Soul vs Technique

[datura800.livejournal.com]

I hope he won't mind me quoting him, but I read an interesting assertion in Alex's review of the new Mariah album (today's Guardian):

"Carey's voice has been mocked, bizarrely, as being a triumph of technique over soul - an argument that fails to comprehend that technique and soul are intertwined, that technique primarily exists as a means to convey emotion".

I thought this would be a good discussion to have here - it's a point I quite strongly disagree with (generally, not specifically with relation to Mariah), but I'll wait to see if anyone is interested in commenting before launching into it.

Comments

[jauntyalan.livejournal.com]

(lex is on hols of course)

i have a messy attitude to vocals. on the one hand i find it hard to admire technique and could care less about whether someone is a good/powerful/varied singer, on the other i am often put off music i would otherwise love by vocals and also like the voice as an instrument.

(lyrics i'm similarly messed up on. most time i'm not listening to them)

[sbp.livejournal.com]

Most of the time I don't listen to the lyrics either. Some people think this is odd.

[lockedintheatti.livejournal.com]

Me too. Which can be a nightmare when you make mixtapes for someone (showing my age here) and they point out that the lyrics are horribly inappropriate.