Who Actually Listens to Song Lyrics?

[dissembled]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zarathustra19 /img/forum/go_quote.gif As I can't understand the lyrics in a lot of the music I listen to, be it because they are in a foreign language or because the screaming of the vocalist isn't conducive to comprehensibility, I typically listen to the vocalist as a separate instrument in those cases. In the cases where the lyrics are so poetic that I can't help but listen...well, those are some of my favorite songs. "Fire and Rain" by James Taylor, "Mad World" by Gary Jules, "Remembrance Ballad" by Atreyu. All these songs give me chills down my spine when I listen to them. Thats when I simply must listen to the lyrics.

+1. There are many cases when I can barely articulate what a vocalist is saying. Especially with poorer recordings where the instruments meld or even supercede the vocals sometimes. I also listen to music while doing other things so my mind is somewhere else entirely.

A good cure for this would be to use a TUN TUN TUN...portable DAP with lyrics support so you can easily view it at your heart's content. Maybe having a DAP with this feature will also help me appreciate lyrics better.

ANd yeah, Jule's version of Mad World is insanely beautiful.

Up there in my list next to Primitive Radio God's "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth With Money in my Hand."

 

[riceboy]

It's half and half I guess. I know I listen to lyrics for the older bands like the Beatles and definitely The Doors or Nirvana. I guess it really depends on the band.

 

[Assorted]

I almost never listen to the lyrics because I don't understand German nor Italian. The only time I do is when I'm trying to make out words in an English opera/vocal work.

 

[vixro]

I'm going to have to +1 the initial post that stated the lyrics are like music. The way the words are sung adds to the music more than the word's meaning to me.

 

[KevDo]

People take from music what they will, we're all different, and i guess it all just depends on what type of music we prefer anyway.

When i listen to a new band/artist i'll usually just put the CD on, even just in the car (the car is a good place to test whether the album has a "quality" that'll last) and get a feel for the music, the flow of the music and where it's going; also to get a feel for how the singer is feeling with the music.. (Listening to Joanna Newsom, you do have to just let her album Ys drift past you a couple of times before you try to decipher lyrics, but some still catch you). Once all this is good and i think the artist may have some depth, i'll start to listen to their lyrics more deeply, too.

In order of importance for music (imo) is as follows:

1. Instrumental Sound/Quality/Melody etc etc..
1. Vocal Sound/Quality/Originality etc etc..
1. How the song feels, and makes you feel, where it takes the listener.
1. Lyrical Content (i've GOT to listen to the lyrics) .

As you can see everything is just as important as everything else.

Just because they have a set of lyrics doesn't mean that there's only one way to perceive them, they may have a point but many good song writers leave the songs somewhat "open" to other perceptions and you can usually take whatever you want from a song depending on how it makes you feel and taking your own view on some of the symbolism & metaphorisms (i may have made that word up).

In short, lyrics are important, i do listen to them, i do try to figure out what they're trying to say but i also try to look for hidden meanings or just perceive their ideas in a way that may make more sense to me.

 

[Quixizous]

I think one of the main things preventing people from paying more attention to the lyrics is that, well, you just can't hear the words. I have no clue what Thom Yorke is singing. The words just aren't articulated well enough to catch them. I like his lyrics, but I have to go to lyric sites to find of what the heck they are. Same with many other rock bands. Honestly, I don't think I should have to track down the lyrics on a website to know what the heck any artist is saying. Like Death Metal. Could easily be screaming the lyrics to "Mary Had a Little Lamb." I can catch the lyrics in The National's The Boxer, but I have to pay attention to do so. Not so with, say, the Beatles. Every word Lennon/McCartney sings is crystal clear. If an artist goes to the effort of expressing themselves through lyrics, they might as well put the effort to make sure the lyrics can be heard.

 

[kodreaming]

In general, if I couldn't care less about the lyrics, I won't even listen to the music.

A few exceptions might be some European bands..like Sigur Ros (they don't sing in English anywayz...).

 

[dissembled]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quixizous /img/forum/go_quote.gif I think one of the main things preventing people from paying more attention to the lyrics is that, well, you just can't hear the words. I have no clue what Thom Yorke is singing. The words just aren't articulated well enough to catch them. I like his lyrics, but I have to go to lyric sites to find of what the heck they are. Same with many other rock bands. Honestly, I don't think I should have to track down the lyrics on a website to know what the heck any artist is saying. Like Death Metal. Could easily be screaming the lyrics to "Mary Had a Little Lamb." I can catch the lyrics in The National's The Boxer, but I have to pay attention to do so. Not so with, say, the Beatles. Every word Lennon/McCartney sings is crystal clear. If an artist goes to the effort of expressing themselves through lyrics, they might as well put the effort to make sure the lyrics can be heard.

Definately. I do find that that vocally oriented songs emphasize lyrics more (obviously

) while the euphony itself is more of a secondary, (mood-setting) aspect. Lyrics are articulate, distinguishable and one can't help but listen to what the vocalist is saying.

There are other songs where musicality 'supercedes' vocals sometimes. The head-bobbing, foot tapping ones that make you go

everytime you hear them.

 

[no1likesme]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jono3642 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I always find this approach strange, for me lyrics are an integral part of music, because when lyrics (such as those from bands like Sunset Rubdown, Neutral Milk Hotel, Radiohead etc.) are poetic in themselves they conjure in my mind imagery that interacts with the music itself, like the emotional reaction to a powerful poem in a literary sense with the more visceral and primal feeling music gives you. When those two things are happening at once in a song is when music is at its most powerful to me. The downside of my ears is that bad lyrics grate on me like bad musicianship, and songs with clever melodies and good sound have been ruined by, I loved a girl, boy I want her back, lets go for a ride down the booolevaaaard, I mean if thats the image that your guitar chords are trying to portray, I am just not sure I can groove along. But yes, your approach is the same as alot of my friends, an old girlfriend didn't even really like vocals in any tracks, apart from ella fitzgerald she basically felt they all ruined the music. As is shown so many times as with the different reactions we get to different gear, the way we listen to music differs in how we mentally approach it as well as what our ears can hear.

+87,745,341.2341202435164

 

[Wmcmanus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dissembled /img/forum/go_quote.gif I go to lyrics sites only for the best (most euphonic, most beautiful (sounding) songs). For some Radiohead songs as well. Not all Radiohead songs, mind you.

That just may be my problem with Radiohead. I can't figure out what that dude is saying, so I tend to tune out pretty quickly. It all seems a bit hyped up and over the top to me, but to each is own.

 

[biged]

I listen to lyrics more now than when I was younger. When I was younger I studied the trumpet (jazz, orchestral,band,etc.) very seriously and focused my ears on the arrangements rather than the lyrics themselves.

 

[dissembled]

Quote:

Originally Posted by biged /img/forum/go_quote.gif I listen to lyrics more now than when I was younger. When I was younger I studied the trumpet (jazz, orchestral,band,etc.) very seriously and focused my ears on the arrangements rather than the lyrics themselves.

The complete opposite for me. I used to be a complete lyrics freak and visited every lyrics site known to man. Deciphering song meanings, etc. Now, I dont' worry about it as much and I find that I'm enjoying songs a lot more, personally.

 

[Mindless]

It really depends on what I'm listening to. If it's metal, it's usually hard to keep up with lyrics without utmost concentration. But with stuff like Genesis or Pink Floyd, I usually follow the lyrics, but enjoy the music at the same time.

 

[swt61]

The lyrics are very important to me. When you put a great composer and a great lyricist together you get magic. Bernie Taupin and Elton John come to mind.

 

[judas391]

Why does everyone call it "head-bobbing?!?!?!?" It's HEAD-BANGING for god's sake.