond, VA. On stage, perennial household favorite Jonathan Coulton and headliners They Might Be Giants, performing, in its entirety, and, improbably, in reverse order, the seminal 1990 album Flood.

First up, internet troubador Jonathan Coulton, who I’ve seen in a different venue twice in as many years, and is, by all rights, a terribly talented and entertaining fellow, seemed honestly surprised by the rousing welcome he received. By the time he’d wrapped up his 25 minute or so set, those who didn’t know him already had become fans, and that’s a good thing, because it means he’ll probably come back to town on his own before too long, and save me a two-hour drive to The Birchmere, his usual venue ’round these parts.

After a short break, TMBG took the stage, presenting a mix of favorites, including “Fingertips” and “The Guitar”, before launching into Flood, backwards (which really, is probably a better way to do it live, given that they get to all but close out with “Birdhouse In Your Soul”), breaking once (where one would flip the tape/record) for, of all things, a puppet show.

See that bass drum in the photo above? There’s a camera on top of it, in front of which the Johns performed as their sock puppet avatars, with the proceedings projected onto a screen above the stage, where, among other things, they serenaded a photo of Meg Ryan.

Yeah, it was a weird show. Entertaining, but weird.

It’s actually been a few years since I’ve been to a “real” rock show, with lights, and electric guitars, and a big-ass PA; it was LOUD. As you can see from the photo above, while we spent JoCo’s set about eight feet back from the stage, we retreated to the rear of the venue, near the location of a very generous bartender, for most of the Giants’ set. In addition to being able to see the entire stage, the sound mix was better from back there.

It was an evening of great fun, overall. There are a few more photos over in the gallery, if you’re interested.