Seriously, sometimes it just goes too far. I couldn't possibly be alone in my thoughts here. Sometimes we just want to go listen to music without a vocalist getting in the way. Vocals often ruin some wonderful music.
I've been enjoying the sound of Feindflug for about a year now. Ever since Corrupt got me into digging into the techno genre, this was one of the first gems I discovered and is probably my most listened to artist of the last year. I really like the military feeling I get from them. The harsh, industrial techno beats really stir me up. There is no singing vocalist, only German's speaking or something. That doesn't bother me at all. In fact, I like it. It doesn't irritate me and doesn't distract me from the feeling that the music provides.
I finally decided to check out some other artists that fans of Feindflug suggested for me. Two worth bringing up are Funker Vogt and Suicide Commando. Both have a tremendously great sound that stirs me up in the ways Feindflug did, especially Funker Vogt, but they both also contain a vocalist that distracts me and stops me from enjoying the actual music. Somehow I can't ignore them successfully, no matter how hard I try.
Anyway, discuss. And Corrupt, have any suggestions? I'm looking for some harsh techno along the lines of Feindflug.
I know exactly what you mean. Many entire genres are ruined for me simply because that vast majority of vocalists suck. Often I find myself just wanting to listen to something instrumental like post-rock or ambient because I'm bored with vocals or just want to focus on the instruments with nothing else distracting me. This also applies to when I'm trying to sleep. I sometimes have trouble sleeping to songs that have vocals so I need something lacking them.
However, they can also be a great asset. Many generic bands are suddenly great because the vocals are unique and interesting and really compelling. They can actually be the main factor for why I enjoy or hate band, so a lot hinges on a good vocalist representing the music. It's a give and take, some bands are actually better without vocals, and some bands are much better with vocals.
There's a few bands I'd much prefer if they were instrumental, because I really can't take the singers. A lot of them are supposedly really good, but I just dislike their vocals. Then there's quite a few singers who definitely add to music and save otherwise boring bands from mediocrity.
I have been listening to a lot of Post-Rock and Jazz lately, both of which often have no vocals at all. Some vocalists can be quite good, but quite a few suck bad. By the way, I actually think this is a pretty decent thread.
So I will go ahead and admit that I have been stuck in the mainstream of music for quite some time. To me that means that I have been listening to the same stuff everyone else does. All the same bands and artists, all having vocals of course. Now don't get me wrong, I greatly enjoy their music, I won't listen to anything that I think sucks. However, since I got some very good suggestions on this forum, I find myself enjoying the instrumentals a lot more than the stuff I am used to listening to. I have even found myself listening to music with vocals and half the time ignoring them and just listening to the music itself.
So I will go ahead and throw in my two cents by saying...."I can certainly see how vocals can ruin good music, or if not ruin, simply make it less powerful, less moving."