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Do your kids keep busy with mind-expanding activity books? Mike Phirman feels their struggle and celebrates their experiences with his new five-song concept EP, Activity Books. The songs are all about, you guessed it, sundry large-format paperbacks that challenge kids’ brain processes — mazes, connect the dots, word searches, color by numbers, and what’s-wrong-with-this-picture activities.
The new children’s music label 8 Pound Gorilla Records is rolling out spring releases from its eclectic roster of performers. The SiriusXM Kids Place Live favorite, LA-based comedian/singer/songwriter/dishwasher/juggler Mike Phirman, fits their “sweet spot” of silly, sweet, and mildly educational (so parents can nod their heads and pat themselves on the back).
“Connect the Dots” opens the playlist with the reveal of a luggage dog (it gets explained if you don’t know what that is). “Color By Numbers” begins with a clangy, literal translation as a picture of a boxing ring is completed. “Word Search” features “Weird Al” Yankovic as “stuff that gets sucked up by a vacuum.” No, I’m not making that up. “What’s Wrong With This Picture” rolls along with a country music feel, as Mike sings “there’s a bell in the melon that I’m sellin’.” The EP closes with “Maze/Petting Zoo Bouncy House” with a GPS system that has a mind of its own on the way to the…
