Songs without words

I have been singing all my life, sung in several choirs, and even composed a few songs, so I can claim some knowledge in the topic of this blog. A song, I believe, and traditionally, comprises words and a melody. The message may be profound or banal, a love poem or a protest, but the two basic components, melody and lyric, make a song.

What’s your problem? you may ask. Well, having listened to many contemporary ‘songs’ on the radio or TV, I have failed to recognise either a melody or a lyric. In many cases it is impossible to hear the words because the backing music is too loud, and often there is no melody. Even when the words are audible, too often they consist of a single phrase repeated many times. This is not a lyric. It may be appropriate for chanting at a street protest, but it takes more than a few words shouted over the background sounds to constitute a song.

And as for the music, all too often it consists of noise rather than a melody. It seems that much of the accompaniment for modern ‘songs’ is produced electronically and added as layers to get the right ‘mix’. Dominating the layers is the output of a drum kit.

So, my impression of many modern ‘songs’ is that they are not really intended to be sung, or for the lyrics to be understood, but to provide an accompaniment/excuse for dancing. This is the Cicada season here and the air is full of their music – more noise than melody, but the message is clear!