Reply To: TMBG
The biggest difference I’ve noted between JoCo and TMBG is that most JoCo songs paint a picture of a fairly consistent universe, even if it’s one that is rather different from ours, and maintain a sort of internal logic, (yes, it’s a love song about a heartbroken giant squid, but it still makes sense, even if you don’t bother reading it as a metaphor for someone who just isn’t very good at maintaining relationships) whereas typical TMBG songs are significantly more absurd at all levels (everybody wants prosthetic foreheads on their real heads). Both deviate from normalcy, but they have distinct patterns of deviation. Maybe both appeal to some people who are simply sick of normalcy.
Another TMBG-Hodgman link worth noting is “This American Life”, which has apparently led to an overlap of TMBG fandom and Hodgman fandom (though my evidence for this is anecdotal).