Reversing some tracks brings interesting results

ryetronics · Post by **ryetronics** » Wed Apr 26, 2006 6:24 am

First off, I DID NOT come up with this. A fellow by the name of Aaron Adel did on the BoC Yahoo Forum, and since I have never seen his name on this board, I thought I would post some of the stuff he came up with. I found it very interesting, and I can't wait to listen to these tracks backwards now. Some of this may be old news, but it was new to me...

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I'm sure many of you knew that the music in Dandelion was something played backwards the first time you heard it. I have always wondered if it takes a "trained ear" to tell if something has been reversed. Many people I have asked cannot tell if something is reversed, where as I seem to pick it up quite well. Is this really a talent?

Try these other reversals if you haven't already:

- Macquarie Ridge: when the track is reversed a forwards drum track becomes evident throughout

- Oscar See Through Red Eye is very intriguing when reversed. The events noted are at the times on the *reversed track*:

From 3:32 to 3:45 a melody is clearly "forwards" You can tell because of the way the instrument resonates at the end of each note. Needless to say, the melody during that small time span is beautiful.

From 3:57 to 4:00 a "forwards" twanging noise can be heard. Sounds like a string being tapped repeatedly.

From 4:54 to 5:07, which is the real beginning of the song, a wobbly instrument can be heard and resonates as though it is forwards. Play the beginning of the song forwards, on the other hand, and it is barely audible.

Chromakey Dreamcoat...ah yes, the song with everyone's favourite guitar twang! Sounded so "normal" right from the get-go that we forgot to look for other hidden beauties. Reverse the track and note the following:

From 1:53 to 2:05 a doorbell-like chiming melody is present. Now listen to the clip in normal direction. See??

Hey Saturday Sun: There are two main melodies which alternate. The one that isn't the guitar one, is a reversed synth melody. Reverse the entire track and you can spot one of the sections between 1:36 and 2:05.
You can tell its backwards by again noting the resonation of the notes.
Also the very beginning of the song, 4:40 to 4:56 on the reversed version, i could swear it's forwards when reversed, but its debatable

Alpha and Omega: When reversed, from 0:23 onward, the main "melody" (if you can call it that) is actually forwards.

That's all I could take for now. When I reverse stuff and listen to it, particularly when there are voices involved, I sometimes get an extremely strange feeling. I get intense goosebumps and my tearducts well up like geysers. This happened with A&O so I had to stop. I felt like something really creepy was happening, but couldn't explain what.
It's likely my imagination. Kind of like when you check all the closets for monsters after watching a horror movie. I have never been able to figure this reaction out. Can anyone relate?

thedisavowed · Post by **thedisavowed** » Wed Apr 26, 2006 6:51 am

I don't normally go out for the reversing tracks stuff... but OSTRE is actually a pretty interesting listen backwards.

six-five-two · Post by **six-five-two** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 3:10 am

Maybe post the clips here for people too lazy to reverse it?

DocteurOrlof · Post by **DocteurOrlof** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 5:26 am

six-five-two wrote:Maybe post the clips here for people too lazy to reverse it?

+1 (not lazy, only curious)

We had some reverse topics before, but this time it sounds different and more interesting. Seems it's not someone who plays "Magic Window" backwards searching for satanic message, he's only trying to deconstruct/reconstruct to see how things work. It's like watching the making of your favorite movie: you knew there was a trick, now you've seen the trick, but the magic is still here (and sometimes it even works better).

ryetronics wrote:When I reverse stuff and listen to it, particularly when there are voices involved, I sometimes get an extremely strange feeling. I get intense goosebumps and my tearducts well up like geysers. This happened with A&O so I had to stop. I felt like something really creepy was happening, but couldn't explain what.
It's likely my imagination. Kind of like when you check all the closets for monsters after watching a horror movie. I have never been able to figure this reaction out. Can anyone relate?

These tings happen we you imprudently open the Box. Maybe they look like two regular guys playing some cool electronica, but they're not only illusionits, they are real enchanters (and maybe some of their spells should remain secret...).

hexagon son · Post by **hexagon son** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 5:50 am

agreed. on both counts. ive always had a facination with music and any sound played backwards. me and my brothers used to try and talk backwards when we were kids anddidnt want our parents knowing what we were saying. but there is something very strange (and sometimes downright scary) about reversing sound. i fear if i get into this any more, people will jump all over me so i'll leave it at that.

Lawrence · Post by **Lawrence** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 8:35 am

Those are quite interesting. Also if you reverse Satellite Anthem Icarus, there are certain parts which sound a bit like Seven Forty Seven Especially at about 1:16 (reversed time)

I don't really get scared when listening to reversed music, but I get very scared when I hear a spectrograph of an image. Once I made a spectrograph of a photo of my old house, when I first listened to it I was so scared I ran out of the room!

boardsofdublin · Post by **boardsofdublin** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 9:50 am

what is a spectrograph?

Derail · Post by **Derail** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 10:45 am

Dandelion reversed is absolutely beautiful. Hearing the little speech parts reversed in Boc tracks is cool, but I'm more interested in hearing the new melody that appears in some reversed tracks. I would love to hear 'Over The Horizon Radar" revesed if anyone has it, please post it. Here's the reversed tracks I have so far, I can post these when I get home from work if anyone needs them.

-Live @ATP track 2 (speech at the end) :39
-Happy Cycling (speech at the end) 1:17
-Satelite Anthem Icarus (drony synth part at the end) :34
-A Is To B As B Is To C (beginning speech) :31
-Dandelion (whole track) 1:15
-Maquarie Ridge (whole track) 4:57

hexagon son · Post by **hexagon son** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 5:11 pm

wow... is there a program i can get to make spectrographs out of my photos? id love to try that.

six-five-two · Post by **six-five-two** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 10:21 pm

Umm.. What do you guys use to make songs backwards? I use some converted from MP3 to WAV then use Windows Sound Recorder, reverse it then make it back to MP3 in the converting program. Is there anyway faster?

IanRedpoint · Post by **IanRedpoint** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 10:42 pm

Lawrence Hall wrote:Those are quite interesting. Also if you reverse Satellite Anthem Icarus, there are certain parts which sound a bit like Seven Forty Seven Especially at about 1:16 (reversed time)

Thankyou so much. I thought that interactive site had been lost. I spent hours playing around with that one lazy sunday afternoon.

gfresh · Post by **gfresh** » Thu Apr 27, 2006 11:36 pm

Derail wrote: I would love to hear 'Over The Horizon Radar" revesed if anyone has it, please post it.

http://download.yousendit.com/46DE128B465E7583

Derail · Post by **Derail** » Fri Apr 28, 2006 12:25 am

Thanks G.

Goiter Sanchez · Post by **Goiter Sanchez** » Fri Apr 28, 2006 1:19 am

'I Saw Drones' backwards is fabulous! It sounds VERY much like old-skool BoC. I'm sure most people have heard this already...

six-five-two · Post by **six-five-two** » Fri Apr 28, 2006 4:58 am

six-five-two wrote:Umm.. What do you guys use to make songs backwards? I use some converted from MP3 to WAV then use Windows Sound Recorder, reverse it then make it back to MP3 in the converting program. Is there anyway faster?

Umm... HELP?

hexagon son · Post by **hexagon son** » Fri Apr 28, 2006 6:14 am

not that im aware of, thats the way i do it anyway.

Cupz · Post by **Cupz** » Fri Apr 28, 2006 8:55 am

six-five-two wrote:
six-five-two wrote:Umm.. What do you guys use to make songs backwards? I use some converted from MP3 to WAV then use Windows Sound Recorder, reverse it then make it back to MP3 in the converting program. Is there anyway faster?
Umm... HELP?

Easy...download Audacity...TADAAA!!

Lawrence · Post by **Lawrence** » Sat Apr 29, 2006 4:04 am

hexagon son wrote:wow... is there a program i can get to make spectrographs out of my photos? id love to try that.

The program I have is called Coagula Light. My version is v.1.666 heheh. You can get it here

doubleEntendre · Post by **doubleEntendre** » Tue May 02, 2006 10:01 pm

The beginning bit from The Smallest Weird Number is reversed too, it's a cool flute lick from what sounds like the Incredible String Band.

Mind your eagle · Post by **Mind your eagle** » Thu May 04, 2006 2:42 pm

Excellent post ryetronics. Great to see other's manipulating BOC TCHP tracks sonically.