Natural disasters in China was expected in 1996. This yield was anticipated despite torrential summer rains throughout China that flooded 32,500 square kilometres (8 million acres) of cropland, caused thousands of deaths, left millions homeless, and cost billions of yuan in damage. The Yellow River crested at its highest recorded level, inspiring fears of a catastrophic dike breach. Nevertheless, over the past 50 years, natural disasters on average had reduced China's harvests by approximately 1% annually. Work proceeded on the world's largest flood-control and hydroelectric project, the controversial Three Gorges Dam on the Chang Jiang (Yangtze River) above Yichang. Chinese planners were considering huge
Flood (They Might Be Giants album) as their most iconic. Due to the acclaim with which it was received, the album is considered to have cemented the band's reputation as a staple of alternative and college rock. They Might Be Giants has performed the album live in its entirety on numerous occasions, including during their 2010 US tour and their 2013 tour of Australia. In 2015, the band released the live album "Flood Live in Australia", a recording of the album played live in 2013, in which the songs are played in reverse order, starting with "Road Movie to Berlin" and ending with "Theme from Flood".