Does it matter to you if you can understand lyrics?

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For me, it matters. I listen to music in foreign languages, but usually translate them and search up the lyrics meaning. I don't like music i can't understand or identify myself with.

Speaking of Immortal did you hear any of the new Abbath album of the same name...apparently he broke off from immortal and released that. Also he is in a band called I which is pretty good. As for Burzum I certainly listened to some but knowing his philosophies I can't say I listen much anymore but I don't change it every-time it comes on a playlist I admit.

Also I find Scandinavian languages and german to just sound really good in metal, I certainly don't understand much but I really like the way it sounds.

I do that sometimes, but for me its not always the lyrics and such I identify with...sometimes it's just the atmosphere of it.

I did listen to Abbath's solo record when it came out last year. I thought it was decent but it's not something I listen to often. I also saw him live around the time the album came out. Unfortunately, he was drunk out of his mind and the sound mix was absolutely terrible. Abbath was so wasted that he accidentally unplugged his guitar while he was playing and, despite his bass player pointing it out to him, he just carried on playing as though nothing had happened! Definitely one of the worse shows that I've ever seen.

I don't really listen to much metal or hard rock in German or Scandinavian languages aside from Rammstein. I do understand a little German though so I can make out at least some of Rammstein's lyrics most of the time. I do agree that writing their songs in German does suit their sound well. If you've ever been curious about how their music would send in English, check out Till Lindemann's solo album that came out a couple of years ago if you haven't heard it.

Bathory aren't too bad yeah, that album is pretty good though I've always liked Twilight of the Gods. Just something about that album I love that I can't put my finger on.

So, I guess Dimmu Borgir kinda stuff then, which is completely fair enough haha. I went to one of their shows when Defenders of the Faith were on and their whole set was just strobe lights and flashing Satanic pentagrams on the screen enough to give you an epileptic seizure lol.

King Diamond is too posery for my liking, and I'm not keen on the uber squeaky high pitch thing he does cause it's too Judas Priest, it's not bad though, far from it. Though I do like both as they both have some great tracks, not completely dismissing them.

I really love Alcest atm now you mention it. I got into them thanks to my current Ne Obliviscaris obsession. I'm probs similar with wanting variety, probs why I'm such a fangirl of NeO atm cause clean vox/harsh vox/violin etc. Though they just kicked their bass player out and he was amazing which is a shame, but then again apparently he was a woman beater so fair enough.

This in particular, btw. It's great to balance them with the really uber heavy stuff. I'm quite a fan of slam/death metal too.


Deafhaven seem pretty good actually, they were always on my recommended I just never bothered to give them a try. Thanks for the heads up.



LOL what, seriously? I need to do me some googlan. I always thought Abbath was a cool dude just completely insane and an alcoholic, but certainly not bitter.

http://www.metalinjection.net/shocking- ... w-material

The comment on this about him being the songwriter is kind of a difficult one, I mean if he wrote the songs.. and there's such controversy over lyrics in BM I guess it'd be quite the argument... ahh I'm confused. I guess it's a bit of an arse move to just take the previous stuff when you could just write new stuff seeing as you're the writer.

Btw I totally agree about the Scandinavian languages/German. I've been toying with the idea of learning German for a while now, love the country and a lot of the cultures there. Funny thing, 'gums' in German literally translate to teeth meat. (Zahnfleisch) xD



Honestly like, I reckon Abbath is pretty much the drunk Lemmy/Marilyn Manson of the BM world. Like all those times I went to see Motorhead live and Lemmy was beyond WASTED and kept slurring his words, same with MM, completely way too drunk to perform, even at huge festivals.

I saw Dimmu Borgir on that Defenders Of The Faith tour too. Lamb Of God were on the bill as well I think. Good times. Can't believe that was nearly 10 years ago!

I'm not really a big fan of super high falsettos either. I find a lot of power metal unappealing for that reason alone. That said, both KD and Judas Priest have so many good songs (especially Priest) that I can overlook the vocals. Rob Halford is an awesome singer though. Some of the notes he hit back in the day were just insane!

I don't mind if a performer has had a drink or two before hitting the stage but not to the extent that they can barely function! I think it would have been better if Abbath saved the booze until after the show so people can get their money's worth from the show. I'm curious to see how the new Abbath-less Immortal turns out. If they do play live, I hope they'll be at least fairly sober!

If it's in English, I usually like to hear the lyrics clearly enough to get something out of them. There's a range, though- with artists like Leonard Cohen or Jake Thackray, the lyrics are the major appeal for me. While in Goldfrapp or Portishead, I'm happy just hearing nice sounds made with the voice!

With lyrics in other languages, I used to desperately try to track down translations. Now I'm happy with just getting a general idea from the liner notes. And it can be more relaxing to hear singing in a language I don't understand- I can let that part of my brain rest, which I need sometimes.

The above is mainly about recordings. When you hear a song live for the first time, I don't think it's possible to fully absorb all the lyrics. I write and perform songs myself, and it took me a while to accept that that's all right. People can hear only half or a quarter of the words I'm singing and still get something out of them.

It ABSOLUTELY matters, to me, if I can't understand the lyrics----AND, it's better, if I know what they mean. What if you're listening to lyrics (in a language that you don't know) that say everyone should kill their mother, and eat their pet dog!!

Ballads are my favorite, cuz the lyrics tell a story----and, that is one of the reasons why Country is one of my favorite genres.

"MacArthur Park" is my all-time most HATED song----"Someone left the cake out, in the rain"; what does that even mean?!?!

All that being said, I must admit, however, that I HAVE heard a couple snippets of songs, and liked the way they sounded----BUT, because they were in a language other than English, and I was unable to know what they were saying, I turned them off.

Obviously, lyrics are important.

But, when I was a kid, I couldn't understand most lyrics. I used to enjoy the music to the pop songs, though.

I don't have a good enough auditory memory to understand someone like Dylan unless I'm reading the lyrics while he sings his song.

Lyrics matter to me too, but not if it's obviously meant to be a nonsense songs. I love nonsense songs. The Llama Song, songs I've heard on weebls stuff, silly songs from Veggie Tales vids, that kind of thing. I find myself repeating those songs, they help me retain a sense of humor when I'm all stressed.

That was the psychedelic thing: non-sequitor lyrics

I LOOOOOVE to HATE that song!

"Someone left my cake out in the rain....

the sweet green icing....melting dowwwwn....

And don't think that I can TAKE IT!

Because it took me so long to BAKE it!

And I will never have that recipe AGAIN! "

And there are several versions to choose from for you to wallow in the agony. Actor Richard Harris did a kinda talk version of it. You could call it "proto rap". And then Donna Summers did her disco version.

Oddly enough it was penned by Jim Webb who wrote some of the best pop/country song lyrics of the Sixties (like "Gentle on My Mind', "Wichita Linemen", and "Galveston"). I guess MacArthur Park was his joker in the pack.

Yes and no. If a song has lyrics that resonate with me, that's a plus, but I mainly enjoy music more for exactly that - the music, not the lyrics.

It doesn't matter to me. English is the only language I speak but I can get by in a couple other languages. And of those languages, my interest in all of them stems from music. I like:

Lovex - Finnish rock band, though their lyrics are in English
Super Junior (Army!) - Korean pop
BoA Kwon - Japanese, Korean pop
Shinee - Korean pop
Jay Park - Korean pop?
GazettE - Japanese metal/rock
Utada Hikaru - Japanese pop

Tokio Hotel, my current obsession. German pop/rock.

I do listen to English/American music, mostly rock. Huge Black Veil Brides fan, though I love Andy's solo stuff too. Linkin Park is my favorite band. I also love Fall Out Boy and Patrick Stump.

There's more but that's the gist of it. Hearing music in other languages from a young age (video games and anime) made me fall in love, and I do know the lyrics / meanings. So I sing those songs all the time.

I would say that knowing the meaning of a song is important to me, but not necessarily understanding the language. I listen to a lot of foreign music as well (in Japanese, German, Italian, to name a few,) and if I like the music of the song well enough, I will look up the meaning of the lyrics and keep that in mind as I listen in the future. But knowing or not knowing the meaning of the lyrics makes no difference to my enjoyment at first. ^^

Side note, I actually have a pretty sticky brain when it comes to language and lyrics, and even if the song is in a language I don't speak at all, I can usually sing along with it anyway. Understanding the words has zero effect on whether I can regurgitate them later or not.

Same. I seem to pick up words quickly in other languages, though some more than others such as Japanese because I've been exposed to it for most of my life. That doesn't mean I know the meaning of every word but I can parrot them all back in a perfect accent.