THE THEORY OF REVERSE SPEECH AND SPEECH COMPLEMENTARITY:
(1) Human speech has two distinctive yet complementary functions and modes. The Overt mode is spoken forwards and is primarily under conscious control. The Covert mode is spoken backward and is not under conscious control. The backward mode of speech occurs simultaneously with the forward mode and is a reversal of the forward speech sounds.
(2) These two modes of speech, forward and backward, are dependent upon each other and form an integral part of human communication. One mode cannot be fully understood without the other mode. In the dynamics of interpersonal communication, both modes of speech combined communicate the total psyche of the person, conscious as well as unconscious.
(3) Covert speech develops before overt speech. Children speak backwards before they do forwards. Then, as forward speech commences, the two modes of speech gradually combine into one, forming an overall bi-level communication process.
List of Backmasked/Reverse Speech Songs
Jeff Milner's Site
Reverse Speech Site
Click here to hear a well known sample of backmasking from Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven". This audio file will play both forward (original context) and backward (backmasking revealed).
Post a reflection that a) discusses your opinion of backmasking and reverse speech, b) assesses the validity of the examples you experienced. I expect direct, specific references to songs, artists and lyrics. Be sure to demonstrate the level of your investigation by being precise and thorough. (3-5 paragraphs)
23 comments:
Rammstein's "Speiluhr" describes a man that is remembered for his music,dies unexpectedly. But according to the lyrics:"eine melodie im wind, und der memorie ist das kind."
Which in English translates to "a melody in wind, and the memory is so small." Also when he says "I can't shake this I can't hold on." The backmasked message is one of the youngest Rammstein band members is dead deal with it.
Drew Erickson
I believe backwards speech theories to be true. In the case of “My Name Is” by Eminem, played forward the lyrics go: “'Hi! My name is... (what?) My name is... (who?) My name is... {scratches} Slim Shady. Hi! My name is... (huh?) My name is... (what?) My name is... {scratches} Slim Shady.'” In reverse you hear: 'It is Slim. It's Eminem, it's Eminem, it's Eminem. It is Slim. It's Eminem, it's Eminem, it's Eminem.'
When you analyze the individual words, and how the consonants and vowels make the sounds, it actually makes sense. For example, My name is. Spelled backwards is, si eman ym. Its difficult to show through text, but read out loud si emanym. It sounds like “its Eminem”. Eminem could be read exactly the same if spelt “Emanym.” Vowels with similar sounds and evenly distributed consonants seem to show the same sound both forward and reverse.
My opinion on back masking is that in some cases it is done on purpose and is hinting to mostly to demonic messages but also in some cases can allude to a positive message. In several songs by Eminem he shows that he is able to take on anything and is there for his family, contradictory to that is stairway to heaven that talks about 666 and kids suffering. This shows that yes, back masking is real, but I also feel that some of the examples are forced and don’t actually say what is played backwards and that it is just white noise.
I’m sure that some artists find it amusing to turn their song and flip it to make lyrics and in some cases they even acknowledge it, as in Empty Spaces by Pink Floyd “Hello, hunters. Congratulations. You've just discovered the secret message. Please send your answer to Old Pink, care of the funny farm, Chalfont." (voice in background) "Roger! Carolyne is on the phone!". Others subtly put in their lyrics back masked noises, Such as “Another one Bites the Dust”, inverted, says “it’s fun to smoke marijuana”. I find this intriguing and also very impressive that a musician is able to flip his words and construct sentences in reverse. I had a hard enough time trying to write a coherent song, never mind throwing in some reverse language.
In conclusion, keep playing songs backwards and find some awesome back masked lyrics for a crazy and interesting project. In my own opinion, I find it entertaining and that it keeps me interested on the topic on hand. On the flip side I’m getting distracted by all the hype around the lyrics, for instance in The Beatles music, they told about Paul McCartney’s death and around these findings I took off on several different paths of distraction.
With every theory, there will be some legitimate and some fake examples. The theory of back masking, in my mind, is not very probable. The thought of our unconscious being displayed in our backwards speech does not sound legitimate. With this said, some of the songs can be understood when played backwards, though some are purposely done. Though some of the songs may be understood played backwards, I believe that it is simply a coincidence. These parts which could merely be interpreted as some satanic preach are only small pieces of a song, most of them not even a full stanza of a song.
Some of the examples that I have listened cannot be interpreted to be any sentence, never mind what they claim it to say. For instance, such examples as “Paparazzi,” by Lady Gaga, “Imagine,” by John Lennon, “My Name is…,” by Eminem, “Pokemon Rap,” “Hotel California,” by Eagles, “Revolution 9,” by the Beatles, “Break on Through,” by the Doors, and “Beat it,” by Michael Jackson do not make sense when played backwards. These songs tend to sound like gibberish when played backwards, especially “Paparazzi,” by Lady Gaga which is supposed to say 'Evil save us! These stars above, above... we model it on the arts of Lucifer.' I do not hear any of these words in this example, as the other examples I have mentioned.
Certain songs have clearly been back masked on purpose. Examples of this would be “Im so Tired,” by the Beatles, “Empty Spaces,” by Pink Floyd, “Nature Trail to Hell,” by Weird Al, and “Fire on High,” by ELO which are all found on Jeff Milner’s website. These examples are all indistinguishable when played forward, but clear when played backwards. Purposely done, the artists most likely recorded these parts forwards and flipped them before putting them in the song. “Empty Spaces,” by Pink Floyd is especially obvious in that it congratulates us on finding the hidden message.
In the case of understanding the legitimate back masked message, I usually have to know what I am looking for. If you simply play the song backwards without knowing the supposed message, it will probably sound like gibberish. But, these songs still can be understood backwards to sound like the intended messages. For instance, “Stairway to Heaven,” by Led Zepplin played backwards sounds like it is saying 'Oh here's to my sweet Satan. The one whose little path would make me sad, whose power is Satan. He'll give those with him 666, there was a little tool shed where he made us suffer, sad Satan.' In this case, the song when played forward sounds rather odd in both senses of lyrics and beat. In other examples, “…Baby One More Time,” by Britney Spears and “Another One Bites the Dust,” by Queen both sound like their supposed message when played backwards. Each of these examples are lyrics when played forward and somewhat understandable when played backwards to be non-socially-acceptable lyrics.
With every theory, there will be some legitimate and some fake examples. The theory of back masking, in my mind, is not very probable. The thought of our unconscious being displayed in our backwards speech does not sound legitimate. With this said, some of the songs can be understood when played backwards, though some are purposely done. Though some of the songs may be understood played backwards, I believe that it is simply a coincidence. These parts which could merely be interpreted as some satanic preach are only small pieces of a song, most of them not even a full stanza of a song.
Some of the examples that I have listened cannot be interpreted to be any sentence, never mind what they claim it to say. For instance, such examples as “Paparazzi,” by Lady Gaga, “Imagine,” by John Lennon, “My Name is…,” by Eminem, “Pokemon Rap,” “Hotel California,” by Eagles, “Revolution 9,” by the Beatles, “Break on Through,” by the Doors, and “Beat it,” by Michael Jackson do not make sense when played backwards. These songs tend to sound like gibberish when played backwards, especially “Paparazzi,” by Lady Gaga which is supposed to say 'Evil save us! These stars above, above... we model it on the arts of Lucifer.' I do not hear any of these words in this example, as the other examples I have mentioned.
Certain songs have clearly been back masked on purpose. Examples of this would be “Im so Tired,” by the Beatles, “Empty Spaces,” by Pink Floyd, “Nature Trail to Hell,” by Weird Al, and “Fire on High,” by ELO which are all found on Jeff Milner’s website. These examples are all indistinguishable when played forward, but clear when played backwards. Purposely done, the artists most likely recorded these parts forwards and flipped them before putting them in the song. “Empty Spaces,” by Pink Floyd is especially obvious in that it congratulates us on finding the hidden message.
In the case of understanding the legitimate back masked message, I usually have to know what I am looking for. If you simply play the song backwards without knowing the supposed message, it will probably sound like gibberish. But, these songs still can be understood backwards to sound like the intended messages. For instance, “Stairway to Heaven,” by Led Zepplin played backwards sounds like it is saying 'Oh here's to my sweet Satan. The one whose little path would make me sad, whose power is Satan. He'll give those with him 666, there was a little tool shed where he made us suffer, sad Satan.' In this case, the song when played forward sounds rather odd in both senses of lyrics and beat. In other examples, “…Baby One More Time,” by Britney Spears and “Another One Bites the Dust,” by Queen both sound like their supposed message when played backwards. Each of these examples are lyrics when played forward and somewhat understandable when played backwards to be non-socially-acceptable lyrics.
Paige Almeida
December 22, 2011
Class- G
Backmasking/Reverse Speech
Backmasking/ Reverse Speech
I believe in the whole baskmasking predicament. I have heard several songs that consist of this. It is on purpose and not on coincidence. One might occur that is not on purpose, but for the majority of the songs with backmasking in it that it is not hogwash. People want to give their song an edge over the others, and songs that have “messages” heard in reverse are very enticing and would cause listeners to want to buy their album or song just to hear the reversed line. Others are more forced with their hidden message; it is hard to understand, and might need to be really strained out by the listener to say that they understand/can make out what the singer is saying. These, to me, are the reversed speech. It comes out much more like gibberish with a little light of English in it rather than the more distinctively backmasking. Songs include B52’s “Detours Thru Your mind”, Eminem’s “My Name Is”, Missy Elliot “Work it”, “Free As a Bird” by the Beatles, “Rain” by the Beatles, “Empty Space” by Pink Floyd, Tool “Intention”, and “Smell like Teen Spirit” by Oasis. Some of these songs are clearer than others when played backwards, but I think the intentions are the same. They tried/ put a saying in a song that purposely would make a message if put backwards. Some came out clearer than others, but they still did the same thing. They made people listen and get enticed in their music.
Stairway to Heaven:
This song definitely has some backmasking hidden within it, and the fact that forward the song says “heaven”, but backwards says Satan and references hell. This is one example of a truly back masked song, where there is a hidden message when played backwards, but it was not pre recorded and just converted to a backwards song.
Imagine:
In this song, there was not an overpowering occurrence of backmasking and secret messages when it was played backwards. It is said that, when the song is played in reverse, that the message says “the people war beside me”, which would make sense if it were truly backmasked because John Lennon believed in perpetual peace, and when he was alive, there was a lot of fighting going on around him. This is why the back masking of Imagine is said to actually be on purpose, but personally there is just a mumbo-jumbo of words that can only be made out to sound like “the people war beside me” if one listens closely. This song does not seem to be genuinely backmasked.
Beat It:
Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” is rumored to say “I have satan in me”. People have said that due to his supposed obsession with young children, he may have believed that satan really was in him. Although it would make some sense if this were to be an actual instance of backmasking, the incoherence of the lyrics when played backwards is not enough to actually convince one that the message was put there intentionally.
Paparazzi:
Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi” definitely contains a clear instance of backmasking. When played forward, her song says “'There's no other superstar you know that I'll be your papa... paparazzi. Promise I'll be kind”, and when it is played backward, it says 'Evil save us! These stars above, above... we model it on the arts of Lucifer.' Gaga’s message isn’t very clear in the beginning, but once she begins talking about modeling it on the arts of Lucifer, it becomes very apparent that the song was backmasked. The message is very clear at the end, and appears to be 100% intentional.
Another One Bites the Dust:
In Queen’s song, ‘Another one Bites the Dust’, there is definitely backmasking. This is one of the most original instances of backmasking in my mind, because the song was recorded and then played backwards, and didn’t record the back masking first. It sounds a little bit rough, but they make it very clear that ‘it is fun to smoke marijuana’, even though the words may be a little hard to interpret. The message is very obvious, and one can pick out what Queen is saying when played backwards, without even having the words to begin with, showing that this is an original example of backmasking.
I’m So Tired:
This song by the Beatles was rumored to have backmasked messages claiming that Paul McCartney was actually dead in them, but even when played in reverse, it is a stretch to say that there is any actual instance of backmasking due to the fact that the words are so incoherent and mixed together that one can barely even understand what they are trying to say.
Some artists do place messages in their music. When listening to the track forwards the message is incoherent. However when reversed it suddenly is as clear as day. Most artists who do this type of backmasking is for a satirical effect. For example “satan eats cheese whiz” was hidden in a weird Al song. His style of singing is satire and this backmasking follows that. The B52’s also hide a message that is comical and ELO has a message reversed that states the message is reversible. One case of this backmasking that wasn’t satirical is in the Beatles song “I’m so Tired.” In this song it appears they did reverse a message into saying “Paul is dead, miss him miss him miss him.” This would support the claim that Paul McCartney died; or mocks this for humor or publicity.
Another type of backmasking is fallacy. It is the power of suggestion that influences the listener. These songs I listened to continuously both forwards and back. While listening to them forwards I found no sign of a reversed trace; when backwards I could not distinguish any real words. Yet after looking at the “Message” I was supposed to hear I could miraculously hear the message. Through the power of suggestion I could hear the message. I was straining to hear the message; saying it in my head to make sense of the jumbled sound. The brain likes order; psychologists have proved it attempts to organize random information in order to make sense of it. These alleged cases of backmasking thrive on this fact.
The last form of backmasking in my opinion also uses the brains tendency of organization. In the Beatles “Revolution 9” the vocals repeat “number nine.” Then when backwards one played is supposed to hear “turn me on dead man.” This was not intentional; using Audacity we spoke “number nine” at various speeds. When played backwards it is similar to “dead man.” It is a mere coincidence that they sound similar. These accusations of backmasking are unintentional. When reversed people are trying to find a message; they want there to be a controversy. Most of these claims are for lawsuits or for absolving ones deeds by blaming a song.
Anthony B.
Amy Pereira
I believe in the art of backmasking, but I do not believe that there is a way for it to be unintentional. Usually the people who end up backmasking in their songs are promoting something that is dark or sketchy. After listening to a number of songs that were marked as backmasking, I came to the conclusion that there are a lot of instances that are just coincidence. “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zepplin, “My Name Is…” by Eminem, “Hit Me Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears, “Another One Bites the Dust” by Queen, “Fire on High” by ELO, and “Paparazzi” by Lady Gaga are all examples of backmasking because some are indistinguishable forwards and show a complete phrase and thought backwards. Also, in some songs, there are specific lines that are said backwards that make sense to the singer’s life. Though there are many examples of backmasking, there are also many coincidental cases as well. “Imagine” by John Lennon, “Pokemon Rap”, “Hotel California” by Eagles, “Revolution 9” by The Beatles, “Break on Through” by The Doors, and “Beat It” by Michael Jackson are all coincidences for many reasons. Some of them make no sense and a couple of them don’t even sound like what the website said is being said. Also, I believe that the mind can play a big part in backmasking. If someone says that something says something and someone else listens to it, their mind will be biased because they were already told something it could have said. After listening to many songs forwards and backwards, I found only one song that could go both ways. In “I’m So Tired” by The Beatles, there was said to be a line that if you play it backwards it hints to the theory that Paul McCartney had died and was replaced by a look-alike. It makes sense that the song could have possibly said this, but when listening to it, it doesn’t sound exactly like what it’s supposed to say. This could mean that fans found a line that almost sounded like it to start news or that The Beatles just wanted publicity and put it in there. As you can see, there are many aspects to analyzing backmasked music.
Amy Pereira
I believe in the art of backmasking, but I do not believe that there is a way for it to be unintentional. Usually the people who end up backmasking in their songs are promoting something that is dark or sketchy. After listening to a number of songs that were marked as backmasking, I came to the conclusion that there are a lot of instances that are just coincidence. “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zepplin, “My Name Is…” by Eminem, “Hit Me Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears, “Another One Bites the Dust” by Queen, “Fire on High” by ELO, and “Paparazzi” by Lady Gaga are all examples of backmasking because some are indistinguishable forwards and show a complete phrase and thought backwards. Also, in some songs, there are specific lines that are said backwards that make sense to the singer’s life. Though there are many examples of backmasking, there are also many coincidental cases as well. “Imagine” by John Lennon, “Pokemon Rap”, “Hotel California” by Eagles, “Revolution 9” by The Beatles, “Break on Through” by The Doors, and “Beat It” by Michael Jackson are all coincidences for many reasons. Some of them make no sense and a couple of them don’t even sound like what the website said is being said. Also, I believe that the mind can play a big part in backmasking. If someone says that something says something and someone else listens to it, their mind will be biased because they were already told something it could have said. After listening to many songs forwards and backwards, I found only one song that could go both ways. In “I’m So Tired” by The Beatles, there was said to be a line that if you play it backwards it hints to the theory that Paul McCartney had died and was replaced by a look-alike. It makes sense that the song could have possibly said this, but when listening to it, it doesn’t sound exactly like what it’s supposed to say. This could mean that fans found a line that almost sounded like it to start news or that The Beatles just wanted publicity and put it in there. As you can see, there are many aspects to analyzing backmasked music.
In my opinion back masking is not real. The only times that I can see the idea of back masking is when it is done on purpose. Or it is just from a person who got really bored and had too much time on his hands.
The first song that I listened to was the song “Stair way to Heaven”, which didn’t sound like anything at all. As I listened to it multiple times I still did hear anything like the supposed reversed lyrics were supposed to be. “Oh here's to my sweet Satan. The one whose little path would make me sad, whose power is Satan. He'll give those with him 666, there was a little toolshed where he made us suffer, sad Satan.” I believe that somebody just had too much time on their hands and kept playing it backwards until they heard what they wanted to hear. After reading the reversed lyrics and listening to the song reversed again I could actually hear one or two of the words, but only after reading the lyrics and hearing the song again and again.
The second song that I listened to was the song “Another one Bites the Dust “From queen. After listening to it reversed multiple times I could tell there was something there. Once I read the lyrics for the reversed version I could tell that it was done on purpose. “'It's fun to smoke marijuana. It's fun to smoke marijuana. It's fun to smoke marijuana. It's fun to smoke marijuana “ For the most part I believe that back masking in music is fake, but for this song I think that Queen did this on purpose.
The third song is ELOs’ song “Fire on High”. Playing the song forwards it sounds like gibberish, but once you play it backwards you can clearly tell that is meant to sound that way. “'The music is reversible but time is not... turn back... turn back... turn back... turn back” I think that ELO was simply trying to put something funny into the song. When the song is played the right way all it is gibberish, it sounds like it is supposed to be played backwards which is a major indication to me that Back masking is fake, unless it is done very, very unintentionally, or it is done on purpose.
The fourth song that I listened to was Weird Al’s song “ Nature trail to hell” The back masking in this song is clearly done on purpose. ” 'Satan eats Cheez Whiz” due to the fact that Weird Al is known for being, weird. I believe that Weird was trying to make fun of all the people that think back masking stuff about Satan is done purposely.
Backmasking, the intentional reversal of speech, is inarguable as people claim to have intentionally put backmasking in songs. Reverse speech, unintentional baskmasking that naturally occurs in speech, is less concrete but still can be proven legitimate. A lot of backmasking songs when played forward have parts that sound slightly distorted of the words pronounced oddly, so when they are played backwards the backmasked words are very clear. While reverse speech is slightly more debatable, there is much evidence towards it. Before children learn to speech regularly they speech backwards unintentionally using reverse speech.
Some songs with clear backmasking are “Paparazzi” by Lady Gaga, “Break on Through” by The Doors, “High on Fire” by EOL, “Hotel California” by Eagles, “Another one Bites the Dust” by Queen, “Nature Trail to Hell” by Weird Al, “Baby One More Time” by Brittany Spears, “Empty Spaces” by Pink Floyd, “My Name Is” by Eminem, and “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zeppelin. Some songs when played backwards sound extremely clear, making them very believably backmasked like “Paparazzi “and “Hotel California”. Songs such as “Break on Through”, “Fire on High”, “Empty Spaces” and “Stairways to Heaven” when played forward sound intentionally mispronounced so when played backwards the words are very clear and easy to hear. Also, in some songs the backmasked message correlates with the meaning of the song when playing forward making it seem intentional, like “Another One Bites the Dust”, “Nature Trail to Hell”, ”Baby One More Time” and “My Name Is”.
Reverse Speech occurs in “Beat it” by Micheal Jackson, the Pokemon rap, and “Imagine” by John Lennon. In all of these songs the words are not pronounced differently/oddly as to make the words more clear backwards. Also, it is fairly hard to hear the backwards words, making them not sound intentional. These songs are examples of reverse speech because they are not intentionally backmasked but there is still an unintentional backwards meaning to them.
I believe that backmasking may exist in some songs. However, I think a lot may be our brains making words out of gibberish because it’s more pleasing that way. Most of the backmasking examples are probably psychological. Some are deliberate, as in it is very easy to determine the gibberish forwards it words played backwards.
I don’t really believe that reverse speech is real. I don’t understand how a person speaks backwards by speaking forward. There is no purpose in that unless the listener listens to everything someone says backwards.
In “Fire on High” by E.L.O., there is gibberish and whispering. When played backwards it says “The music is reversible.” This was totally deliberately backmasked song. It was on purpose, not even a hidden message. When played forward, one can easily discern the gibberish is backwards speaking. In “Strawberry Fields Forever” by the Beatles, “strawberry fields forever” is supposed to say “a pair of sleepy red moose” when played backwards. This makes no sense. It is not a message. It is the brain trying to make out words. It is not a relevant sentence pertaining to any idea or problem. This example is psychological.
However, in “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana, backmasking is a possibility. For one, the lyrics allude to a possibility of backmasking in “I found it hard, it’s hard to find/ Oh, well, whatever, nevermind.” These lines may be referring to the hidden message which was hard to include and hard to find in the song. Throughout the entire song, a message is heard about hate. The lyrics themselves are somewhat odd, which also helps in the backmasking possibility. In Miley Cyrus’s “The Climb”, backmasking is also a possibility. The words are easily heard backwards. She is calling out “Find me, help me. God, I’m lost. I’m lost.” Unlike lots of other apparently backmasked songs, the message is not perverted or satanic. This song may be a true backmasked song, but then again, it could all be the subconscious brain searching for order.
~Corina Jurczyk
In my opinion back masking is not real. The only times that I can see the idea of back masking is when it is done on purpose. Or it is just from a person who got really bored and had too much time on his hands.
The first song that I listened to was the song “Stair way to Heaven”, which didn’t sound like anything at all. As I listened to it multiple times I still did hear anything like the supposed reversed lyrics were supposed to be. “Oh here's to my sweet Satan. The one whose little path would make me sad, whose power is Satan. He'll give those with him 666, there was a little toolshed where he made us suffer, sad Satan.” I believe that somebody just had too much time on their hands and kept playing it backwards until they heard what they wanted to hear. After reading the reversed lyrics and listening to the song reversed again I could actually hear one or two of the words, but only after reading the lyrics and hearing the song again and again.
The second song that I listened to was the song “Another one Bites the Dust “From queen. After listening to it reversed multiple times I could tell there was something there. Once I read the lyrics for the reversed version I could tell that it was done on purpose. “'It's fun to smoke marijuana. It's fun to smoke marijuana. It's fun to smoke marijuana. It's fun to smoke marijuana “ For the most part I believe that back masking in music is fake, but for this song I think that Queen did this on purpose.
The third song is ELOs’ song “Fire on High”. Playing the song forwards it sounds like gibberish, but once you play it backwards you can clearly tell that is meant to sound that way. “'The music is reversible but time is not... turn back... turn back... turn back... turn back” I think that ELO was simply trying to put something funny into the song. When the song is played the right way all it is gibberish, it sounds like it is supposed to be played backwards which is a major indication to me that Back masking is fake, unless it is done very, very unintentionally, or it is done on purpose.
The fourth song that I listened to was Weird Al’s song “ Nature trail to hell” The back masking in this song is clearly done on purpose. ” 'Satan eats Cheez Whiz” due to the fact that Weird Al is known for being, weird. I believe that Weird was trying to make fun of all the people that think back masking stuff about Satan is done purposely.
Chris Litchfield 12/23/11
As far as subliminal messaging in music goes, most cases are forced by the listener, but in some cases there are very profound instances of subliminal messaging in the form of backmasking. In my opinion, there are very few actual cases of backmasking in music, meaning all other supposed cases are influenced by knowing what to listen for beforehand.
1) In the song “Hit Me Baby, One More Time” by Britney Spears, at one point in the song, when played backwards says clearly: “sleep with me, I’m not too young”. Even without the previous suggestion of what to listen for, one can easily identify what she is saying.
2) In “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zeppelin there are frequent backmasked references to the devil. Though the backwards words are very obscure and difficult to identify, I personally recognize this as one of the more credible instances of satanic backmasking because of the mysterious nature of the band.
3) In the “Dora the Explorer” Theme song there are some rather concerning instances of backmasking, but the so called “satanic messages” were forced by the notion that they existed in the first place.
4) Another case of backmasking in popular children’s cartoon is in the “Pokémon Rap” on the animated children’s show “Pokémon”. When the phrase “Gotta catch em all” is played backwards it sounds eerily similar to “I love satan”. But I would also dismiss this as being a credible case of subliminal messaging simply because of the harmless nature of the television show.
5) In Eminem’s “My Name is” there is a backmasked message that is quite possibly intentional. When the phrase “Hi! My name is... (what?) My name is... (who?) My name is... {scratches} Slim Shady.” Is played backwards it says “It is slim, It’s Eminem, It’s Eminem”. Eminem is a pretty clever rap artist, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he actually intended for this to happen.
The idea of subliminal messages in songs, by a method called backmasking, has become a topic of discussion among many famous artists and songs. In my opinion, most of the “controversial messages” are not even there. I think people play a song backwards searching for something crazy. It seems like a way to criticize or put a bad spotlight on musicians. The most recognizable example is Led Zeppelins “Stairway to Heaven.”
Many songs, including “Stairway to Heaven”, have been accused of containing satanic worship messages when played backwards. “Stairway” is convincing to many because the original line, “If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow, don’t be alarmed now/It’s just a spring clean for the May queen”, is a very strange lyric to begin with. When played backwards it supposedly reads, “Here’s to my sweet Satan/I sing because I live with Satan”. I’m skeptical because the original line is very odd, but in the end I don’t believe anything is really hidden. I think someone went looking for something strange and thought they heard the name Satan. Plus, if you listen to it, there is no way you can hear that line if you don’t already know what it is. Another famous song, “Hotel California” by The Eagles, has been accused of hiding the line “Yeah Satan organized his own religion”. Once again, I hear nothing in this song that makes me believe The Eagles were up to anything fishy.
Other songs are more believable in my opinion. The song “Help” by The Beatles is accused of supporting drugs when played backwards. After listening to it, it is easy to hear the line, “Now he uses Marijuana”. The message is audible, unlike the Led Zeppelin example, and the actual meaning of the song “Help” was written by The Beatles about their drug abuse, so it makes sense. I’m not completely convinced that The Beatles did this on purpose, but it isn’t as absurd. Another Beatles track “Revolution 9” is definitely more believable. The song repeats the words “number 9” over and over, which is strange. When reversed, the line reads “turn me on dead man”. These Beatles examples are highly possible, mainly because they’re the Beatles, where as the prior Satan examples are farfetched to me.
-Sean Mathews
Meredith Davern
Back masking
Pink Floyd-In the Pink Floyd’s song empty spaces it is clearly proven that back masking is possible. They use a series of undistinguishable sounds in order to create the backwards message “Congratulations. You have just discovered the secret message. Please send your answer to old pink, care of the funny farm, Chalfont (Roger, Caroline is on the phone).” Many attempts are made in reserve speech just to prove that it exists and is possible.
Back masking is possible, but in many cases unintentional
Elo also makes it clear that reverse speech is possible by placing the phrase “‘the music is reversible but time is not... turn back... turn back... turn back... turn back” in the song Fire on High.
Reverse speech is possible, but many times it is hard to decipher. Some are easy to understand like in Queens Another One Bites the Dust. It is clear to hear the words “smoke marijuana”, but the leading words could either be “Start to” or “its fun to”. The deliberate ones seem to be easier to understand.
Eminem in his song My Name Is plays with back masking to say “‘it is Slim. It's Eminem, it's Eminem, it's Eminem. It is Slim. It's Eminem, it's Eminem, it's Eminem.” When the original play goes like “Hi! My name is... (What?) My name is... (Who?) My name is... {Scratches} Slim Shady. Hi! My name is... (Huh?) My name is... (What?) My name is... {Scratches} Slim Shady.”
Weird Al also made a joke with backmasking, and by playing Nature Trail to Hell it is easy to hear the phrase “Satin eats cheese whiz.” Weird Al is making fun of the backmasking hysteria that has been going on since the 1960’s.
Many deliberate instances of reverse speech are used to either poke fun at something or hide some secret message. Many believe the idea that sex sells. In Brittany Spears song Hit me Baby One More Time the phrase “sleep with me I’m not too young” comes up when the song is played backwards. Many techniques have been used to market or sell product just like subliminal messaging.
Some more serious issues can be heard through backmasking. Some can take the concept to far, or artists are trying to portray their own religious beliefs. Led Zeppelin has been accused of praising Satin, and when Stairway to Heaven is played backwards many believe that the phrase “Oh here's to my sweet Satan. The one whose little path would make me sad, whose power is Satan. He'll give those with him 666, there was a little tool shed where he made us suffer, sad Satan” is played. Some words are distinguishable, but the rest just sounds like a cacophony of noise.
Some are just impossible to understand; such as The Eagle song Hotel California. It is believed that when the song is played backwards the phrase “'Satan he hears this. He had me believe in him”, but when listened to it sounds like random noises. There is no one word that is distinguishable from the random noise.
Many think that reverse speech is rubbish, but I believe it is possible. It can be done intentionally, and unintentionally. Many of the ones that are hard to understand I believe are unintentional. Backmasking and reverse speech should not be used to market a person, product, or religion. It should be put in a song for the listener so that they can discover it for the enjoyment. The message a song conveys should be interpreted by the listener, but not taken literally.
Finally, some artists use the technique of back masking to obviously “hide” messages, sometimes as a joke. The comedy artist Weird Al Yankovic uses backmasking to poke fun at backmasking, ironic. In his song “Nature trail to hell” he purposely hides the mocking line of, “Satan eats Cheez Whiz”, which is a direct joke on the people who claim songs have hidden Satanic messages, such as “Stairway to Heaven. Another example of intentional backmasking is the song “Announcement service public” by the band Linkin Park. The song is a mostly instrumental bit, only around 2 minutes long, but towards the end you can hear the vocalist screaming nonsense. He isn’t communicating anything when the song is played forwards, but as the title suggests (Public service announcement would make more sense that announcement service public) there is something when heard backwards. The message heard when back masked is, “You should brush your teeth and you should wash your hands”. It’s obvious that Linkin Park recorded this song with the intent to make a humorous hidden message. Weird Al and Linkin Park are newer artists, so the idea of back masking has been around for a while and they seem to find the concept funny. They used back masking intentionally to try something different, where as I think The Eagles and Led Zeppelin simply made amazing songs that people dissected way too much.
I think back masking is a fun idea and finding messages can be fun, but in the end I find most of it is ridiculous. The use of it now is mostly intentional, meaning to be found, and it’s easy for computers to do this for newer artists. The supposed use of back masking back in the 60’s and 70’s was, in my opinion, never even there. Many people consider “Stairway to Heaven” the greatest song of all time. The people that took the time to tear it apart and accuse them of supporting Satan took away from its greatness. The same could be said for “Hotel California”, it is an extremely well written song and well-recognized, but there will always be people that claim it’s flawed and controversial. As for The Beatles examples, they’re The Beatles and no one can ever be as appreciated and loved, so they get away with weird things like in “Revolution 9”. Back masking is simply a product of boredom and people’s desire to find flaws in great things. Back masking would not exist today if it weren’t for people that had too much time on their hands.
-Sean Mathews
The examples of reverse speech available on Jeff Milner’s site, and in music in general can be broken down into four categories. These are Reverse Recorded messages, use of phonetic reversal, a similar category digital phonetic reversal and Common reverse phonetics on speech allowing for the hearing of satanic messages. As to address the quandary of reverse speech it has been disproven that it is an unconscious part of speech by linguists, neurologists, and psychologists, meaning that many examples are intentional, and often messages are only intelligible once found. One could say an unintelligible series of sounds which have phonetically reversible vowel combinations and implant a meaning into them through Suggestion that there is a message.
The songs on this list which include reverse recordings are pink Floyd’s Empty spaces, Weird Al’s Nature trail to hell, and Leo’s Fire on high. These are obviously intentional because they are added through editing and are used as a bonus or an incentive for the listener to explore their music. Weird al is mocking the whole reverse speech thing by saying “Satan eats cheese whiz”. In the case of Pink Floyd the band is a smart band who likes to deliver content to the listener which is beyond the obvious. It is logical for them to include a reverse recorded message especially with a reference directly to their other songs. The fact that it is called empty spaces clearly is there perhaps suggesting that there is more to be found in the “empty spaces of the song”. Leo, uses this and reversible Guitarring© in this song as well, providing a motif through this song.
Phonetic Reversal is a method of talking and using reversible vowel combinations to include a message in the song. The Beatles especially john lennon used this as a way of enriching the content of the music. They most likely used this once an accidental example of this was used in their tracks. Queen’s another one bites the dust is another example phonetic reversal, and the Mercury, or his staff probably discovered this and the song was developed around this. This also could have come through audio engineering. Eminem Probably developed his stage name from the phonetic reversal of his name as my name is, and most likely this is his way of showcasing his genius in “my name is” Using Audio Editing software and using nothing other than my voice Me and Anthony managed to record there is and skates to produce satan and steaks backwards. Stairway to heaven was probably partially intentional based on the cadence of the music and the peculiarity of the lyrics, and the Ironic nature of devil references in a song about heaven.
Digital phonetic reversal is when music with a heavy electronic enhancement component such as Brittany spears’ and lady Gaga’s song’s Baby One More Time and Paparazzi respectively. Britanny spears could have been an audio tech being clever with the adjustment of the lyrics,m and Paparazzi was likely the artist’s intention based on existing publicity and the nature of Lady Gaga.
Examples such as the Pokémon theme song hotel California, and beat it are likely examples of applied back masking meaning that the use of sounds in the words unintentionally created things that song like they could be hidden messages.
I believe that reversed speech is a theory which can be proven and is valid through many examples. Of course, most songs heard backwards are profane or dark. Sometimes the backwards lyrics are sketchy and sound like they were meant to be. I think that backwards speech is the opposite of human intent. Happier songs seem to be darker backwards.
1) “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zeppelin is obviously a lighter theme and backwards is darker. Of course, I don’t think that any of the members of Led Zeppelin were satanists and it was probably not intentional.
2) The Barney theme song backwards is about kids sleeping with Barney. This is completely absurd. What awful person would make a children’s theme song and send them such awful subliminal messages.
3) Queen’s “Another one Bites the Dust” is a grand example of backmasking that turned out to be controversial. The lyrics say “it’s fun to smoke marijuana” clearly. The band, as most bands in the eighties did, probably did some drugs.
4) “Hotel California” by The Eagles predicted the future. Backwards, it makes a reference to Spongebob in one of the verses. Of course there was some satanic messaging as well. This is interesting and could just be somewhat of a mishearing but it sounded clear.
5) “Smoke On the Water” by Deep Purple is about bestiality when played backwards. This is completely irrelevant to anything the song has to say and is obviously unintentional.
6) The “Pokémon Rap” song played backwards is a message saying, “I love satan” over and over again.
7) Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” is a revealing factor that Michael Jackson really likes soup which is just ridiculous.
8) “Empty Spaces” by Pink Floyd gives this message backwards: “Hello, hunters. Congratulations. You've just discovered the secret message. Please send your answer to Old Pink, care of the funny farm, Chalfont. Roger! Carolyne is on the phone!" This suggests something towards insanity and was probably intentional because of the clearness of the words.
9) “Whookam” by Steve Vai had to be intentional because it sounds crystal clear. It says that Jesus makes “black holes in our souls”. The end of the song says “Whookam” when played backwards, which is the song title.
10) In “Rain” by the Beatles, John Lennon purposefully made the last verse of the song backwards for fun. There were no satanic messages, just the verse of the song. The Beatles were just having fun.
Mikhala Andrade
12/23/11
POE: G block
Back masking and Reverse Speech
“Back masking is a recording technique in which a sound or message is recorded backward on to a track that is meant to be played forward. Back masking is a deliberate process, whereas a message found through phonetic reversal may be unintentional.” In the song Paparazzi by Lady Gaga, there is a very clear message in the song when it is played backwards, which in my opinion sounds like Lady Gaga did it on purpose. While listening to the song backwards, sounds like Lady Gaga says “Evil save us, the stars above, we model it on the arts of Lucifer.” Meaning she worships the devil, and looks up to it as a role model.
Another song that is a perfect example of back masking is Number Nine by the Beatles. The Beatles also have another song called I’m So Tired which has back masking to the song. Listening to the song Number Nine backwards it says “Turn me on dead man, Turn me on dead man, Turn me on dead man.” The message is very clear which is weird and confusing, because why would they want a dead man to turn them on? However in the song I’m So Tired backwards, the message is also very clear and says “Paul is a dead man, I miss him, I miss him.” The Beatles hint one of their band members that is dead, and that they miss him.
Honestly I think “back masking” and “reverse speech” is very obtuse. Yes, sure it is kind of scary, and shady. But why couldn’t they just say their message in the song than trying to make into a hidden message. And some of the messages are stupid. For an example in the Pokémon rap backwards it says “I love Satan.” Like isn’t Pokémon for kids? Why would they have that kind of message in a kid’s TV show theme song? If someone has a message to share with people why don’t they just say it in their song, instead of just hiding the message? Sounds simple-minded to me.
Opinion of Backmasking:
Backmasking is something that, when thought about with any sort of effort, seems like something that would be impractically difficult to produce intentionally. Regardless of whether or not humans are capable of recognizing reverse messages, there is little that we can do to consciously determine which words equate to others when played backwards. Some may intentionally backmask, but the only definitive instances are those which were clearly originally recorded forward. While allegedly backmasked messages can enhance the meaning of the song, make it more interesting, and inspire new insight into its contents, it seems dubious to think that many of the most frequently cited examples could have been generated through artistic intent.
Validity of Backmasking:
The examples present on Jeff Milner’s site were of varying clarity. The clearest ones by far were the ones that were obviously played forward, then reversed – “Fire on High”, “Nature Trail to Hell”, “Empty Spaces”. When played forwards, they all sounded like unintelligible gibberish; played backward, they were clear, perfectly enunciated messages, sometimes with fairly complex sentence structure. Meanwhile, the majority of the other examples sounded quite clear for the most part when played forward, and became vague, garbled messes when played backward. The “messages” supposedly encrypted could not be easily determined without referencing the allegations; some examples, namely “Stairway to Heaven” and “Paparazzi” sounded clearer than the others – namely because, unlike the others, there was clearer interpretation of the consonant sounds (in many cases, particularly “Break on Through”, the “Satan” that was allegedly backmasked sounds closer to something like “say-git”) – but even they sounded odd and warped. There are exceptions – “I’m So Tired” sounds incomprehensible forward and slightly more identifiable backward. Then again, John Lennon was known to mumble purposelessly during recordings, as his barely audible repetition of “Sugar Plum Fairy” at the beginning of “A Day in the Life” can attest.
This is not to say that backmasking is entirely baseless; British group the Stone Roses created their song “Don’t Stop” by reversing a demo of another song, “Waterfall”, and, while they re-recorded the vocals for clarity, the reversed lyrics are both audible and relatively logical (if a bit nonsensical). When “Don’t Stop” is reversed, the result sounds like a muffled version of “Waterfall”, but the lyrics to the latter song can still be heard relatively clearly. What this proves is that a song can have clarity played both forwards and backwards, although not easily. While it may be difficult to intentionally backmask, it is not outside the realm of possibility.
Krista Woodworth
I believe that reversed speech is definitely a theory, and I think it could be proven by many song examples. Most songs heard backwards show a complete opposite meaning of the song heard regular. Usually a dark song will be happy reversed and happy songs will sound sad or dark.
1.) In my opinion the song “…Baby one more time” is not an example of reversed speech. I believe this because why would she say “sleep with me, I’m not too young. Even Brittany spears wouldn’t want people to think she was that kind of girl. Others try to make people believe that those are the lyrics, when actuality it is a bunch of hob wash.
2.) “I’m so tired” by The Beatles is backmasking for many reasons. The Beatles say “Indistinguishable gibberish”, which backwards sounds like “'Paul is a dead man. Miss him, miss him, miss him”. There is no way this could be a coincidence. Some of these messaged were said to be purposeful, while others say it is inadvertent.
3.) I personally do not believe that “Imagine” by John Lennon is not backmasking the original lyrics. The words backwards are “‘the people war beside me”, which doesn’t really make that much since. This is an example of how people try to convince others that the actual meaning is indeed different.
4.) I believe that the song “Stairway to heaven” by Led Zepplin tries to use the idea of backmasking. The reasoning for this is that the artist can’t fully get across what he is meaning to say, so he tries to represent a different meaning.
5.) In “Paparazzi by Lady Gaga many would assume that she is backmasking the original lyrics. However, In actuality the lyrics forward is how the listener is supposed to understand the song. When you listen to the lyrics backwards it sounds like a whole lot of nothing.
6.) “Pokemon Rap” the lyrics backwards sounds like a bunch of hobwash. They are trying to convey the listener that backwards it sounds like “I love satin”, but why would somebody ever say that.
7.) In the song “Nature Trail to Hell” by Weird Al the forward lyrics are “Indistinguishable”, and backward the lyrics are “Satan eats cheese whiz”, which makes no sense at all
8.) In the song “Revolution Nine” by Beagles, the Beagles say “number nine” multiple times, and it sounds like they are saying “turn me on dead man backwards. This is a perfect example of backmasking. “Number nine” has no significance, but backwards represents a whole different meaning.
9.) In my opinion, the song “Another One Bites The Dust” by Queen is an example of backmasking. The artist wants to hide the original meaning which is ‘it is fun to smoke marijuana.
10.) The reverse lyrics in “Beat it” by Michael Jackson make absolutely no sense. I believe that the reverse lyrics are a bunch of hogwash, and the original lyrics is what the artist wants the listener to pay attention to.
Post a Comment