They Might Be Giants new album, Here Comes Science, hasn't even been released yet but it could raise hackles among some religious folks. This is because one song, Science is Real, already available as a music video on Amazon.com, has the following lyrics in it:I like the stories
About angels, unicorns and elves
Now I like the stories
As much as anybody else
But when I'm seeking knowledge
Either simple or abstract
The facts are with science
The facts are with science
About angels, unicorns and elves
Now I like the stories
As much as anybody else
But when I'm seeking knowledge
Either simple or abstract
The facts are with science
The facts are with science
Almost all of the comments on the site were positive but there were one or two like this:
As a Christian I'm offended by comparing unicorns, elves with angels. Unicorns and Elves are fiction, and angels are biblical. End of story.
Yet even that guy added:
...my Faith is strong, but I still love the band's music and respect their views.
Apparently even TMBG's more religious fans aren't upset enough to turn on this popular alternative rock group whose best-known songs include Particle Man, Istanbul (Not Constantinople), Birdhouse in Your Soul and Anna Ng. But what about the right-wing religious fringe? the Birthers, the Deathers and the Young Earth Creationists? So far, not a peep... at least that this reporter has heard about. Perhaps this is because they haven't heard about the album yet. After all, there are other songs in it that might provoke their ire including I Am a Paleontologist and My Brother the Ape. The whole album, which is aimed at children, promotes science and a naturalistic viewpoint. It won't be released on Amazon until September 8th, so perhaps we are just experiencing the calm before the storm.
This is an excerpt from an interview in Nature on Aug 27, 2009 (courtesy of N. Goetz, Amazon.com commenter):
Your lyrics talk about evolution being real and how stories about angels and unicorns are just that, stories. Did you worry that this might alienate some listeners?
John Flansburgh took the bull by the horns by writing that song and addressing that situation, which is that religion cannot take the place of science. It's not something you can tiptoe around. It's important that everybody gets what the discussion is about. If we're talking about the history of Earth, we can't rely on religious tradition to tell us all the information. He says it in the song: as beautiful as the stories are, they don't tell us everything we need to know. It's an old complaint on the part of scientists, but it bears repeating.
By the way, the songs I've heard so far are great even if you're not a kid. Here's a video of another song from the album: Electric Car
Photo Credit:
1) Hear Comes Science album cover
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Comments
I love TMBG. They're the first concert I ever saw live. I'm not surprised, nor offended. They aren't Christians or theists...why should anyone expect their lyrics to be??
And the religious right doesn't know who they are, so I doubt you'll hear anything from them about it.
They are great, JM. I hope the religious right never hears of them. I'm old enough to remember how much screaming they did when the Beatles first came to the US. I even read a 1965 book by one of Billy James Hargis's associates called "COMMUNISM, HYPNOTISM & THE BEATLES: THE COMMUNIST MUSIC MASTER PLAN." The book claimed that the Soviets were using the Beatles to hypnotize America's youth take over the country with the help of morally-zombified teenagers! No Christian Rock in church in those days!
While I doubt that the religious right will actively seek them, I imagine some will discover them through their children. TMBG tends to make songs that stick in your head (how many times have you caught yourself repeating "Particle Man" in your head after the song's played). Of course this trait is the best part of them doing the songs, so damn the torpedoes boys, full steam (er... charge?) ahead!
lololollololololol
Don't worry maybe we can get "Here Comes Religion" next!!
Unicorns are also biblical: Job 39:9–12, Psalm 29:6, and Isaiah 34:7, among other places.
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