How important is subject matter in songs ?

  • Thread starter Thread starter grimtraveller
  • Start date Start date
jimmys69 said:
Silly bee has been reincarnated. This is going to be one long annoying ride...
Click to expand...

I think the thing is to just stamp him immediately... if he gets a few posts in he gets encouraged. He'll soon find another purpose in life if he never gets to post...
 
jimmys69 said:
Silly bee has been reincarnated. This is going to be one long annoying ride...
Click to expand...


If you can't stop it at this end....you have to stop it at his end.
Talk the Chater....I'm sure she remembers how we got rid of the Bee permanently. It's a bit of a process, but it's amazing what a serious threat of legal action can do to set folks straight! :D
 
miroslav said:
Isn't if funny how when the mods delete all of Barry's mindless posts in a thread....then it's like watching a movie with all the stupid commercials edited out. :D
Click to expand...
he is the only poster that can have a zillion posts in a thread and if you delete them all it doesn't change the thread at all.
 
I Listened to the Cure almost exclusively (with Depeche Mode and Joy Division/New Order thrown in for "variety") as a teen, I can say that the subject matter really messed me up. Having the same lyrical message pounding my psyche everyday for years changed my perception of myself and my worldview.

Now I prefer lyrics with so much ambiguity that they could mean almost anything. The voice becomes another instrument for me and the message is just syllabic effects.

Long ago I had a girlfriend who was a lobbyist for the movies. Her job was to get social agendas and promote ideas in movies. Basically, she got the movie studios to reeducate the public though that medium. She stated that movies are not there to reflect society, but to change society to reflect a social agenda funded by lobbyists. That was a real eye opener for me. The same thing happens for TV. I have no doubt that it also happens in music.

How does that relate to lyrics? I don't necessarily want to be reeducated by a songwriters personal views. I know from personal experience that they do influence how I think - which can be a good or negative thing. Don't get me wrong, songwriters are important for society. I just want those experiences to be expressed healthy, in a way that helps society.
 
citizen77 said:
Don't get me wrong, songwriters are important for society. I just want those experiences to be expressed healthy, in a way that helps society.
Click to expand...
I would imagine most of us would. But the reality is that each songwriter has something about them that is distinct from and in possible opposition to each person that listens to their songs.
 
grimtraveller said:
I would imagine most of us would. But the reality is that each songwriter has something about them that is distinct from and in possible opposition to each person that listens to their songs.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I completely agree. It's hard to pinpoint a "moral absolute" in a society that promotes "moral relativism." I was chatting with a guy who was listening to a rap song about cheating on his girl and how good that was. I asked him if he agreed with the lyrics and he was completely for it. There are some current societies that actually believe that if you don't get caught doing something "wrong," than it isn't wrong to do it.

When my students bring music to me to learn, I always listen to the lyrics to understand what they are trying to communicate. Hating, beating up and killing are not values anyone should promote through their music. I wish everyone could agree with that, but we all have free will to influence society as we choose (unless of course one believes we are non-autonomous beings controlled by genetic causation or whatever...).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top