Do you care about lyrics in a song?

[poopyalligator]

Here is the thing. In some types of music I care about the lyrics and some I dont. In some metal I dont car, its like if i am listening to skeletonwitch or something I dont want to hear about death and fire from below for a cds length worth. However some bands have amazing lyrics and that pretty much makes the music. My favorite band is thrice, and one of the main reasons I like them is because of their lyrical content.

 

[BenInKY]

could not stand songs in my native tongue that had awful lyrics. Having good lyrics in a song was always a must for me.

When I started listening to the more extreme genres it was quite difficult to understand what the singer was saying and when I was reading the lyrics I was really disappointed and actually could not listen to that band anymore even though I liked the music. Then I decided since I like the music and aesthetics of the vocals and don't understand what the guy is talking about to just enjoy the music and don't mind what they are saying to much.

But I will agree with the OP and the rest of the guys that when the lyrics are good it takes the song to a different level and stops being just music anymore.

Yeah I agree with this.

In general, most lyrics suck and ruin the instrumentation. If I can understand them and they're awful I'm left disappointed and can't listen to the song anymore.

Most lyrics are contrived and or cliche, especially in radio music. And in metal, the satanic / gore / tough-guy lyrics have been done to death. Plus, gore and satan aren't topics that are relevant to my interests.

Hearing tough-guy lyrics coming from that 120 lb bag of monkey crap in Lame of God is ridiculous. And wow, I really just accidentally make up "Lame of God" as a mockery of the band name "Lamb of God." I'm sure people have said it before, but its new to me!

I'd rather lyrics be about real emotions, sentiments and or experiences. Not more of the same lowest-common-denominator garbage on the radio.

I could also do with at least a 10 year ban on death metal growl voice, and require that everybody learn how to actually sing instead of barf in to a microphone.

And overdone profanity in lyrics is embarrassing and stupid.

 

[AhsanU]

Lyrics are important to me because I tend to blast songs in my car whilst I'm driving. I'll obviously sing/scream along, and I don't really wanna be screaming "I'LL FUCK A CAMEL TILL IT BLEEDS" or some shit like that.

 

[Murmel]

Lyrics are important to me because I tend to blast songs in my car whilst I'm driving. I'll obviously sing/scream along, and I don't really wanna be screaming "I'LL FUCK A CAMEL TILL IT BLEEDS" or some shit like that.

That would be hilarious.

I forgot to mention in my first post the kind of lyrics I enjoy. I really enjoy lyrics about real tragedies that have happened. Songs that bring up the topic of the nukes in Japan during WW2 always gets to me.. Not that I liked the nuking or anything, it's just that I can feel for all the people who have suffered because of that in the song.

 

[SargeantVomit]

Here's some of my lyrics for our band.

"Get Bent"
Take your shit and fucking leave.
Life with you is like disease.
You fucked up and now we're through.
Get bent. Fuck you.

Get fucking bent, you worthless piece of shit.
Get fucking bent.

You're the one who fucked it up.
You're the one who's just a slut.
Suck it up like you suck dick.
Get bent you piece of shit.

Get fucking bent, you worthless piece of shit.
Get fucking bent, you're nothing but a piece of shit.

Wrote that one after my fiance walked out on me for another guy on my birthday.

"Style Over Substance"

Used to call me friend, but then you fucking quit.
Now you run your mouth, now you're talking shit.
Tell me "keep an image, try and look and act tough"
You're nothing but a faggot, of you I've had enough.

You choose style over substance, now what does that say about
You choose style over substance, now what does that say about you?

Sleepin' on the street, you haven't got a home.
Cause you refuse to call your mom, on your fucking cellphone.
Hundreds of studs, and patches galore.
You're not a fucking punk, you're nothing but a fucking whore.

Chorus x3.

Wrote that one about a friend who I thought was one of the most badass guys I ever met until it turned out he was actually the biggest fucking poser ever and was only into it for the image. He and his crew stopped hanging out with me because I got a new pair of pants that were the wrong colour.

 

[AVWIII]

In something like tech/death, not really. More progressive stuff, sometimes (never hurts). In the pop/indie/folk stuff I enjoy, it is a must.

 

[eventhetrees]

Lyrics are important to me because I tend to blast songs in my car whilst I'm driving. I'll obviously sing/scream along, and I don't really wanna be screaming "I'LL FUCK A CAMEL TILL IT BLEEDS" or some shit like that.

Ah my band was stuck on lyrics for a bridge to one of our songs, mind if we use that? That's some good shit! hahahaha

On a serious note.

I like this thread.

Lyrics are gonna be just as subjective as music to everyone. But I think they play a HUGE role in the final product. It's easy to spot the bands that write amazing music and then have shit lyrics or vice versa. It's obviously subjective to when a perfect medium is found but I'm just saying equal attention should be given to lyrics just as much as the music gets.

Sometimes there's the case where, let's use Christian bands for example. I myself am not religious. But I do love bands like Underoath, For Today, The Almost etc. Aaron Gillespie from Underoath should have one of those YouTube videos of like "underoath in 10 seconds" just compiling how many times he sings JEEESSUUUS!!! hahaha. BUT myself personally I can get over it and tune out the words and listen to his voice, melodies and songs which I personally enjoy a lot. Then For Today at the end of Agape have lyrics (I was told is straight from the bible) saying "Love the Lord your God. With all your heart. All your soul. All your mind. All your strength". But for me when I hear the song "love your lord your god" doesn't even sound like he's saying that so I just hear it as gibberish then the rest as I hear it is "With all your heart. Love your soul. Love your mind. Love your strength with all your might". That's how interpret it and the song is so uplifting for me and yeah.

I respect bands that have something to stand for. They aren't just playing in a band to be in a band. Whether their playing instrumental music or pop rock or death metal. The most obvious example is like Brokencyde vs Thrice. What band do you consider an actual band and artist, Thrice hands down in this example. Who's gonna be remembered by more people in 20 years, thrice, not brokencyde.

Another example for me is hardcore punk/metalcore stuff. There's only a handful of bands I actually regularly listen to cause they're lyrics are what sold me on top of their music personally. The Ghost Inside, I first heard of them when I saw them live, I think it was during thrash and burn maybe or summer all day show in the summer with like 12 bands. They were near the middle and I just thought of them as another hardcore band whatever... They had the craziest crowd of the day IMO. I was able to understand the lyrics and was blown away by both the vocals and music and for me now they're 2 albums so far will always have some sort of meaning to me. Anyone who hasn't heard of them check out their track Between the Lines.


A majority of us on this forum as musicians. So we listen to all aspects of the music. Sometimes you gotta step back and remember what the average person who's never played an instrument takes away from your music. Chances are it's lyrics and a vocal hook, cause for them not playing an instrument it's the easiest thing they can imitate.

There's more I want to say on this but this heatwave+rainstorm has given me the most painful migrane ever...so that's my 2 cents/little rant on this subject and this is all just how I personally look at things...

EDIT: what SargeantVomit, posted on the last page. Without hearing your band I would respect the lyrics and chances are the actual song, maybe I'll like it alot once I hear it. But there's content behind the songs and once you added your meanings it changed my perception 100%

Oh and I guess the final point I was looking for is. Lyrics pay as big of a roll in your band as does the music (this is if your band utilizes vocals and lyrics). Don't play music to jump on bandwagons and such write music form your heart and soul. Theres that one clip thats been flying around here of that comedian saying "PLAY FROM YOUR FUCKING HEART!". Music is a form of Art. The more sincere and legit you are about your music the more people will catch on. This especially applies if you wanna be respected in a professional band.

 

[Sebastian]

Yes

 

[ittoa666]

Yes

 

[svart]

we all go berserk when we hear a guitarist play a solo with crap notes and the obvious 'I don't give a shit' attitude... lyrics are the solo's of the the singer. they get the notes/frequencies that form the vocal lines, just like we get the riffing. the words are like the tasty extra notes of a damn good solo, which adds more depth and meaning to the whole... you either make it stellar or bland run of the mill generic crap there and then.

good lyrics are an essential part of good metal IMO, one cannot be without the other...

 

[vampiregenocide]

Sometimes more so than others, I mean bands like SiKth or Meshuggah that have awesome lyrics really add to the song, but as long as the vocals themselves are good then I don't mind so much.

'Hold My Finger' by SiKth has some of the best lyrics I've ever heard.

 

[eventhetrees]

Sometimes more so than others, I mean bands like SiKth or Meshuggah that have awesome lyrics really add to the song, but as long as the vocals themselves are good then I don't mind so much.

'Hold My Finger' by SiKth has some of the best lyrics I've ever heard.

SiKth are a band I consider that have found an amazing medium. Everything is good IMO and that's why I love them.

Another thing is like, depth to your music. Let's use SiKth again, I'm constantly finding stuff in their music that makes me go

I'm almost embarrassed it took me over 2 years to get into them and was late on them but I wish I was able to catch on faster as should've a lot of people. Severely underrated....

 

[Quantumface]

lyrics are the movie, the music is the score.

 

[Stealthdjentstic]

It really depends. If I'm listening to death metal then obviously not If it's prog then I care a little and if it's something like this then I care a lot.

 

[Konfyouzd]

I only really care about the lyrics if I can actually hear them. The music is number one for me. I feel like if the music is done right you know what the deal is anyway.

 

[riffist]

Most of the time, no. Really bad lyrics can ruin a song for me. Really great lyrics can be the main reason I listen to a band (Clutch, a handful of others) but most of the time I really only care about lyrics in Hip Hop.

 

[Antimatter]

I really like to know the lyrics to the songs I listen to, but I kind of treat the voice as another texture, another instrument in the music, and I really don't focus on them any more than I do the other things, like the guitar, keyboards, drums, whatever

 

[stryker1800]

Whether or not I care about lyrics depends on a lot of factors including what kind of band it is. I'll bring up TOOL for this one, Maynard in my opinion is an absolutely incredible lyricist and singer, without him the band as individual musicians would still be incredible but would cease to be TOOL anymore. The way they mix his voice with the rest of the band just brings everything together so well.

 

[sentagoda]

As long as the vocals are good I dont mind to much in death metal. But the best songs always have good lyrics

 

[Bevo]

Yes and No.

In super hard music I love the emotion the power just everything about it, half the time I have to look up the lyrics.
So no for that.

I love Amon Amarath and the stories they tell.
So yes for that.

With my job I drive alot so have to listen to the radio, every now and then I get a kick out of some lyrics...couple good ones below..

She wouldn't spit on me if I was on fire..

Went down to the cemetary looking for love, got there and my baby was buried had to dig her up..