foreign lyrics -------do you care?

:) Tried to get some friends to listen to Buena Vista Social Club a couple weeks ago.
Didn't work out, I think maybe it is an audiophile thing to put emphasis on the quality of the instrumentals and tonal context of the lyrics.

In Buena Vista Social Club you actually can read English translation of the Spanish lyrics.

Before I become an audiophile I listened to american and brittish artists and also french ones. So I can assume that it's only an american mentality to only listen to the lyrics that you can understand.

most of the time i don't pay attention to english lyrics either. i know i should, but i treat vocals the same as any other instrument and don't pay attention to the words. always done that even when i was a kid.

aloha keith

It doesn't matter to me; you can get the point regardless of the language.

dosnt matter to me either, I love Stereolab,but cant understand a word of french!

I may not get the point or the language, but occationally I can still enjoy the music. My imagination is such that I might even arrive at a different point and far better lyrics, and sometimes that is all i would care to do. Other times I am curious what the translation might amount to and I will investigate.

My point of view is a little different. Much of modern music contains lyrics that are basically inane prattle and self-indulgent dreck. Occasionally you find something beautiful and/or socially significant, but it is the exception.

Sometimes I put on some Latin music (which I rather like) and that way I can pretend that the words are beautiful and have deep meaning without actually understanding how run-of-the-mill they probably are...

Plus, I took Espanol in high school so I recognize some words and phrases and I can add my own slant from there. :)

I've been spending a fair bit of time re-discovering French rock & blues lately, mind you I do speak French so I suppose it's not really "foreign" to me. When I travel I hear all kinds of different music and quite enjoy it so... yes I like foreign lyrics.

p.s. if you enjoy bluesy rock you definately need to give Offenbach a listen (Gerry Boulet's voice was made for the blues, awesome whiskey growl), and Harmonium sounds like a French CSNY. Both Quebec-based bands from the 1970's & 1980's that may be unfamiliar to most here.

For those brave souls out there who are not afraid to listen to lyrics in a language other than your own and find interest in a hauntingly beautiful female voice, try Artrosis. Medeah's vocals are, at times, amazing. I never knew Polish could sound so good. Try the link, a sample of her voice will start automatically.

http://artrosis.rockmetal.art.pl/

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How about artists that often invent their own language appart from any language we know?

For example: Magma(Christian and Maurice Vander),
Dead Can Dance(Lisa Gerrard, Brandan Perry)...

Interesting topic..

I could care less what the lyrics are, I listen to FM quite a bit and the Hispanic station has some good music. Nothing more irritating than someone trying to sell me something in between songs...lol.

Marekanetz-I think you are so right. Just think, if the rest of the world had the same mentality, where would so many English only bands be today? I mean, would The Beatles be so popular?

Plato, I think we can agree that alot of lyrics are just 'filler'-- when is the last time you heard a top40 list of new music contain even one purely instrumental piece? It feels as though some times lyrics are added as an afterthought to grab peoples attention. I mean, audiophiles aside, it seems most people hear music, but don't want to listen to music. Is life really such a rat race?
I guess lyrics we can't understand will always be better than lyrics we wish we couldn't!

Rammstein,I dont understand German but the vocals are incredible!