Pop Reviews : Giants Put On a Sweet Show

John Flansburgh and John Linnell look like partners in a high school science fair project rather than a rock band. They named their group after the play and the movie “They Might Be Giants,” their primary instrumentation is guitar and accordion and they sing in flat, earnest voices about mammal biology, aspects of scale, space travel and the interior obsessions of the archetypal loner.

When nerds form a rock act, the results are usually smug and smirking, but They Might Be Giants seemed entirely sweet and genuine in their Wiltern Theatre concert on Thursday, where the New Yorkers’ buoyant music was intensely embraced by a young, high-energy crowd, only a couple of whom wore the fezzes that were once the duo’s fashion statement.

There were both Beach Boys lift and punk drive in the music, whose prime antecedents are pop’s adenoidal innocent Jonathan Richman and ‘60s folk revisionists the Holy Modal Rounders. The show was much more musically active than the Johns’ last tour, on which they were accompanied by tapes and samples rather than a live band.

This time, the presence of three additional musicians made possible such moments as a sizzling, polka-flavored jam, a version of Edgar Winter’s instrumental chestnut “Frankenstein” and a “stump the band” segment that yielded an initially halting, ultimately triumphant “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’.”

“Tonight Show” band alumnus Sal Marquez contributed some stinging trumpet riffs and singer Syd Straw sat in with both the headliners and opening act Freedy Johnston, whose haunted, quietly maniacal folk-rock received an ambiguous response: Some clapped along and cheered, others did the wave. Welcome to L.A.

They Might Be Giants and Freedy Johnston also appear Wednesday at Iguanas in Tijuana , Thursday at the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano. Johnston plays tonight at Nomad’s and Tuesday at Raji’s .