prp2

For me, and maybe this is because I used to write a good deal and consider myself to be a decent writer, but I tend to dislike songs which merely have a good sound to them. Whenever I listen to a song for the first time, I pay attention to the lyrics more so than the melody. Not that I don't like a good instrumental, or bands that have no lyrics like Liquid Tension Experiment, Irepress, some Dredg or Minus the Bear. I do like them, but their songs which have no lyrics are intentional, rather than a song which "sounds" really good but has lyrics that a 1st-grader would have written.

What do you folks think? Do you like songs that sound good no matter their content?

Giles

I must admit a tune (i.e, the music) is the first thing that goes through my mind...

pinata242

Music usually grabs me, but lyrics keep me interested in a song for the long-haul. It's rare I'll listen to what is being said if I don't like how it is presented.

wishbone

Music for the most part, although powerful lyrics can enhance the listen for me, even superceding the music at times. It really depends on what the music and/or lyrics bring to the song.

The Black

I listen to alot of metal music, and the lyrics are just ridiculous for the most part. Especially black and death metal. So mostly for metal music I go for the voice itself (not what's being said) and for the greater part the music.

Same goes for hip-hop and rap music. Most (boring) rappers can only talk about their cars, rims, ho's, violence, hating eachother, chains and possesions. If it has a hook it's worth listening to, but mostly I go for the beats/music.

Morrissey is a brilliant lyricist, so are the Manic Street Preachers, but the music adds to that factor. Chris Martin is the total opposite, I'm almost definite his way of composing lyrics is find something that sounds interesting to sing about, then find as many words that rhyme with the last word in that sentence to create a cluster of crap that makes NO sense whatsoever.
Let me enlighten:
Birds go flying at the speed of sound
To show you how it all began
Birds came flying from the underground
If you see it then you'd understand

Is this guy was famous for his drug-use I could understand, however he's just a pompous loon who really had to f^&* his kids over naming them Moses and Apple.
Seriously, same goes for In My Place, which is a rip-off of Radiohead's No Surprises. On the contrary I really love Radiohead, yes most of Thom's lyrics make no sense whatsoever but his voice and the musical range of music make them extremely interesting.

Pop music tends to have interesting hooks, and sometimes music, what springs to mind is Rihanna's recent hit Umbrella which was for me an ultimate pop song.

Would somebody please assasinate singer/songwriters ala James Blunt. Yes I agree that they write about experiences but I haven't heard ONE that sounded remotely interesting.

Giantrobo

For groups/artists like Bjork and RUSH it's music and Lyrics.

For most of my Metal/Hard Rock bands it's the primarily the music then lyrics come in by osmosis a little later.

uncle-frank

pop songs from like rihanna and such i dont really care about lyrics, thats not why your listening to it. those are fun fluff songs (shut up & drive for example)


for stuff like rap the lyrics are only half, you could have a great message but if the beats wack than no one will listen.

Big Quasimodo

Interestingly enough, I like vocals, but often don't care especially what they are saying, just like the tonal qualities of great vocalists. I went with music.

mndtrp

Same here. Vocals are just another instrument to me. Even the other genres of music I listen to, I don't care what they are saying. The only time I do, is when the lyrics are something I strongly disagree with, and I'll then avoid the song.

Giles

this topic is certainly negated to rock, cause in other genres, lyrics are not always the case:

classical
new age
motion picture soundtracks

and a large portion of jazz,'dance' and world music

Tscott

I voted for the 3rd option. Sometimes I love a song I can sing along to, or a song that tells a great story. Sometimes I love beautiful instrumentals, weird experimental electronic or post-rock stuff, or classic jazz. Sometimes I love both, working together in a single song.

Rypro 525

as a fan of death metal/metalcore, I'm more of a fan of the music. It is fun sometimes to try to decipher what the lyrics are, and then scream/growl/grunt along to the song (although it is alittle hard for me to do the pig squeel vocals)

B.A.

the music.

B5Erik

I often find myself singing along to the guitar riffs rather than the vocals.

Lyrics are important to me only in that I don't like really stupid lyrics (unless they're funny). As long as the lyrics aren't too stupid it doesn't really matter.

On the other hand, I love the lyrics by bands like Iron Maiden and Dio, so clearly good lyrics are a big asset. (But great lyrics don't mean squat if you've got a lousy vocal melody or music that sucks...)

Chew

I would say the same thing. I don't listen to music to get any deep meaning, I just want to hear the music.

JPRaup

ditto

Mondo Kane

Lyrics have ran their course with me so I'm now all about the music.

slop101

I don't put too big a priority on lyrics, but really bad lyrics could ruin an otherwise good song.

TripWire

i've become a post rock whore, so lyrics to me are becoming less important to me..most end up sounding like a cliche to me anyways. There are some good lyricists out there of course and some bands I appreciate for the lyrics, like Arab Strap and Cursive.

nodeerforamonth

Music only.

Lyrics are an added bonus. If I agree with the lyrics and can relate to them, it makes the song better for me. But if the lyrics are completely opposite of my beliefs or whatnot, I couldn't care less.

milo bloom

I have a hearing difficulty that makes it impossible for me to understand 99% of lyrics. When we saw Prince in concert, I had to rely on my memories of the lyrics to keep track of where I was, but I was still able to enjoy the music (he's really enjoyable on the guitar), and the tonalities of the voices when singing.

For some reason Fiona Apple just popped into my head as someone who I can understand the lyrics, and I appreciate that she's a pretty sharp writer.

Trevor

I listen to the tone of the lyrics/singing, but pretty much don't pay attention to the words.

prp2

For an example of the type of songs that really grab me, lyric-wise (not that anyone asked nor likely cares), here's one:

Death Cab For Cutie - "Styrofoam Plates"

There's a saltwater film on the jar of your ashes
I threw them to sea, but a gust blew them backwards
And the sting in my eyes that you then inflicted
Was par for the course just as when you were living

It's no stretch to say you were not quite a father
But a donor of seeds to a poor single mother
That would raise us alone, we never saw the money
That went down your throat through the hole in your belly

Thirteen years old in the suburbs of Denver
Standing in line for Thanksgiving dinner
At the Catholic church; the servers wore crosses
To shield from the sufferance plaguing the others
Styrofoam plates, cafeteria tables
Charity reeks of cheap wine and pity
And I'm thinking of you, I do every year
When we count all our blessings
And wonder what we're doing here

You're a disgrace to the concept of family
The priest won't divulge that fact in his homily
And I'll stand up and scream if the mourning remain quiet
You can deck out a lie in a suit but I won't buy it
I won't join in the procession that's speaking their piece
Using five dollar words while praising his integrity
And just because he's gone, it doesn't change the fact:
He was a bastard in life, thus a bastard in death

slop101

For me, obvious and literal lyrics like that kinda kill a song for me. I like more ambiguity in my lyrics. Though in the case of DCFC, lyrics don't matter anyways, as it all sounds the same coming from the singer's weepy vagina.

SmartisSexy

Lyrics and Music, I am very partial to Mylène Farmer.