Maaaaayt
Can you tell the nationality of a person just by listening to the vocal sounds they make whilst singing? When a person talks it's much, much easier but singing seems to bring about an internationalision, a flattening. I suppose Henry Higgins would have something erudite to say about it all but I don't sing with an Australian accent. At least I think I don't.
However, after hearing New Buffalo on Triple J recently I became aware of a definite Australian inflection hovering about, at least in female singer-sonwriters.
It's just a nasal vowel pronunciation, really, but it's pretty obvious once you hear it:
mp3: Recovery
Another recent artist to display this hidden Strine is the rather dull Sara Blasko:
mp3: Dont U Eva
But it started way, way back (if not before) with the gorgeous Angie Hart from Frente!:
mp3: Accidently Kelly Street
If you start to listen a little bit more carefully, you can hear it in lots of male singers as well including that annoying guy from Frenzal Rhomb.
Maybe this is the ever-elusive something that defines the Australian rock sound?? I certainly hope it isn't.
posted by Phil at
9:25 am
3 Comments:
i have only listened to the beautiful frente! song and haven't remarked anything peculiar yet (at least i am not 100% sure) but i am german. one thing i always found unbelievable was that scottish bands who making very melodic guitar music like teenage fanclub for example seem to sing with hardly any accent. but when they open their mouths in interviews i always get the expression someone else is speaking. how can they polish their hard accent so much when singing? i think the same is true for irish bands, eg dolores from the cranberries.
By
Alexander, at 6:11 pm
most australians have a slightly broad accent too but it's just not as immediately noticeable as the irish or scottish ones. god, i love it when scottish people speak.
By
Phil, at 4:22 pm
ps - if you haven't already then try the new buffalo track which is one of my favs of this year.
By
Phil, at 4:34 pm
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