In the past Ive found I really like a band from the sound, then read the lyrics and realise they make no sense or are singing about pontless subjects. So sometimes the lyrics can take away from the enjoyment of an artists music, this of course is not the case with dtb/Dev/syl though.

In my eyes, Devin's lyrics are one of the most innovative things about his work, and to me they are completely captivating. Obviously, his music ALONE is incredible, but the lyrics add another fundamental layer to his work and enable you to actually become more intimate with the artist. Devin is my favorite lyricist, and i enjoy his lyrics more than any classic work of literature or poetry....but thats just my opinion

I can like a band that has bad lyrics, but I can't go crazy over them. Good lyrics are just another dimension to a great experience.

I love Devin's lyrics because they are completely wacky and yet in the context of the music they make so much sense. Genius!

Devin's lyrics are the main reason why I listen to him, they matter SO much!

I believe that both lyrics and vocal melodies can either make or break a song, regardless of the musical content.

Please do not crucify me for saying this, but I was listening to some newer Soilwork, and their more melodic bits sound like a choir singer that just been bashed in the throat with a 9 iron, which totally took away from the great rough vocals and screams, and therefore destroyed the songs.

The late Layne Staley (RIP), Devin, and Mikey P, are all vocal masters who can both sing amazing lyrics with awesome melodies, both soft, ambient and epic and then turn 180 degrees and deliver some blistering, powerful screams.

sorry, that was my rant for the day

PEACE>

Of course! That's one of the main reasons Dev hit me like a ton of bricks!

I can definately say that in my opinion, Dev's lyrics, and vocal ability is a Crucial part of the whole Devin Townsend experience....every Devin recording I've ever heard has been done in such a way that everything is just as important as the rest....if one element weather it be his voice, a bass track or even the keyboards is missing, you can tell, and it wouldn't sound complete...it's just missing that little thing...as far as the lyrics go, well, His music helped me through a very hard time in my life and if it wasn;t for his lyrics, I prolly wouldn't have made it this far this fast...if you can connect with the lyrics of any group not just Devy or Strapping it can give you a whole new appreciation for the band as a whole!....yet again, just my opinion

Dev is not only a mastermind (evil genious) in the art of music but also in his lyrics. i try to decipher anything and everything i can that he has done before giving in and finding them to read somewhere. as far as my favorite lyrics they would have to be from the song Detox!!

The song SYL's lyrics are still my favorite out of all the stuff Devin has produced, god damn it describes the rat race perfectly.

For me, music always comes first, lyrics are secondary..
Good lyrics can´t save a song I dont like, but well-written stuff can make a good song excellent! For example the song "Storm", a ver nice little thingy and one of my favourites of AE. The lyrics were the icing on the cake on that one for me, almost made me cry for some reason.. It´s also important _how_ the lyrics are sung, if you´re heart isn´t in it you won´t get through..Devin gets through, back, and leaves me torn apart, astonished or just in a very good mood.

Devin's lyrics mean a hell of a lot to me... They add the real emotional depth that is present in the music but is personified within his words.... No other artist I've found can state as simply and wonderfully the things that Devin does. I love the yearning in Infinity and Ocean Machine, I love the complexity and depth in Terria, I'm frightened by the intensity in City.... It adds so much that it colours the music even more than it already is.

Greg

lyrics can make or break a song/band

I think lyrics are really important! When listening to Devin singing his words it takes the whole listening experience into another dimension. When reading his lyrics you can see a part of Devin's life, revealed in a very humble way. They're pretty much written in a binary code format and often you can read between the lines to interpret your own version of what the song is about. Sometimes it doesn't require it and can be taken at face value. He also uses some pretty cool wordplay (intentionally or not), i.e. in Earth Day 'It's a beautiful day... it blows either way'.

I think that lyrics probably work best in English seeing as it's a Universal language. Listening to some death metal bands though, it wouldn't matter about what language it's in - as sometimes it equates to dogs barking anyway.

I guess lyrics only work on the listeners own interests and what appeals to them - be it love, war, god, satan etc.

I think it's important to have a message to say (pointless or not) - or why bother at all?

Lyrics matter very little to me much of the time. As long as they're phrased correctly then I rarely notice them (as such... I can probably sing along to the majority of Terria for example, but it's an unconscious process of absorbing the lyrics from listening to the album an awful lot).

However, a bad lyric can render a song nearly unlistenable. The song Honour Thy Father on the latest Dream Theater record ranks as one of the worst I've ever come across, and it takes a real effort to get through that song as a result. Which is a shame, since the music is rather good.

If lyrics were really that important to me I'd spend all my time listening to the first four Marillion albums to the exclusion of all else (sheer poetry) and I certainly wouldn't entertain the prospect of listening to Rhapsody!