Most Overused Song Introduction Sounds

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

you know what i'm talking about -- "incidental" sounds used before the track begins. most of the time it's just track filler to pad out the length between tracks. i think the list of cliches here include:

others?

― andrew l. r. (allocryptic), Friday, 4 June 2004 00:56 (twenty years ago) link

Footsteps crossing street ("West End Girls" by Pet Shop Boys, "Love is the Drug" by Roxy Music)

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 00:57 (twenty years ago) link

"a-one, two, one, two, three, four"

― Begs2Differ (Begs2Differ), Friday, 4 June 2004 00:58 (twenty years ago) link

a cough

― the surface noise for the sake of noise (electricsound), Friday, 4 June 2004 00:59 (twenty years ago) link

drum clicks

― the surface noise for the sake of noise (electricsound), Friday, 4 June 2004 00:59 (twenty years ago) link

gunshots. telephone ringing. gunshots and telephones ringing.

― scott seward (scott seward), Friday, 4 June 2004 01:02 (twenty years ago) link

I like how every indie rock band does the thing where they pretend they don't know the tape is running at first and then do and start the song, but for some reason can't go back and cut that part out. A friend and I were going to start a band where every song had 10 minutes of oblivious idle chit chat and noises, and 2 seconds of song.

― David Allen (David Allen), Friday, 4 June 2004 01:13 (twenty years ago) link

Someone saying something to the effect of "Is this on?" or "Are we rolling?" etc.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 01:13 (twenty years ago) link

Radio static/selecting-a-station sounds.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 01:14 (twenty years ago) link

laughing ("Don't Go Back to Rockville," "Andy Warhol")
strangely-sung details from the song to come ("Respectable Street")
shrill shrieks of the undead ("Music Box Dancer")

― Begs2Differ (Begs2Differ), Friday, 4 June 2004 01:49 (twenty years ago) link

A record needle dropping

― My name is Kenny (My name is Kenny), Friday, 4 June 2004 01:52 (twenty years ago) link

Someone said laughing, but I think it's important to denote that girls' laughing constitutes the most frequently-recurring opening. This is particularly true with "cute" indie bands. The accompanying song tends to include handclaps.

― Atnevon (Atnevon), Friday, 4 June 2004 02:00 (twenty years ago) link

Wind chimes

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Friday, 4 June 2004 02:03 (twenty years ago) link

plugging in of guitar to lead

and

feedback

― ipsofacto (ipsofacto), Friday, 4 June 2004 02:06 (twenty years ago) link

Musical instruments

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Friday, 4 June 2004 02:07 (twenty years ago) link

rainfall

― minolta (minolta), Friday, 4 June 2004 02:08 (twenty years ago) link

oh yeah and thunder,
the sound of the whistling wind.
or, sometimes, belches.

― Begs2Differ (Begs2Differ), Friday, 4 June 2004 02:33 (twenty years ago) link

Indecipherable murmuring, prompting zealots with way too much time on their hands to endlessly re-play the beginning so they can accurately decipher it, and then pointedly cite it proudly, pretentiously, pedantically on ILM.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:12 (twenty years ago) link

Jets landing

― jim wentworth (wench), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:16 (twenty years ago) link

CB radio/walkie talkie chatter

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:18 (twenty years ago) link

Vomiting.

― Sasha (sgh), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:20 (twenty years ago) link

Doors closing

― jim wentworth (wench), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:22 (twenty years ago) link

Whoops...

Rain

― jim wentworth (wench), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:22 (twenty years ago) link

Ridiculous declarations ala....

"This Ain't Rock'n'Roll, this is GENOCIDE...."
"I still believe in God, But God No Longer Believes in Me..."
"London's Burning...."
"On a Hot Summer's Night, would you give your lips to the wolf with the red roses....?"

etc.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:22 (twenty years ago) link

Phone ringing

― jim wentworth (wench), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:25 (twenty years ago) link

vinyl crackle

― the surface noise for the sake of noise (electricsound), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:37 (twenty years ago) link

handclaps

― chris andrews (fraew), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:39 (twenty years ago) link

movie dialogue samples!

― hstencil (hstencil), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:45 (twenty years ago) link

Jeeps, maybe I ought to read this thread a little closer. Please allow me the occasional brain fart for I am from a distant universe.

Waves on the beach
Live audience
Roller coaster
Video games

I can only hope that I have somewhat redeemed my wretched self.

A thousand pardons.

― jim wentworth (wench), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:46 (twenty years ago) link

If you hear police sirens, expect an early to mid 90s dance song that would be played at my summer camp, and was probably on Jock Jams.

― David Allen (David Allen), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:51 (twenty years ago) link

movie dialogue samples!

-- hstencil (hstenci...) (webmail), June 4th, 2004 12:45 AM. (hstencil) (later) (link)

EVERY BAD HARDCORE BAND EVER TO THREAD

― HAMBURGER NEURON GROUP (ex machina), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:52 (twenty years ago) link

and ride

― the surface noise for the sake of noise (electricsound), Friday, 4 June 2004 03:53 (twenty years ago) link

Marching, but I can't think of a specific example right now.

(R.E.M. -- "Orange Crush"? Something off of Pink Floyd's The Wall?)

― David A. (Davant), Friday, 4 June 2004 04:03 (twenty years ago) link

Marching, but I can't think of a specific example right now.

"Holiday in the Sun" by the Sex Pistols, "Waiting for the Worms" by Pink Floyd.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 04:15 (twenty years ago) link

speed tremelo

― the surface noise for the sake of noise (electricsound), Friday, 4 June 2004 04:16 (twenty years ago) link

"Holiday in the Sun" by the Sex Pistols, "Waiting for the Worms" by Pink Floyd.

There ya go. I knew it!

― David A. (Davant), Friday, 4 June 2004 04:17 (twenty years ago) link

evocative, mysterious whistling wind (eg. zappa, yellow snow)

drum stick clicks

if we're talking hip-hop, some hypothetical streetcorner debate ending in gunshots and people going "oh shit, shit, hide that shit"

― jake in portland (cerybut), Friday, 4 June 2004 04:29 (twenty years ago) link

vevocative, mysterious whistling wind (eg. zappa, yellow snow)

See also "The Prophet's Song" by Queen, "Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding" by Elton John

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 04:40 (twenty years ago) link

Thunderstorms (Black Sabbath, Cypress Hill, Nitzinger, Flipper...)

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Friday, 4 June 2004 04:53 (twenty years ago) link

sorry there, begs2
you already said thunder
i should have noticed

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Friday, 4 June 2004 05:03 (twenty years ago) link

The BEST hypothetical street corner debate ending violently moment ever is on the Wu's "Tearz" when the guy is wailing, "OH SHIT, OH SHIT, NOMSAYIN', (WAILS)"

Shit has me cracking up everytime. Great song though.

― Mike Ouderkirk (Mike Ouderkirk), Friday, 4 June 2004 05:18 (twenty years ago) link

Thunderstorms (Black Sabbath, Cypress Hill, Nitzinger, Flipper...)

....Slayer, The The, the Cure,.....

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 05:20 (twenty years ago) link

the underwater drum sound that starts alternative rock songs.

― tyler (tyler), Friday, 4 June 2004 05:44 (twenty years ago) link

scanning thru a radio

― Robin Goad (rgoad), Friday, 4 June 2004 09:54 (twenty years ago) link

Silence. Totally overused.

― briania (briania), Friday, 4 June 2004 11:13 (twenty years ago) link

A variation on two previously mentioned themes: the tape starting up while the guitar is already feeding back. Used mostly in US hardcore: BweeeeeeeeooooooooweeeeeeeeeweeeeeeeeCHUGCHUGCHUGCHUGCHUGCHUGCHUGCHUGCHUGCHUG

― Chris Ott (Chris Ott), Friday, 4 June 2004 11:55 (twenty years ago) link

a low-pass filtered version of the song for a measure, and then all the BANDWIDTH kicks in, just to remind you how HI FI they are

― caspar (caspar), Friday, 4 June 2004 13:31 (twenty years ago) link

Caspar you have embarrassed me.

― Chris Ott (Chris Ott), Friday, 4 June 2004 13:35 (twenty years ago) link

And let us not forget the portentously tolling church bell (see Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath, For Whom The Bell Tolls, and the real icing on the cake, whichever Emperor song it is that actually samples the bell off the Metallica song!).

― M Carty (mj_c), Friday, 4 June 2004 13:45 (twenty years ago) link

And Hell's Bells by AC/DC

― M Carty (mj_c), Friday, 4 June 2004 13:47 (twenty years ago) link

That one sample where the guy says "This is a journey into sound" that seemingly started every rap record ever

― Morley Timmons (Donna Brown), Friday, 4 June 2004 15:56 (twenty years ago) link

That "walking into a club" effect.

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Friday, 4 June 2004 15:56 (twenty years ago) link

Fennesz.

― nabisco (nabisco), Friday, 4 June 2004 16:11 (twenty years ago) link

samples of old crackly blues or jazz records; band begins to strum guitars

― HAMBURGER NEURON GROUP (ex machina), Friday, 4 June 2004 16:13 (twenty years ago) link

totally, dom - remake/remodel, whats going on, (sort of) the sweater song, umm, there have to be more...

― peter smith (plsmith), Friday, 4 June 2004 16:15 (twenty years ago) link

"movie dialogue samples!
-- hstencil (hstenci...) (webmail), June 4th, 2004 12:45 AM. (hstencil) (later) (link)

EVERY BAD HARDCORE BAND EVER TO THREAD"

also every bad skinny puppy-ripoff industrial band to thread.

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Friday, 4 June 2004 16:17 (twenty years ago) link

Indecipherable murmuring, prompting zealots with way too much time on their hands to endlessly re-play the beginning so they can accurately decipher
it, and then pointedly cite it proudly, pretentiously, pedantically on ILM.

WOE TO YOU OF EARTH AND SEA!

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 4 June 2004 16:19 (twenty years ago) link

Answering machine messages. Orchestral samples. Recordings of little kids saying precocious things. Busta Rhymes.

― Nick Mirov (nick), Friday, 4 June 2004 17:44 (twenty years ago) link

WOE TO YOU OF EARTH AND SEA!

I was actually thinking more of "Unta gleeban glaahbin globbin" (or whatever) that kicks off "Rock of Ages" by Def Leppard (y'know,....when they were cool before screwin' the pooch with that crappy album you love).

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 4 June 2004 17:59 (twenty years ago) link

a false beginning ("wrong em boyo," "bob dylan's 115th dream," "milkcow blues boogie")

― J.D. (Justyn Dillingham), Friday, 4 June 2004 18:03 (twenty years ago) link

The drum bit from 'Be My Baby'.

― derrick (derrick), Friday, 4 June 2004 18:54 (twenty years ago) link

The sound of someone stirring an iced-coffee with his cock.

― Neb Reyob (Ben Boyer), Friday, 4 June 2004 18:55 (twenty years ago) link

The sound of one hand clapping.

― NA (Nick A.), Friday, 4 June 2004 19:05 (twenty years ago) link

Typewriter -- "Exhuming McCarthy" by REM, "Down all the Days" by the Pogues, and a Bryan Ferry song that I can't remember but think is on Bete Noire.

― rainman (rainman), Friday, 4 June 2004 19:51 (twenty years ago) link

and a Liars song on their first album.

― NA (Nick A.), Friday, 4 June 2004 19:57 (twenty years ago) link

i say that very little of these things are overused, cos most of the quotes / sounds I recognise are on CLASSIC songs.
Jay-Z's "turn me up" type headphone comments add to his sense of command...

― paulhw (paulhw), Friday, 4 June 2004 20:26 (twenty years ago) link

a low-pass filtered version of the song for a measure, and then all the BANDWIDTH kicks in, just to remind you how HI FI they are

-- caspar (caspa...), June 4th, 2004.

hey i've only done that ONCE..

― chris andrews (fraew), Friday, 4 June 2004 22:22 (twenty years ago) link

Orchestral samples

Especially orchestra tuning up. Although, um, I can't think of any such songs right now.

― OleM (OleM), Sunday, 6 June 2004 19:57 (twenty years ago) link

A weirdly compressed version of a bit of the song to come -- cf St Et's 'Avenue'.

― Enrique (Enrique), Sunday, 6 June 2004 20:06 (twenty years ago) link

The first two bars of the lick from Go Johnny Go. Used extensively in the 80s -- Huey Lewis, a bunch of hair metal dudes, etc.

― joseph cotten (joseph cotten), Friday, 11 June 2004 05:08 (twenty years ago) link

The most overused introducing sounds these days are Jay-Z's "The Black Album" samples.

― Diego Valladolid (dvalladt), Friday, 11 June 2004 05:44 (twenty years ago) link

I am really glad that no one said train/subway/tube sounds because I really like those used as intro's to songs. :-)

― Possibly Kate Again (kate), Friday, 11 June 2004 07:25 (twenty years ago) link

― Lord Custos Omicron (Lord Custos Omicron), Friday, 11 June 2004 18:11 (twenty years ago) link

"Madman" by the D.R.I. does this trick brilliantly enough to excuse their use of it, though.

-- Lord Custos Omicron (l.custo...), June 11th, 2004.

wow, i used to listen to that song over and over, laughing at the dad yelling at them for being loud. "i've been home for four hours! i work all day, i don't wanna come home and listen to you!"

that song is up there with "all i wanted was a pepsi! and she wouldn't give it to me!"

― hhhhhh, Friday, 11 June 2004 19:44 (twenty years ago) link

"okay, allright, we're stopping."

― Lord Custos Omicron (Lord Custos Omicron), Friday, 11 June 2004 20:09 (twenty years ago) link

4'33

― 6335, Friday, 11 June 2004 20:50 (twenty years ago) link

Sad to say I can think of more songs that start with bong hits, than start with gong hits.

― Jedmond (Jedmond), Saturday, 12 June 2004 11:25 (twenty years ago) link

how about: the 'lone voice in the wilderness' thing -- person calling for help, usu. backed up by "spooky music" or the aforementioned eerie wind whistling

― andrew l. r. (allocryptic), Saturday, 12 June 2004 11:29 (twenty years ago) link

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.