Phil Hernandez
Phil Hernandez, also known as DJ ***** (Dee Jay Five Star), is one half of the Elegant Too, a group which often collaborates with They Might Be Giants.
Phil worked with Mono Puff as a percussionist, and he appeared in the music video for TMBG's "Doctor Worm" playing bongos, though he did not actually drum on the song, as noted in the Direct From Brooklyn DVD commentary. Hernandez also did some drumming and programming work on the Mink Car album, and joined the band for a performance of "Man, It's So Loud In Here" on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Shortly after, he provided percussion for "It's Kickin' In". He is listed in the thank yous for McSweeney's issue 6.
Hernandez talked about his experience moving to New York in an interview in 2020.[2]
When I moved to New York, I couldn’t have my drums. I couldn’t play drums all the time like I used to when I was in Texas. [...] I was talking to [John Flansburgh], and he had a bunch of leftover They Might Be Giants gear lying around that they weren’t using. He just gave me a small little set-up, a Casio SG1 sampler and a crappy computer. I started spending time learning how to make stuff on the computer. [...] We did a lot of work with them at the very beginning, too. They helped get us our first break as far as learning how to do score more.