We all like team sports. The popularity of the NBA, NFL, MLB, and others can speak to that. But it's interesting to note that even in those cases, even if you have a favorite team, it's largely because that team has a specific player, and even in team sports like basketball, we make a big deal of the contributions of individual players to the quality of the game.
The fact is, we like individuals. We like them a lot. It's cool to see a team overcome oppressive odds to win something, but it's even better if we have details about the individuals who make up that team (see: pretty much every team sports movie made). So on that note, more singers!
I'll start off with apologizing for the title. This is the ultimate showdown, but I'm not picking a winner. Because both of these individuals rock. The topic at hand is singers. Or rather, who is the best singer. According to me. Because I don't know what you think why would I seriously guys. What makes these two vocalists so interesting to me is that I cannot (seriously cannot) choose which I like better, but they seemingly couldn't be any more different.
On the one hand you have a classically trained new age/world vocalist.
On the other hand you have the lead singer for a gothic metal band.
So I'm a little eclectic. Or at least my taste in music is. Sue me. I think the deeper point to take away from this, however, is that no matter the genre being sung, there are certain traits that great vocalists have in common. And what draws me to both of these extremely talented women is actually the same for both of them.
It's their ability to surprise me.
Hayley Westenra is as I said classically trained, and gravitates most toward what you would call new age or world genres. She released her first international album at 14 and has continued to release quite a body of work since. She has a voice seemingly tailor made for achingly beautiful performances of arias, hymns, and Ave Maria. (Seriously, she could release an album with thirteen nearly identical performances of Ave Maria and I would buy it. And then spend hours agonizing over which is the most beautiful performance of Ave Maria in the world.)
Amy Lee is pretty hardcore. These videos are a little crazy, but I mean, listen to her. And again. And again. Is it just me, or was that last video pretty much a giant middle finger to their fans? As co-founder of the gothic metal band Evanescence (no arguments about whether they still qualify as gothic, please, I'm not real interested in that particular topic), she has lent her unique voice to all of their songs across nearly two decades worth of music. She has a voice seemingly tailored to loud and emotionally charged, well, metal.
Which is why it's so interesting to look at what they have in common. First off, they are two of a very small number of popular vocalists that I would prefer to listen to without much instrumentation. In pop, and especially in most rock, the more layers of instrumentation you put between me and the singer, the better. This is simply because most of them don't actually sing that well. Pharrell Williams is a good example of that. But these two shine when you take away everything. Give them a line to sing without accompaniment, and I'm super happy.
The second thing they have in common is versatility. I've mentioned Hayley is classically trained. This makes it all the more surprising when she releases an album with my favorite performance of a country song on it, or a cover of a Kate Bush song. Amy sings metal and can scream like, well, nobody you know. This makes it all the more bizarre when she turns around and lays down an acoustic performance of a metal songs that's better than the original, or sings one of the most hauntingly beautiful songs you'll ever hear.
My point is, they're not just talented in their spheres, but in other people's spheres as well. They've got their strengths, sure, but can emote across a wide range of vocal types. That is what makes them great. And I'm not going to pick one that does it better. You can feel free to do that in the comments if you have an opinion.
It's their ability to surprise me.
Hayley Westenra is as I said classically trained, and gravitates most toward what you would call new age or world genres. She released her first international album at 14 and has continued to release quite a body of work since. She has a voice seemingly tailor made for achingly beautiful performances of arias, hymns, and Ave Maria. (Seriously, she could release an album with thirteen nearly identical performances of Ave Maria and I would buy it. And then spend hours agonizing over which is the most beautiful performance of Ave Maria in the world.)
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| Aww, look! It's a fountain! It's sunny! It's happy! |
Amy Lee is pretty hardcore. These videos are a little crazy, but I mean, listen to her. And again. And again. Is it just me, or was that last video pretty much a giant middle finger to their fans? As co-founder of the gothic metal band Evanescence (no arguments about whether they still qualify as gothic, please, I'm not real interested in that particular topic), she has lent her unique voice to all of their songs across nearly two decades worth of music. She has a voice seemingly tailored to loud and emotionally charged, well, metal.
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| Aww, look! It's an alley! At night! Please don't mug me! |
Which is why it's so interesting to look at what they have in common. First off, they are two of a very small number of popular vocalists that I would prefer to listen to without much instrumentation. In pop, and especially in most rock, the more layers of instrumentation you put between me and the singer, the better. This is simply because most of them don't actually sing that well. Pharrell Williams is a good example of that. But these two shine when you take away everything. Give them a line to sing without accompaniment, and I'm super happy.
The second thing they have in common is versatility. I've mentioned Hayley is classically trained. This makes it all the more surprising when she releases an album with my favorite performance of a country song on it, or a cover of a Kate Bush song. Amy sings metal and can scream like, well, nobody you know. This makes it all the more bizarre when she turns around and lays down an acoustic performance of a metal songs that's better than the original, or sings one of the most hauntingly beautiful songs you'll ever hear.
My point is, they're not just talented in their spheres, but in other people's spheres as well. They've got their strengths, sure, but can emote across a wide range of vocal types. That is what makes them great. And I'm not going to pick one that does it better. You can feel free to do that in the comments if you have an opinion.
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