We may be the family of arts explorers, according to me, but if you ask Miss 5 where her love lies, she would tell you it is science. She rattles off the names of planets with ease and spends a lot of time thinking about what it would be like to go through a black hole. Her pre-school fascination with dinosaurs has not yet waned. On her first report card, her one “Excels,” had to do with her enthusiasm for learning the water cycle. Not that there would ever be a reason to choose between interests in science and the arts, but I do believe that they are wonderfully complimentary pursuits – and studies of the most successful scientists do seem to hold up the idea that an interest in the arts correlates well with a scientific vocation.
All of this is preamble to say that when I learned that in 2009 They Might Be Giants released an entire children’s album devoted to science, I could not click “Yes” fast enough on iTunes queries of whether I was sure I wanted to purchase Here Comes Science. They Might Be Giants (or, “The Maybe Giants,” as Miss 5 calls them), you may know, are kings of 90s geek rock, probably best remembered for educating us all that “Istanbul was Constantinople.” They have also released a number of children’s albums. Their nasal vocals and word-dense lyrics may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I’ve always had an appreciation for their smart, cheeky stylings, so if nerdy-indy gets your ears dancing, read on because your whole family will like this one.
Here Comes Science opens with “Science is Real,” an introduction to the scientific process and declaration that “the facts are with science,” (which, if you’ve spent as much time reading health posts on Facebook mother’s groups as I have, you’ll realize is not actually a given for everyone). This intro is followed by 18 songs about different topics in science, everything from “Meet the Elements,” to “Photosynthesis,” to “Computer Assisted Design.”
“The Bloodmobile,” an explanation of the circulatory system, was an immediate hit here, with Miss 5 telling me, “I have a bloodmobile inside me!”. She also got a huge kick out of “My Brother the Ape,” which is about our DNA ties to the rest of the animal kingdom. And, if you were worried that “Istanbul” was going to be stuck in your head for the rest of the week, please let me replace it for you with “I’m a Paleontologist,” which we cannot stop singing.
We take a tour through the galaxy, ride an electric car, and learn the difference between speed and velocity. These songs are funny and catchy. My one concern is that the lyrics of many of the songs come flying by so quickly that they can be hard to understand, especially for a child. The first time I pushed play, I could see Miss 5 check out within a couple of verses. The good news is that this entire album has corresponding animation videos, like the one linked above. On iTunes, it was $5 extra to purchase the digital version, and it was well worth it because once Miss 5 had one watch through, the songs made perfect sense to her, and the questions about specific concepts she’s heard in the lyrics have come rapid fire.
I would recommend Here Comes Science for slightly older kids than most of the CDs I’ve reviewed up to this point. This is a good fit for primary age, and up. I can even see science keen teens getting into this one. It’s a terrific resource for introducing scientific concepts, and just good, quirky, tuneful fun. That’s my hypothesis, anyway – you can perform your own tests!
More about They Might Be Giants on their website. Here Comes Science is available on Amazon, iTunes, and all the usual places.
This review is independent and self-funded.
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