Music vs Lyrics

[Wombi]

I wanted to ask this question for a while and a recent discussion on another thread (referring to 'clarity' vs 'fuzz') motivated me to do so. I always found it interesting that people could both hate or love Bob Dylan or hate or love Justice or Muse or etc etc etc. I think a lot of it comes down to whats most important to you when listening to a song/album, the music or the lyrics?

For Me:
M 70% L 30%




so out of 100% how would you divide the importance you place on each?

[RFNAPLES]

They are both important but I guess I am attracted first to the music. Eventually I will hear and understand the lyrics. Nevertheless because of multi-tasking the lyrics are still usually in the background or subconscious.
_________________
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by RFNAPLES
Bubbling Under The Top 100 Greatest Mus...y RFNAPLES

[SquishypuffDave]

The music usually comes first for me, but I think the extent to which the lyrics matter comes down to what the purpose of the song is.
If I find lyrics uninteresting, it doesn't ruin a song for me (unless they're placed at the forefront), but if I find the music uninteresting, that's a different thing altogether. This isn't to say I don't appreciate good lyrics! It's just that it takes bad lyrics to ruin a song for me.

[purple]

lyrics are defintaly secondary to me. music is for music. If I had my own band, it would'nt even have lyrics, just human sounds, like grunting or pop choruses like haha and lala. Lyrics to me are for poetry and novels. The only bands I can think of that I really treasure lyrics are Joy Division/New Order and Modest Mouse, just cos they're pretty inventive

[Wombi]

[purple]

Notice that my favorite track from ITAOS is 'Untitled,' which has no words, but also NMH has great lyrics overall. Oh Comely is def. a second favorite, and because of it's lytrics. Lyrics are always a plus, but always secondary to music for me

[Wombi]

actaually i had noticed your favourite track was 'untitled' and thats a fair point.

[cartoken]

definitely music ! lyrics are a plus.

[GARY]

Music 70%
Lyrics 30%
When I was younger it was music 20% lyrics 80%
I guess that when I was a kid I was looking for answers to life in my lyrics.For me the Beatles were bigger than Jesus Christ.But all that changed when matured and I got to know more about making music,playing instruments,and the real Jesus Christ.I don't listen to the band Rush for their lyrics.I listen to Rush so I can hear the great drummung and bass playing.One of the best songs by Rush is XYZ which has no lyrics.Bob Dylan has great lyrics but there is just not enough going on with the instruments on his albums.But I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard someone(mainly females)say they like a song "cuz I like the beat" Even though the lyrics sound like they were written by a 5 year old they say the song is great.Just because they like the beat.A song has to offer me something more than a beat.That's why my favorite all time bands are bands like Pink Floyd,The Who,Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones(until about 1972).The music and the lyrics are both top notch.I would like to go a bit deeper into the music side of songs.I think this is another reason that I like 60's and 70's music so much.Personally I feel that the musicians were better and more intersting.Yes I now make music by pushing buttons and the sound quality is mind blowing with the music programs I have on my computer as are the studio instruments I have programmed in.There was a time back in the day that I despised bands that did that.But since my hand injury the only instrument I still play is keyboards.Yes with the advancements in computer technology it's become very difficult to tell the difference between say,a drum program and a real snare drum or cymbal with a microphone placed by it to get the sound.Because of this music is infinately easier to make,takes far less time,and is cheaper.But not better music.And it's music without a soul.For example I'll use Floyd's song Time on Dark Side Of The Moon album.The song opens with the chiming of clocks and ringing alarms in an antiques store.This very time consuming.Today all they would have to do is push a few buttons.But take the Who's song Who Are You for one example of the drawbacks of push button music that is so prevalent in music today.Sure today we can push a few buttons and presto,a drum beat.But on Who Are You we can hear Kieth Moon as he rides on his high hat cymbal while he opens and closes it and the varying amounts of pressure he is using while he hits them with his sticks.You can hear Moonies subtlies on the the toms as he varies the way he hits them and uses light touches and then bashes the Hell out of them and then back again.Yes the tweens and teens that have a huge influence on what (products) the record companies chose to produce and promote these days don't give a shit about that kind of stuff.But I do.I feel bad for the younger people today who spend their hard earned money (or even their allowance)to see,so called,music artists who,don't play any instruments,lip sync,use backing vocal tracks and or autotune,and some of which really can't even sing well and have weak voices,in concert.They waste their money to see (artists,HA!) performers like Janet Jackson,Katy Perry,Beyonce,Rihanna,Justin Bieber,Shakira,Mariah Carey,Whitney Houston,Backstreet Boys,Aslee Simpson,Kanye West,Madonna,Jennifer Hudson,New Kids On The Block and Heidi Montag of which ALL OF THESE PEOPLE LIP SYNC IN CONCERT.In the 70's you could go and see great bands in concert who actually played instruments,sang without anything helping their voices other than a microphone,for about $10 for a good seat(Elvis was about $15.In the 80's it cost around $20 to see a concert.In the 90's you could see a good concert(like Fleetwood Mac) for under $50.Now how much are people paying to see these forementioned artists in concert(and the tickets go very fast)Let's see how much people are paying to watch these characters go on a stage,not play their own instruments,and fucking LIP SYNCH the vocals.

2011 tours
Backstreet Boys and New Kids On The Block - Garden Center in Boston - ($84 - $950)
Janet Jackson - Chicago Theatre Chicago - ($94 - $424)
Justin Bieber - 02 Arena London - ($131 - $185)
Katy Perry - General admission tickets - ($107)

Sorry I got a bit carried away there and this got a little longer than I had intended.But I just had to get this off my chest.
_________________
.
I owe $100,000 and wasted 4 years of my life.

And all I got was this silly hat



.

[Wombi]