# Do you listen to albums in a language you don't understand? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [October 16, 2023, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-listen-to-albums-in-a-language-you-dont-understand/991633 "2023-10-16T03:08:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2026, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-listen-to-albums-in-a-language-you-dont-understand/991633/81 "2026-05-05T17:14:02Z")
My great aunt/uncle did an Asia tour in the 1930s and brought back an album of 78s of traditional Hawaiian songs. Not any of that Americanized crap. I played those records to death. I should have taken them with me when I moved out, because when I looked for them later I couldn’t find them. I’d sing along phonetically. Later in my teens I got hooked on the Pennywhistlers who did traditional Eastern European folksongs. Still have those. I liked listening to the Soviet Army Chorus CDs/LPs and halfway understood some of them because I studied Russian in College. I still love traditional folk music, and one CD that’s on regular rotation is The Fisher Family. More than half of the songs are in English, but I love the Gaelic ones, too. ---
**Author:** ![DKW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dkw/32/3118_2.png) [@DKW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DKW)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2026, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-listen-to-albums-in-a-language-you-dont-understand/991633/82 "2026-06-29T02:20:38Z")
When I was a Pump It Up fan (where does the time go 😢), I bought quite a few Korean language CDs, including this one incredible 6-disk omnibus. I remember the Ro’ora’s 8th And Last, a Clon album, an H.O.T. album (strictly for We Are The Future), a Cho PD album (Fever!), and Novasonic Remastered (oh, _so_ awesome). Later on I bought whatever Vocaloid and Utauloid albums I could get my hand on. The one that really stuck out for me was Miku Punk, which was and is an absolute blast. Given what Miku’s mutated into now, it’s almost impossible to believe that anyone dared do fast and hard-hitting with her. There was also at least one Pop 'n Music album, though I lost track of it a long time ago. Hey, great music transcends language. I still listen to Rock Me Amadeus on occasion. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2026, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-listen-to-albums-in-a-language-you-dont-understand/991633/83 "2026-06-29T02:24:05Z")
The Cantonese version of Robert Palmer’s “Addicted To Love” is…interesting. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/b2BTG2PopqE/maxresdefault.jpg "Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love” in Cantonese") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2BTG2PopqE) ---
**Author:** ![fedman1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e495f1/32.png) [@fedman1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman1)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2026, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-listen-to-albums-in-a-language-you-dont-understand/991633/84 "2026-06-29T14:53:45Z")
or TuneIn or Online Radio Box ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2026, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-listen-to-albums-in-a-language-you-dont-understand/991633/85 "2026-06-29T15:15:33Z")
I have usually had a song or two on rotation in a foreign language but no full albums. Now I own the six-album soundtrack set to video game _Clair Obscur: Expedition 33_ which is in French so I guess I’m making up for lost time. No idea what most of it is saying (singing) – it’s all vibes to me. So much for three years of high school/college French. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/LpNVf8sczqU/maxresdefault.jpg "Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 | Lumière [Official Music Video]") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpNVf8sczqU) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-listen-to-albums-in-a-language-you-dont-understand/991633.md?page=4)