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Wednesday, July 13, 2005
Creepy

This morning on the radio they decided to play records backwards. Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust” was supposed to say “It’s fun to smoke marijuana.” It did. Britney Spears’ “Hit Me Baby, One More Time” was supposed to say “Sleep with me, I’m not too young.” You know what? It totally did.

While I was listening to this, I was getting ready for work. Alone. Kids at their dad’s, boyfriend in his own bed at home.

So then they talk about that old show Mr. Ed and how everyone used to watch it as kids. Yeah, my brothers and I used to watch the crap out of that show every weekday of the summer at 5:30 a.m.

So then they say that if you play the Mr. Ed theme song backwards, it says “source of the devil.”

Then they played it backwards, and it did kind of sound like Mr. Ed was saying that. And it was a little creepy. I have to say that I was a little creeped out.

Then, the DJs said that another part of the theme song that, when played backwards, allegedly said something about giving oneself over to Satan.

Dude, I got so creeped out, I had to turn off the radio. I got so creeped out, I was scared to be in my own apartment alone, and I went out the door to work. I drove to work so fast, I got there fifteen minutes early and had to spend that time at my desk with my coworkers around me, instead of sitting in my car in the parking garage, listening to the radio alone.

It’s not that I actually believe that Mr. Ed was the source of Satan. I know that he wasn’t even really a talking horse. And it’s not like I believe that Satan can put his voice onto records, forward or backwards, from the remote depths of hell. No, I imagine he has better things to do with his time, if he even exists.

But I do believe that it’s highly likely that someone – probably someone high on drugs – thought it would be a good idea to backwards-mask a satanic message onto a record. Dude, I totally believe that. And that thought creeps me out.

Some people have nothing better to do than be evil, or to fantasize that they’re part of some greater evil. Remember back when those kids were putting duct tape on cats’ heads and calling themselves devil worshippers? Man. What would you have to do to kids to make them come out that messed up?

Anyway. I bet the Mr. Ed theme song didn’t even say that stuff and the radio DJs were just playing a prank on us. But I’ll never know for sure, because by the time I felt safe enough to turn the radio back on, the backwards-masking segment was over and they were playing some crappy song by Nickelback.

That's right, y'all. Nickelback was put on earth by the devil.
 

12:48 PM #

Comments:

 I'm not sure which is creepier, satanic-recordings or Nickleback. Considering, I've yet to hear these satanic-recordings and I have heard the ungodly sounds of the Nickleback boys, my bet is on the latter.


# posted by Blogger Rob Danger : 12:52 PM  

 Ha. Great minds think alike. While you were typing this comment, I was revising my first draft to say that Nickelback was put on earth by Satan. Ha!

I think that makes me an Honorary Mean Queen...


# posted by Blogger Gwen : 12:56 PM  

 How does one play a record backward? I mean, do you have to use an actual record album? Wouldn't that scratch it? Is there some kind of a...digital...something that can flip them backward?


# posted by Blogger Scarlett : 1:15 PM  

 You can literally push a record backwards under the turntable needle, yes, and I suppose that would mess up the record or the needle eventually, if you did it often or too hard.

I imagine people do it digitally today, though. I'm guessing that's how Missy Elliot does it on her songs.


# posted by Blogger Gwen : 2:01 PM  

 You have to use a reel-to-reel tape player, and splice the tape in backward, to play the message backward. At least according to the internet. Or you can manually turn a record backwards.

I used to think that the backard recordings were just a random sound that came up when people played the music backward, like the woman who saw the Virgin Mary or whatever in her grilled cheese. But I gather they need to intentionally be recorded, played backward, and then integrated into the normal recording. Did ya'll already know that?


# posted by Blogger kate : 2:02 PM  

 Are we dating ourselves by saying "play a record backwards," seeing as how no one plays records anymore?

For those of y'all too young to remember, backwards lyrics and urban legends about them were all the rage in the '70s. It wasn't uncommon for youth to get together late at night and play records backwards, searching for satanic lyrics, and to tell stories about serial killers with hooks for hands.

Also, people used to play Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon album while watching The Wizard of Oz on mute, because DS of the M was allegedly composed to sync up with the movie.

(I feel weird explaining that, as if it's something new, but it occurs to me after reading Scarlett's comment that maybe there are people younger than us out there who *don't* read up on the antics of potsmokers in the '70s.)


# posted by Blogger Gwen : 2:07 PM  

 .tihs ypeerc emos si tahT


# posted by Blogger Omar : 2:17 PM  

 Ha. And here's a whole link about creepy backwards masking:
http://www.reversespeech.com/music_reversals.htm

I don't know why it scares me. It's mostly bullshit, I'm sure. But now it's raining like crazy and I'm scared to go home alone.


# posted by Blogger Gwen : 2:19 PM  

 I can't even listen to stuff like that. It scares me too badly. Not the Satan stuff. The voices just dont sound right.

Even worse? Creepy children's voices appearing in songs. SHUDDER.


# posted by Blogger Nomie : 8:55 PM  

 "emos"
awesome.


# posted by Blogger Rob Danger : 9:14 PM  

 Must be funny hearing santanic messages in a song by a band with a lead singer that looks like a vanilla Jesus with a perm.

And Dark Side of the Moon and the Wizard Oz do match up. Scoff if you like, but when you see the munchins dance to "Us and Them", YOU WILL BELIEVE.


# posted by Blogger vivahate : 12:11 AM  

 And even weirder is "Comfortably Numb" plays as everyone falls asleep in the poppies.

*sigh*. I remember records.


# posted by Blogger badverb : 12:55 AM  

 Call me stupid....but what is so bad about Nickleback?


# posted by Blogger smalliver : 9:46 AM  

 LOL..Now I really do feel old ..I remember the conflict over the Beatle's lyrics when the ablums came out

Boschka..still looking for the lasst crumb in the Famos Amos Cookie Bag


# posted by Blogger Boschka : 5:10 PM  

 Back in the early '80s in Detroit, the morning duo on rock station WRIF occasionally did a segment on backward masking. They called it "Proctoscope", a joke lost on me at the age of 11. They presented it really seriously, but looking back it must have been a joke.

One time, apparently to show that backward masking wasn't some new phenomenon, they played "Strangers in the Night" by Frank Sinatra backwards, and it supposedly said "Have Rocco break his legs."


# posted by Blogger Joe T : 11:05 AM  

 Nomie: Have you ever heard "Foxymophandlemomma", the last song on Pearl Jam's Vitalogy album? I don't know if that's a kid or a mentally disabled person speaking on that track, but it creeps me the HELL out. I can *not* listen to it. However, most other kids' voice sampling I've heard (Beck, Fairlight Children) doesn't bug me.

Smalliver: It's not that Nickelback (they spell it like the coin - I checked) is so bad. It's that they're a mediocre pop group whose songs get incessant radio play. That in itself makes it amusing to rank on them, as far as I'm concerned.

Peeps who remember the Paul-is-the-Dead-Walrus thing and anything about Pink Floyd predating their song about Icarus: Oh, my gosh, y'all, we are getting SO OLD.


# posted by Blogger Gwen : 1:31 PM  

 This post has been removed by a blog administrator.


# posted by Blogger Vicki : 9:30 AM  

 I always listen for the creepy moan at the end of "Come Together" and you don't even have to play it backwards. It is near the end of the song during the "come together" repeated sequences. It is a low moan so you have to turn it up and listen carefully.


# posted by Blogger Vicki : 9:33 AM  

 Nickelback gets that much play in the US? Wow, I'm surprised, I thought they were only overplayed in Alberta-Canada, where they are from.


# posted by Blogger smalliver : 10:10 AM  

 yes, i heard that on 96.5 too. the 2nd thing was actually "Sell ur soul to satan."


# posted by Blogger Cy : 3:41 PM  

 that is a load of BULL! nickel back is NOT santanic!?! how in the world can you even establish that they are that way? on what facts are you baseing your opinion?

they were put on earth bye GOD! santan does have that power dumbass


# posted by Blogger U_suck_4_thinking_that_way : 11:31 AM  

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