One thing that I’ve noticed about many of the music blogs that I follow is that they rarely delve into any issues surrounding the music itself. Not that this is a bad thing: we are of course all here because of the music, but in an effort to add a bit more substance to this blog I wanted to start a collection of longer articles where I bring up some issues surrounding music, specifically the electronic genre, in order to spark a discussion about this music that we all enjoy.
In this first post I wanted to ask this: Do you think that the “mainstream” will ever accept electronic songs that do not contain lyrics?
(By the way if you aren’t a fan of these, no worries, they will be few and far in-between the regularly scheduled music posts).
We have all seen electronic music play more and more of an influence on popular genres, from pop to hip-hop to even rock n’ roll, electronic production has come a long way and becomes more and more popular by the day. While the continued success of electronic music seems certain, one thing that I am unsure of is whether or not electronic music can ever break into the mainstream, due to its (typically) lack of lyrics.
It’s no secret that people love singing along to songs, and although some (including myself) might make the case that sometimes music can speak to a listener as much as lyrics can, I somehow doubt that many people will be able to embrace a genre of music that usually has nothing to sing along too.
Singing allows people to “participate” in the song: despite being joked about, we still see Karaoke being a very popular pastime. Lyrics also serve as a connection point with fans: it is much easier for two fans to discuss their favorite lyrics then it is to discuss melodies, as everyone can understand lyrics, but few people understand specifically how music is made.
I think this is why the only electronic songs that we’ve seen infiltrate the top charts thus far have been dance songs for clubs, which usually feature minimal lyrics about partying. More mellow pieces have a dedicated, but relatively small audience, and my personal opinion is due to the limitations that I’ve mentioned above.
So while I love lyric-less electronic productions, I feel that it may be a genre that is destined to remain a strong but relatively smaller following in comparison to mainstream music. What are your thoughts?
