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So this was floating around my mind recently: are lyrics really that important to certain types of songs? I mean instrumental songs have been huge for a long, long time, and plus a lot of people love to listen to music sung in a language they don't even understand. Like hell I don't speak German, Spanish, or Japanese, but I still like listening to Rammstein, Delinquent Habits (thank you Total Overdose for introducing me to this group), and Dir En Grey.

In the case of music one cannot understand due to a language barrier I feel the appeal comes not just from the musical composition, but HOW the words are being sung even if you don't understand them. I mean heck you could even say this is part of the appeal of music genres where the singers are singing in a language you do understand but you can't tell what the hell they say (for example a lot of "heavier" metal genres like deathcore or grindcore, where the singing has been negatively compared to "squealing pigs").

Yes. They add a whole new dimension to music.

Depends, but honestly, I rarely listen to the lyrics, I listen to the Rhythm most of the time.

Lyrics isn't a necesity for a track to be good (for example, look at a genre like post-rock, which normally features little to no spoken word), however, there is such a thing as bad lyrics, and that can make a track bad.

I see lyrics in the same way I do the other parts: when the song calls for it, it plays a specific roll in the song. It's not the most important part nor is it the least significant. I think the reason why people say that lyrics are such a big deal is because they're normally more up-in-front and noticeable when compared to the other instruments/effects, when really all parts to a track are equally crucial to it. Sure, some songs can have a part removed and still sound alright, but most sound like they're missing something if that happens.

Just out of personal preference, I like music being more about the Melody than the Lyrics. I don't exactly go into a song wanting to be told a story, I wanna hear some music. Once I start listening for the lyrics, I stop hearing the music.

That's kinda why I like Foreign Music a whole lot. It brings catchy Lyrics but doesn't demand me to focus on them.

I mean, there are some exceptions. But largely they are songs that sound perfectly fine without Lyrics. Might be why I am so into things like Touhou's Remix Community and the Metal Gear Rising OST. The base song is already great, and the lyrics are just the iceing on the cake.

Great lyrics really add an extra dimension to music as =1 guy says (Great albums to check out for their lyrical content include Funeral by Arcade fire and In the aeroplane over the sea by Neutral milk hotel).

On the other hand if your music sucks (or is just generally mediocre), no amount of amazing lyrics are going to make me want to listen to it so don't try to zero in on them when your first listening to something.

As for lyrics in instrumental music like most post rock well i give you these two songs from Mogwai. Yes i know Mogwai has vocals but their not what i would call lyrics and they blend with the instrumentation.


Mogwai are a great band who really know how make beautiful and interesting pieces of music, you can appreciate this on the first song, as for the second song the vocals feel jarring and out of place and really distract from the instrumentation so you cant listen in and appreciate it as much which (also the vocals sound terrible).

As you can see lyrics don't always add something no matter how good the lyrics on the second track were they still would have sucked and felt out of place, as they would on most post rock tracks.

IMO, not really. I rarely listen to music with lyrics, and when I do I find they usually don't add much. Maybe it's just personal taste, though.

Personally I consider lyrics as "just another instrument". I care more about them sounding nice, and going with the music itself, than caring what it's actually about. If I REALLY like a song a lot, I might look for a translation, but otherwise I don't really care. I listen to a lot of music that is sung in japanese (like most users it comes to foreign music), and I don't understand but a few words here and there, but it really doesn't bother me.

Hell, I can't even understand my favourite band Finntroll, since they sing in swedish with the typical heavy metal growling. But they still manage to maintain their place as my favourite band, purely because of the music. It's also worth noting, that I pretty much hate the swedish language, due to it being a forced subject at school.

Lyrics aren't necessary but they can really enhance the greatness of a song. I mean shit I love my favourite album because the lyrics are so damn good. But lyrics don't have to be "deep" in order to be good – just having a good beat and keeping the listener entertained either through comedy, commentary or clever rhyme schemes can really enhance the quality of a song.

But at the same token, some songs really don't need lyrics and are worsened by having someone sing over it. It all depends on the composition, really, and what the artist is trying to convey.

Personally I consider lyrics as “just another instrument”. I care more about them sounding nice, and going with the music itself, than caring what it’s actually about.

This

I see lyrics as a tool for crafting the song just like any other instrument. And just like any other instrument it can make or break a song depending on how its used.

It can add a new layer to music if done well or completely disrupt a good melody if done wrong. It also can be central in a song or something added on the side.

A song can use whatever tools it deems necessary to get the job done. That can include lyrics or not. It comes down to the skill and mastery of the artist

As well as what the artist chooses, I also feel that genre has a stake in this as well

There are some genres where lyrics are especially important. Rap is one. Lyrics is the whole point of rap.

There are other genres however that do just fine without lyrics. In Metal, it's often considered not important for your lyrics to be comprehensible. Metal lyrics just needs to sound hardcode and badass, nothing more. Because Metal is more about how bitchin' the music sounds and less about the message. This is why Rammstien is enjoyable even if you don't know German.

Lyrics are even more unimportant in EDM where most tracks don't have them at all, and if they do they only include samples. Because EDM is even less about convenying messages. Instead you listen to EDM to get into the groove and the beat. EDM listeners like myself don't care what the song is about, we just wanna hear something cool. Sometimes lyrics can be a detriment to that and interrupt the the groove you are trying to get to. In those cases, lyrics should only be used if its complimentary to the melody and should never be there for the sake of musical convention.

TL;DR and going back to the question:

Are lyrics really that important? Especially when you listen to music in a language you do not understand?

Ask yourself. Is it a song where you need to know the lyrics in order to appreciate it? Or are the lyrics not the point of the song and it sounds fine even if you don't know the language?

(Or maybe the better question is: which language does it sound better in? original or translated?)

I listen to plenty of Japanese music and my understanding of the language goes no further than knowledge of what Baka means. I still enjoy it nonetheless. It's just like how you can enjoy mariachi music without knowing Spanish.

I never listen to music wothout good lyrics, I find it imposdible to listen to music without music so yes, to me lyrics are super important.

As someone who listens to (the more proggy and melodic side of ) death metal, I tend to look up the lyrics. But yeah I get turned off by lyrics that are just gore with no meaning behind them.

The situation of lyrics and music is that it really depends of the song. Sometimes, the music surpasses the… let's say, "quality" of the lyrics (because of it, you wish that there could be an instrumental version of the song) and other times, it's the other way around. But in the end, the balance of both sides should provide a good harmonic point.

I have a great deal of italian and german songs (and I have others, single ones, in arabic, chinese, finnish, russian… among others) in my repertoire and I do feel interested in what the lyrics say from time to time. I don't think any of them has disappointed me but I find them curious.

Good lyrics can make a big part of a song, especially if they have some kind of philosophical or sophisticated message to them.

It can be swing or miss. There are a lot of songs (a lot of pop music) with lyrics that generally have no meaning.

In other songs, however, it means everything. One song that comes to mind is my favorite Alice in Chains song, "No Excuses".

The lyrics were written by Jerry Cantrell. They're thought to be about his unstable relationship with Layne Staley (rip). For example, during the last years of his life, Layne would constantly show up to practice hopped up on meth. He would rarely leave home and no one knew what was going on with him. "Drained and blue, I bleed for you. You think it's funny, but you're drowning in it too,"

The lyrics also show their friendship, especially during the last stanza. "You my friend, I will defend and if we change, well I love you anyway."

Another band I like, Amon Amarth, is a "viking death metal" band. Most of their song lyrics are about vikings and viking mythology:

"We play Death Metal. We write about Vikings, so therefor some refer us to Viking metal, but I have no idea what that is. There is a diverse meaning to the lyrics as well. A lot of the stuff I write is from a personal level but is not really anything that I care about if people get or not so I write alot of the stuff as metaphors based in Viking mythology and Viking History which is sort of my main interest in life and sort of my main atmosphere in life." – Johan Hegg, lead singer of Amon Amarth

Yeah I really love the lyrics in Great Gig in the Sky

For me the most important part is the music and then lyrics. When i am not tired i listen to lyrics it is very important.

Well, when it comes to songs in foreign languages, for me, it depends on how good the song is without understanding the lyrics….. Yet at the same time, they almost always sound better when I do know what they're singing about. I could enjoy the vocaloid song Fox's Wedding quite a bit without knowing the exact lyrics, but I still couldn't enjoy it completely without knowing the basic story.

I always thought Delusion Tax was a good song, but I could barely actually like it until I knew what it was about through listening to an English Cover of it.

I thought Ambiguous was a pretty mediocre anime opening until I found out the exact lyrics.

And the Angel Beats opening? I was able to enjoy it just fine without understanding anything, and when I found out the lyrics, it didn't add much.

Though I find that a lot of the songs I enjoy that I don't understand lyrics of, I either know the story of it, or I'm able to guess what the story could be. For example, the reason why I didn't like Delusion Tax or Ambiguous at first is because I had no idea what they could be about. I guess what a song is about is pretty important to me.

Now, when it comes to songs in English? Lyrics are way more important. In fact, one reason why I don't like most songs on the radio is because the lyrics are lackluster (though there are plenty of other reasons).

And no matter what language the song is in, my favorite parts of the song are often the parts with either the best sounding lyrics, or the lyrics with the best meaning.