Best Ever Albums

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

PossiblyMichigan — Wed, 9 Dec 2020 11:42:23 GMT

Author: PossiblyMichigan

Posted: 12/09/2020 16:42

Not sure about depressing but the most despressing songs in my mind are Jacques Brel live performances

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

19loveless91 — Wed, 9 Dec 2020 09:35:14 GMT

Author: 19loveless91

Posted: 12/09/2020 14:35

Gowi wrote:

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Yea speaking of Xiu Xiu, Knife Play is probably the bleakest album I have heard.

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Other thing that came to mind immediately

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As to "what makes something depressing", I wouldn't know. It's up to however we as listeners interpret these songs. To me, what the songs above communicate, is not just "sadness" or "misery", but also their inevitability and lack of escape options. Come to think of it, No Surprises is one more better known example of the same.
Now, a big part of why these songs are making me feel this way are the lyrics (but not just lyrics). Depressing music without lyrics would to me be something like The Caretaker's Everywhere at the end of time - in this case, the concept and how the music ties to it.

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

CA Dreamin — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 16:53:22 GMT

Author: CA Dreamin

Posted: 12/08/2020 21:53

babyBlueSedan wrote:

Right, that's why I said "almost neutral". I would still classify songs with upbeat music with downbeat lyrics as "depressing" but not as depressing as some of the ones linked here. Totally agree there.

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

mickilennial — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 16:06:41 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 12/08/2020 21:06

babyBlueSedan wrote:

For me lyrics are the main thing that make a song depressing, but music is definitely a key factor as well. Those upbeat songs with dark lyrics can hit hard, but in a different kind of cathartic way than a slow or downcast song that manages to convey dread better.

On the other hand, one of Gowi's picks reminded me of this one which doesn't have that balancing element:

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S = Jenn Ghetto, former member of Carissa's Wierd BTW

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

babyBlueSedan — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 13:57:59 GMT

Author: babyBlueSedan

Posted: 12/08/2020 18:57

CA Dreamin wrote:

babyBlueSedan wrote:

I like this description. Are you implying upbeat songs with depressing lyrics are almost neutral because they suggest the singer is coming to terms with the subject of their lyrics, whereas downcast songs are more "depressing" because they tend to be more about the wallowing and irresolution?

I wouldn't say neutral. I couldn't think of a good description earlier but I think "defiance" is the word I would use to describe this. Like the narrator is depressed or upset but is trying to put on a happy face, or in rarer cases giving off an air of trying to stick it to other people. Definitely cathartic but gets me more energized than something like the other songs I linked.

I also couldn't think of any songs that fit this earlier but I think Of Montreal's Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? and Why?'s Alopecia are both full of songs like this.

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

CA Dreamin — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 13:37:04 GMT

Author: CA Dreamin

Posted: 12/08/2020 18:37

babyBlueSedan wrote:

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

pctrooper — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 13:12:37 GMT

Author: pctrooper

Posted: 12/08/2020 18:12

No cowbell

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

JOSweetHeart — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 11:39:01 GMT

Author: JOSweetHeart

Posted: 12/08/2020 16:39

It can be the music, it can be the singer, but for me, the top thing would be what the song is about. The songs that I don't listen to are the ones that are about suicide and ones that are most likely to get played at funerals like "Go Rest High On That Mountain" for example. Can I make any kind of an exception? To me, one song that I won't turn off that would probably fit such a category is this song from country singer Trace Adkins.

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God bless you and him always!!!

Holly (a day one fan of Trace)

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

babyBlueSedan — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 10:17:48 GMT

Author: babyBlueSedan

Posted: 12/08/2020 15:17

For me lyrics are the main thing that make a song depressing, but music is definitely a key factor as well. Those upbeat songs with dark lyrics can hit hard, but in a different kind of cathartic way than a slow or downcast song that manages to convey dread better.

Tha1ChiefRocka wrote:

Nice, the lyrics never resolve themself, so it's pretty negative as a whole.

This is an interesting point. This song is really dark lyrically but it has a constant theme of starting fresh that balances out the song, and the final verse seems to imply the narrator survived his demons in the end:

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On the other hand, one of Gowi's picks reminded me of this one which doesn't have that balancing element:

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Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

EyeKanFly — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 10:03:17 GMT

Author: EyeKanFly

Posted: 12/08/2020 15:03

Honestly I think a minor key and slow, droning instrumentals does way more to make a song depressing than the actual lyrical content. Which is why people can rock out or dance to songs like "No Son of Mine". A memory or use of a song in a film/TV show, etc. may also increase the depressing feeling.

For me it's hard to get more depressing than these two, which certainly lack lyrics:

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I tend to find Requiems fairly depressing as well, of course they're typically meant to be somber funeral music.

On the other hand, it's hard not to be depressed and horrified by a song like "Stan" which I'd argue is almost entirely lyrically-driven without much drive from the music aside from the Dido part.

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

Streams — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 10:00:23 GMT

Author: Streams

Posted: 12/08/2020 15:00

I think emotive interpretation is largely tied to human imitation.

There's a lot of complex interpretation of the human voice that I'm not going to explore - the associations of sighs, mumbles, jeers, cries, laughter - but instruments can mimic it to evoke similar responses in the listener, so it might mimic what we understand as a sad voice.

There's a physical imitation through movement, largely tied to the tonal system(s) the listener is immersed in. For us, sustained tones, long durations, sparse densities, or downward movement (like a descending glissando) might indicate the gravity and torpor of sadness.

There's a cognitive imitation too, where we might recognize a pitch losing clarity, strained timbres, or even structural fumblings (like "missing" a note or a gradual degradation of the motif originally presented to the listener) as markers of failure, which can be sad.

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

LedZep — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 08:47:05 GMT

Author: LedZep

Posted: 12/08/2020 13:47

Possibly the most depressing song I know. And it's also top 10 songs ever written.

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Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

Anonymous — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 02:44:20 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 12/08/2020 07:44

Sometimes the music compensates the depressing lyrics because cheerful or just very good:

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Sometimes the whole package is just too complacent, and therefore depressing:

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a good, solid (and even sad) chorus would have made a difference

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

Tha1ChiefRocka — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 01:09:59 GMT

Author: Tha1ChiefRocka

Posted: 12/08/2020 06:09

Also a good one Seth, it's been written down for myself.

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

Tha1ChiefRocka — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 01:07:38 GMT

Author: Tha1ChiefRocka

Posted: 12/08/2020 06:07

Gowi wrote:

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and

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Nice, the lyrics never resolve themself, so it's pretty negative as a whole.

Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

mickilennial — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 00:57:59 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 12/08/2020 05:57

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and

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Re: What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

RoundTheBend — Tue, 8 Dec 2020 00:16:38 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/08/2020 05:16

Lyrics are only 10% the thing here... it needs to feel/sound depressing too.

Often pensive music can feel melancholic... perhaps not quite depressing.

Really anything that appropriately displays loss, hopelessness, isolation, etc.

This not only has incredibly depressing lyrics, but the feel is there/true for me.

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Lot's more to choose from, but I'll leave that one for now.

What Makes A Song "Despressing"?

Tha1ChiefRocka — Mon, 7 Dec 2020 23:50:02 GMT

Author: Tha1ChiefRocka

Posted: 12/08/2020 04:50

Oftentimes a song or album might be described as "depressing" what for you makes a song exemplify that emotion or mental state?

Mine would maybe be...

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