Being Australian, I love hearing just a little sprinkle of Aussie accent in singing, but for some reason I don’t like it laid on thick. I wonder why that is?
Is this the same for other languages and cultures? For example, if you are German, do you like to hear a strong German accent when a singer sings in English? Or do you want an Americanized accent? Or British? Or Martian?
When I hear Australian singers with a thick “pommy” (read: British sub-accent) or an American accent I tend to have a clear negative reaction. However, if an Australian singer has a touch of Irish, Egyptian, Arminian, Mongolian, or any number of other accents, I tend not to be annoyed to any degree. Is this because I perceive these accents to be more “exotic” and therefore have more cultural worth? Why is that?
What do you like in singing voice? Neutrality or accented character? Does such a thing as a “neutral english singing voice” exist?
You’re not alone on this -
I’m Estonian and when I hear someone singing in English, even with a hint of estonian accent, I get sick.
Other accents don’t bother me that much though - just as you said.
i think it depends on the accent. i hate to hear a Dutch accent in English singing, no matter how subtle (i do enjoy it when it is completely over the top and not serious, then it is great) (also, i like vV’s accent in the Renoise tutorial videos, but again, because it is funny. said this before, but no offense to vV. his videos and advice are excellent. i just smile when i hear hem speak. as Conner_Bw said, it makes you want to smoke weed
i find an Australian accent less annoying because it is an English-speaking country already.
a German accent can be funny, but not beautiful - i prefer the Germans to sing in their own language (like Rammstein)
a French accent can sound funny but also great to me. check out the music by Noze, they have French accents and it sounds fantastic (the music helps, too).
i don’t like too much of the ‘Texan’ American accent, but i don’t like much of the ‘Texan’ American anyway.
i sometimes enjoy a thick British accent though, like with Kate Nash, or Dizzee Rascal in that song ‘Dance wiv me’ with Calvin Harris.
I must confess I do prefer the American drawl for melodic vocals, it’s phonetically pleasing and more flowing / legato sounding. I think hip-hop in local accents has a lot of charm though, here’s one for you MMD:
I like swedish language in songs better than norwegian for some reason, even if they are very alike, but i guess it’s a bit more musical language or maybe it’s just that norwegian sounds weird because i know it too well.
Estonian or German accents are not natural English accents, that’s probably why it disturbing. In english I have no preferences in singing, as long as it sounds good.
