3 Songs From the 1990s With Vocal Tracks and Lyrics That I Still Don’t Understand to This Day

Did you know the actual lyrics from these 1990s songs? I certainly don’t. In fact, I’ve somehow avoided figuring them out or looking up their lyrics online. I might try to keep that up as much as possible, because even without much knowledge of what each of these songs is about, they still manage to be absolutely amazing tracks. Let’s take a look; you might agree with me that a few of these songs boast vocals that are totally indiscernible.

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“Tourette’s” by Nirvana from ‘In Utero’ (1993)

This is one of my favorite Nirvana songs ever. And I can only understand the lines “Moderate rock” and “Hey!” to this very day. I’m not complaining. This is one of Nirvana’s most punk-sounding songs, especially out of the rest of the tracks on In Utero, the band’s final album.

Fun fact: For “Tourette’s” and “Very Ape”, Dave Grohl had to record the drum tracks in a kitchen to capture the space’s natural reverb. 

“The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite” by R.E.M. from ‘Automatic For The People’ (1993)

It’s the one song that fans still love today, but R.E.M. has never played it live. Not once, likely not ever now that the band is kaput as of 2025. It’s a real shame, because “The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite” is an incredible little tune, one with jangle pop elements and an overall vibe that’s still cool to this day. Even a large group of people surveyed in the UK agreed that a lot of the lyrics in this song are impossible to understand, though.

“Blue” by Eiffel 65 from ‘Europop’ (1998)

Will we ever truly know what the lyrics of this bizarre but insanely catchy Eurodance song are? Well, yes. The lyrics are all over the internet for you to read up on yourself. But just from listening with your ears alone, it’s tough to figure this oddball hit out.

This entry on our list of 1990s songs with indiscernible lyrics was basically the song of the year back in 1998. It was a smash hit everywhere for the Italian music outfit, peaking at No. 1 in the UK, Canada, and the European Hot 100. The song was also a huge hit stateside, peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Photo by D. Fahleson/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images