3 Masterpieces where 'I don't know what they're singing, but the sound is cool and memorable'

Is there anything you prioritize when listening to music?

For example, are 'lyrics' a very important element?

I often hear people say, 'I was moved by that phrase in that song,' and I have shed tears many times myself after being touched by moving lyrics.

However, I'd like to ask you more about this: have you ever felt that no matter how wonderful the lyrics of a song are, 'the sound (resonance) is just not cool, so it doesn't sink into my heart'?

I think it happens (I'm assuming).

After all, it's 'music,' not a 'reading,' so I think the 'sound' is also important.

With that in mind, I have picked out three songs that I personally find 'I have no idea what they are singing, but the sound is so cool that it left a lasting impression on me', so please listen along with me 🎵

★ 'The rap is so fast I don't know what they're saying, but the sound is incredibly cool'
'NITRO MICROPHONE UNDERGROUND' (NITRO MICROPHONE UNDERGROUND)

As a long-time music fan, I've listened to tens of thousands of songs, and I'd like to start by introducing this tune, which is one of the 'coolest' among them.

Both the group name and the song title are 'NITRO MICROPHONE UNDERGROUND'.

When I first heard it, I was thrilled, thinking, 'What is this? This is crazy! It's super cool!'

Nitro is an eight-member hip-hop crew where 'no personalities overlap,' and a mic relay of 'eight raps' unfolds brilliantly within a single song.

Well, anyway, it's cool, but you really can't tell 'what they are singing' at all 😆.

Especially the first two.

The first batter, Gore-Tex, is barely understandable up to the point where he seems to be singing about 'a festival?' or 'a bonfire?', but as for the second batter, Deli, other than adding up numbers from 1, 2, 3, 4 to 8, you have no idea what he is singing at all.

Then, around the sixth person, Dabo, the lyrics start to become somewhat audible, and with the seventh person, we enter the part of Macka-Chin, whose lyrics are the easiest to hear, but this time, 'I can hear the lyrics, but I don't really understand their meaning' 😆

How about it? Do you understand the meaning?

Honestly, I don't understand it, but it is a mysterious phrase that leaves a very strong impression. By the way, these lyrics are called a 'punchline' (a particularly memorable line in a rap song) and are very famous.

And looking at the song as a whole, it's like listening to Western music, and the 'sound (resonance)' is super cool.

I think this is what's important in music.

Perhaps because they were so particular about this 'sound,' this song actually doesn't use much 'rhyming'.

During this 'dawn of Japanese rap' era, there was an atmosphere that 'true rap is all about rhyming,' so I think this song was groundbreaking in that, despite being young, they 'cut through that atmosphere with nothing but coolness'.

It was released in 2000, so has it been 25 years already? Time flies.

They are still very much active.

Deli-san is now a city council member in my city of Matsudo. Since he, Dabo-san, and Macka-Chin-san are all the same age as me, I can't afford to lose either💪

'How's it going from the microphone~'

Please, by all means, experience their 'coolness' at least once.

★ 'The lyrics are too unique and I don't understand the meaning, but the song is just cool'
'Birdmen' by THEE MICHELLE GUN ELEPHANT

The arrival of this band was truly shocking.

Thee Michelle Gun Elephant. And their vocalist, Yusuke Chiba-san. He was so cool, wasn't he?

His charm was his singing voice, which seemed 'specialized for singing rock,' and his unique lyrics.

In particular, the song I'm introducing this time, 'Birdmen,' still sticks in my mind from its lyrics.

Seriously, it makes no sense, right😆? But somehow it's cute, and strangely, it stays in your mind. It's interesting, isn't it?

I feel this was also a reflection of Chiba-san's own charm.

In fact, it seems he was a 'shy and kind' person, different from the impression he gave on stage.

It's truly sad that we can no longer hear Chiba-san's live singing, but it's a blessing that the videos and recordings will remain semi-permanently, and that is one of the charms of music.

★ 'The death growls are intense and I don't know what they're singing, but the song's progression is interesting, bright, and fun'
'Let Me Hear' by Fear, and Loathing in Las Vegas

The last one I'd like to introduce is 'Let Me Hear', the opening theme song for the anime 'Parasyte'.

It is performed by Fear, and Loathing in Las Vegas. Since the band name is too long, it seems they are called 'Las Vegas' or 'something-or-other Las Vegas'. 'Something-or-other', really? 😆

When you hear 'death voice', you might imagine a 'scary' feeling with a muscular guy shouting, but this band is different.

The vocals are a two-person system with So on 'clean vocals' and Minami on 'scream vocals'.

Basically, these two sing alternately, but because the lyrics are almost entirely in English and due to Minami's 'death voice', you basically don't know what they are singing.

However, their songs. Well, they are 'fun'.

There are parts where they sing like 'death metal' with a 'death (scream) voice', and parts where they sing gently with a 'clean voice', so the song development is intense, feeling like a 'hodgepodge of diverse music'.

That said, it doesn't feel disjointed, and it's integrated into a pop style overall while weaving in interesting choreography. That's why it's fun.

If you don't 'judge it before you try it' and give their music a listen once, oh, how mysterious! A 'new door' to music might open for you all.

That's all, 3 songs.

You might 'not know what they are singing', but I guarantee the 'coolness of the sound', so please give it a listen ☺️