5 Songs You Don't Need to Know the Language to Enjoy
One of the benefits of living in the States is residing in a hotbed of music. From Jazz and Hip Hop to Punk and Pop, the US is one of, if not the largest, distributors of music culture in the world. While it is great to be on the ground floor of the newest musical trends, American listeners are often left at a severe disadvantage. Because our musical culture is so monolithic, it often means that we’re not familiar with music from the rest of the world, especially from non-English speaking regions. Music, however, is a universal language, and you don’t need to know what’s being said to enjoy a well-composed song.
1. "Sabaku" by Zazen Boys
This is the first song I found on my own that wasn’t in English. With very simple instrumental backing and beautifully considered cadence, this spoken-word track by the Tokyo group, Zazen Boys, is really something special. Without knowing a word of Japanese, you will still sense the urgency and feeling of lead singer, Shutoku Mukai.
2. "Yoshua Alikuti" by The Very Best
The Very Best is a partnership between Londoners Radioclit and Malawian Esau Mwamwaya. The creation of these English producers gives you a strong backbone of familiar music that could come right out of a Top 40 hit, but Mwamwaya delivers his vocals in the native language of Malawi, Chewa.
3. "Landing Berechtigt" by Rakede
While electronic music has always been a mainstay of German culture, this group out of Hamburg has chosen to blend that history with hip-hop. Listening to bars written in a language known for its love for consonants and compound words is definitely a unique experience. What’s more, this particular version takes culture-bending to another level by including a didjeridoo.
4. "Chewing Gum" by Odezzenne
Like the previous entry, this track uses American hip hop trends with the classically sonorant French language. This group from Bordeaux hits it out of the park with Chewing Gum. While they do include a number of English words and icons, the arrangement is still clearly French, employing cafe-esque clarinet and accordion motifs to back up the soft-mouthed lyrics.
5. Tinariwen - Toumast Tincha
To close, I chose this track by Tinariwen, a group of musicians from Mali. The group draws heavy inspiration from the Tuareg folk music tradition of their country and Western blues guitarists. The result of this combination is an outstanding traditional vocal arrangement complemented beautifully with bluesy guitar riffs.