Lyrics hold some importance to me, but it really depends. I guess I am immediately turned off by a song which has lyrics which are easily understood, but just trite, cliched and/or stupid. Conversely I am in awe of lyrics which are brilliant and deep. But lyrics can be very straightforward or they can be somewhat obtuse, perhaps what you would call somewhat “abstract”. I would have to say that Kurt Cobain was one of the most brilliant lyricists ever born…his stuff was deep and powerful. You mentioned Eminem…I’m not as adverse to rap as you, and I find him to be in a class by himself in terms of rap lyricists…he is not as abstract as Cobain, but he is one of the most clever at turning a phrase. Ludacris would be another rapper who falls into this category. I think in terms of turning a clever phrase, there are many musicians who fit this profile, and of them I am in awe….one great example would be Elvis Costello. Fiona Apple would be an example of someone who can cut through you with her words as well.
But then look at the Beatles. Here’s an example of a band which has turned more than it’s share of clever phrases, but which has also made some very deep yet abstract songs. However, if you look at the first half of their career, their lyrics were very simple and straightforward, and really didn’t say much. But as simple as She Loves You, or I Wanna Hold Your Hand may be, they are incredibly good songs, well structured…the lyrics may be simple, but they certainly aren’t trite or stupid. One great example that clearly shows that lyrics don’t have to be either all that clever or abstract or deep to be absolutely great would be AC/DC. They are the seminal rock and roll band…at their most clever they employ double entendre, but there’s nothing particularly clever about “She was a fast machine, she kept her motor clean, she was the best damn woman that I ever seen.” But yet it works in their context…straight forward balls out rock and roll.
A great deal of heavier music, whether it be heavy metal or heavy rap does rely on fairly simple song structures and repetition of fairly simple lyrical sets. Whether it be “We will, we will rock you,” or “Oh my my, oh my my, y’all gonna make me lose my mind,” a lot of truly great music of many genres is particularly “amazing” or “insightful” in the lyrics department. You can look at some really heavy stuff, like Pantera…some of the most brilliant hardcore metal lyrics ever written, “been constantly so frustrated, I’ve moved mountains with less…when I channel my hate to productive, I don’t find it hard to impress.” That is heavy, hard hitting and conveys a message in a very clever manner. But just as heavy would be Coal Chamber repeating “big truck” over and over and over again.
And even Kurt Cobain who wrote, “and I am worst at what I do best, and for this gift I feel blessed” also wrote “wouldn’t you believe it, it’s just my luck….wouldn’t you believe it, it’s just my luck…wouldn’t you believe it, it’s just my luck…wouldn’t you believe it, it’s just my luck…NO RECESS. NO RECESS. NO RECESS,” and “Grandma take me home, grandma take me home, grandma take me home, grandma take me home….” You get the picture.
So you can look at Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone” for an example of one of the most intricate and powerful sets of lyrics ever written, but remember that “We all live in a yellow submarine…yellow submarine…yellow submarine” is every bit as revered by rock historians. And sometimes, simplicity is better than being too convoluted. Though their lyrics can tend to be very simple and straightforward at times, one of my favorite bands is the White Stripes…and part of their appeal to me is the complete lack of pretense, almost like AC/DC in their commitment to straight forward rock and roll, but perhaps with a bit more to say. You can look at Slipknot…one of the heaviest bands out there, and their lyrics are like poetry. Or you can look at Korn, another great band, but their lyrics are simpler and more repetitive. My point is, different music moves me for different reasons. The common element for me is power…music needs to be powerful in some way to move me. The music can be powerful, as can the lyrics, the song structure, or certain elements, stripped down or convoluted, abstract or straight forward, repetitive or stream of consciousness, could be any number of things that gives the music it’s power, and a grindcore metal band playing at 120db can be no more powerful than a singer and a piano.
Now having said all that, I would like to digress…not surprised you’re into the Cramps, deaddolly. But I have to ask you, being you’re in fairly close proximity to Michigan and have an affinity for hardcore psychobilly, are you familiar with a band from the 80s out of Michigan called Elvis Hitler? They are best known for a mash up of the the Green Acres theme set to the music of Purple Haze (Green Haze) from their Hellbilly album. They’re a great psychobilly band that goes much further than say Reverend Horton Heat, and takes a slightly more “death metal” approach than the Cramps. My favorite of theirs was an album called Supersadomasochisticexpialidocious. It’s long out of print, but if you can find a copy, it’s worth it at just about any price. One of my favorite songs is called “Bury the Hatchet”, they lyrics to the best of my recollection go something like, “Bury the hatchet…right in your skull…carve it in half and use it for a bowl. Bury the hatchet…right in your head…and bury what’s left in the flower bed, yeah yeah yeah.” And funny you should mention bubblegum, because this album contains a cover of “Yummy Yummy Yummy”, only it’s the “Satan” remix, wherin throughout the song, a voice repeats “Satan…Satan…Satan.” I’m SURE you would dig these guys. They have 3 albums, all released I believe in the 80s, and I think they also changed their name and put out an album under that alternate name maybe in the early 90s as well.
So to get back to it, lyrics and music are important to me in that great lyrics can get to me in ways that little else can. But I don’t think the lyrics have to be particularly clever or insightful, they just have to not be offputtingly stupid, to have the workings of a great song, if the melody, rhythm or whatever you are basing the music on is good. One good example of this is all that SK8R punk music, you know all those boy bands masquerading as the next wave of punk…all those little twits that come around once a year for the Vans Warped tour…all your bands with numbers like 41 and 182 in their names. You know the bands I’m talking about…them and the Avril Lavignes and Pinks of the world…all the pop poseurs who think they’re punk but wouldn’t know Bad Religion if it bit them on the ass. All that crap is so generic, every song sounds exactly the same, the lyrics are just trite, a step above bubblegum if you want to be generous.
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