Backmasking

Hidden messages
Subliminal messages
Audio
Backmasking
Reverse speech
Spectrogram
Numeric
Numerology
Theomatics
Bible code
Cryptography
Visual
Fnord
Paranoiac-critical method
Pareidolia
Psychorama
Sacred geometry
Steganography
See also:
Anagram
Apophenia
Easter egg (media)
Clustering illusion
Observer-expectancy effect
Pattern recognition (psychology)
Paradox
Palindrome
Unconscious mind
Backmasking (also known as backward
masking)
[1]
is a recording technique in which
a sound or message is recorded backward
onto a track that is meant to be played for-
ward. Backmasking is a deliberate process,
whereas a message found through phonetic
reversal may be unintentional.
Backmasking was popularized by The
Beatles, who used backward vocals and in-
strumentation on their 1966 album Re-
volver.
[2]
Artists have since used backmask-
ing for artistic, comedic, and satiric effect, on
both analog and digital recordings. The tech-
nique has also been used to censor words or
phrases for "clean" releases of songs.
Backmasking has been a controversial top-
ic in the United States since the 1980s, when
allegations from Christian groups of its use
for Satanic purposes were made against
prominent rock musicians, leading to record-
burning protests and proposed anti-back-
masking legislation by state and federal gov-
ernments. Whether backmasked messages
exist is in debate, as is whether backmasking
can be used subliminally to affect listeners.
History
Development
In 1877 Thomas Edison invented the phono-
graph, a device that allowed sound to be re-
corded and reproduced on a rotating cylinder
with a stylus (or "needle") attached to a dia-
phragm mounted at the narrow end of a
horn. Emile Berliner invented the familiar
lateral-cut disc phonograph record in 1888.
His design overtook the Edison phonograph
in the 1920s, since Berliners patent expired
in 1918, and others were then free to utilize
his invention.
In addition to recreating recorded sounds
by placing the stylus on the cylinder or disc
and rotating it in the same direction as dur-
ing the recording, one could hear different
sounds by rotating the cylinder or disc back-
wards.
[3]
In 1878 Edison noted that, when
played backwards, "the song is still melodi-
ous in many cases, and some of the strains
are sweet and novel, but altogether different
from the song reproduced in the right
way".
[4]
The backwards playing of records
was advised as training for magicians by oc-
cultist Aleister Crowley, who suggested in his
1913 book Magick (Book 4) that an adept
"train himself to think backwards by external
means", one of which was to "listen to phono-
graph records, reversed."
[5]
The 1950s saw the development of mu-
sique concrte, an avant-garde form of elec-
tronic music which involves editing together
fragments of natural and industrial sounds,
and the concurrent spread of the use of tape
recorders in recording studios.
[6]
These two
trends led to tape music compositions, com-
posed on tape using techniques including re-
verse tape effects.
[7]
The Beatles, who incorporated the tech-
niques of concrte into their recordings,
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Backmasking
1
Tape recorders allowed backward recording
in recording studios.
were responsible for popularizing the
concept of backmasking.
[2]
Singer John Len-
non and producer George Martin both claim
they discovered the backward recording
technique during the recording of 1966s Re-
volver; specifically the album tracks "Tomor-
row Never Knows" and "Im Only Sleeping,"
and the single "Rain".
[8]
Lennon stated that,
while under the influence of marijuana, he
accidentally played the tapes for "Rain" in re-
verse, and enjoyed the sound. The following
day he shared the results with the other
Beatles, and the effect was used first in the
guitar solo for "Tomorrow Never Knows", and
later in the coda of "Rain".
[9][10]
According to
Martin, the band had been experimenting
with changing the speeds of and reversing
the "Tomorrow Never Knows" tapes, and
Martin got the idea of reversing Lennons vo-
cals and guitar, which he did with a clip from
"Rain". Lennon then liked the effect and kept
it.
[11][12]
Regardless, "Rain" was the first
song to feature a backmasked message:
"Sunshine Rain When the rain comes,
they run and hide their heads" (listen ; the
last line is the reversed first verse of the
song).
[13]
Rumors
The Beatles were involved in the spread of
backmasking both as a recording technique
and as the center of a controversy. The latter
has its roots in an event in 1969, when
WKNR-FM DJ Russ Gibb received a phone
call from a student at Eastern Michigan
University who identified himself as "Tom".
The caller asked Gibb about a rumor that
Beatle Paul McCartney had died, and claimed
that the Beatles song "Revolution 9" con-
tained a backward message confirming the
rumor. Gibb played the song backwards on
his turntable, and heard "Turn me on, dead
man turn me on, dead man turn me on,
dead man" (listen ).
[14]
Gibb began telling
his listeners about what he called "The Great
Cover-up",
[15]
and to the original clue were
added various others, including the alleged
backmasked message "Paul is a dead man,
miss him, miss him, miss him", in "Im So
Tired".
[14]
The "Paul is dead" rumor popular-
ized the idea of backmasking in popular mu-
sic.
[2]
Following Gibbs show, many more songs
were found to contain audible phrases when
reversed. Initially, the search was done
mostly by fans of rock music, but in the late
1970s,
[16]
during the rise of the Christian
right in the United States,
[17]
fundamentalist
Christian groups began to claim that back-
masked messages could bypass the conscious
mind and reach the subconscious, where they
would be unknowingly accepted by the listen-
er.
[18]
In 1981, Christian DJ Michael Mills
began stating on Christian radio programs
that Led Zeppelins "Stairway to Heaven"
contained hidden messages that were heard
by the subconscious.
[19]
In early 1982, the
Praise the Lord Networks Paul Crouch hos-
ted a show with self-described neuroscientist
William Yarroll, who argued that rock stars
were cooperating with the Church of Satan to
place hidden subliminal messages on re-
cords.
[20]
Also in 1982, fundamentalist Chris-
tian pastor Gary Greenwald held public lec-
tures on dangers of backmasking, along with
at least one mass record-smashing.
[21]
Dur-
ing the same year, thirty North Carolina
teenagers, led by their pastor, claimed that
singers had been possessed by Satan, who
used their voices to create backward mes-
sages, and held a record-burning at their
church.
[22]
Allegations of demonic backmasking were
also made by social psychologists, parents,
and critics of rock music,
[23]
as well as the
Parents Music Resource Center (formed in
1985),
[24]
which accused Led Zeppelin of us-
ing backmasking to promote Satanism.
[25]
On
the April 28, 1982 edition of the CBS Evening
News, Dan Rather discussed the finding of
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Backmasking
2
possible backmasked messages, and played
reversed sections of songs by Led Zeppelin,
Electric Light Orchestra and Styx.
[26]
Legislation
One result of the furor was the firing of five
radio DJs who had encouraged listeners to
search for backward messages in their re-
cord collections.
[16]
A more serious con-
sequence was legislation by the state govern-
ments of Arkansas and California. The 1983
California bill was introduced to prevent
backmasking that "can manipulate our beha-
vior without our knowledge or consent and
turn us into disciples of the Antichrist".
[27]
Involved in the discussion on the bill was a
California State Assembly Consumer Protec-
tion and Toxic Materials Committee hearing,
during which "Stairway to Heaven" was
played backwards, and William Yaroll testi-
fied.
[28]
The successful bill made the distribu-
tion of records with undeclared backmasking
an invasion of privacy for which the distribut-
or could be sued.
[21]
The Arkansas law
passed unanimously in 1983, referenced al-
bums by The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Electric
Light Orchestra, Queen and Styx,
[17]
and
mandated that records with backmasking in-
clude a warning sticker: "Warning: This re-
cord contains backward masking which may
be perceptible at a subliminal level when the
record is played forward." However, the bill
was returned to the state senate by Governor
Bill Clinton and defeated.
[21]
House Resolu-
tion 6363, introduced in 1982 by Represent-
ative Bob Dornan (R-California), proposed
mandating a similar label;
[29]
the bill was re-
ferred to the Subcommittee on Commerce,
Transportation and Tourism and was never
passed.
[30]
Government action was also
called for in the legislatures of Texas and
Canada.
[21]
With the advent of compact discs in the
1980s, but prior to the advent of sound edit-
ing technology for personal computers in the
1990s, it became more difficult to listen to re-
cordings backwards, and the controversy
died down.
[23]
Use
See also: List of backmasked messages
Backmasking has been used as a recording
technique since the 1960s. In the era of mag-
netic tape sound recording, backmasking
The compact disc made finding backward
messages difficult, causing interest in back-
masking to decline.
The switch to digital audio made recording
backmasked messages quicker and easier.
required that the source reel-to-reel tape ac-
tually be played backwards, which was
achieved by first being wound onto the ori-
ginal takeup reel, then reversing the reels so
as to use that reel as the source (this would
reverse the stereo channels as well). Digital
audio recording has greatly simplified the
process.
[31]
Backmasked words are unintelligible noise
when played forward, but when played back-
wards are clear speech.
[22]
Listening to back-
masked audio with most turntables requires
disengaging the drive and rotating the album
by hand in reverse
[32]
(though some can play
records backwards
[18]
). With magnetic tape,
the tape must be reversed and spliced back
in to the cassette.
[32]
Compact discs were dif-
ficult to reverse when first introduced, but di-
gital audio editors, which were first
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Backmasking
3
introduced in the late 1980s and became
popular during the next decade,
[33]
allow
easy reversal of audio from digital
sources.
[23]
Satanic backmasking
Although the Satanic backmasking contro-
versy involved mainly classic rock songs
whose authors denied any intent to promote
Satanism, backmasking has been used by
heavy metal bands to deliberately insert mes-
sages in their lyrics or imagery. Bands have
utilized Satanic imagery for commercial reas-
ons. One of the most famous alleged uses of
backmasking is found in the song by Led Zep-
pelin, Stairway to Heaven. If played back-
wards during the section in the lyrics that
goes, "If theres a bustle in your hedgerow,
dont be alarmed now. Its just a spring clean
for the may queen. Yes there are two paths
you can go by; but in the long run, theres
still time to change the road youre on," some
listeners claim to hear, "Heres to my sweet
Satan. The one whose little path would make
me sad, whose power is Satan. Hell give
those with him 666. There was a little
toolshed where he made us suffer, sad
Satan." However this argument is still doubt-
ful and is supposedly a making up from en-
thusiastic fans passionate of esoteric ideolo-
gies.
[34]
For example, thrash metal band
Slayer included at the start of the bands
1985 album Hell Awaits a deep backmasked
voice chanting "Join Us" over and over at in-
creasing volumes for 1 minute and 2 seconds
until a deep voice says "Welcome
Back."(listen ).
[35][36][37]
However, Slayer vo-
calist Tom Araya states that the bands use of
Satanic imagery was "solely for effect".
[38]
Cradle of Filth, another band that has em-
ployed Satanic imagery, released a song en-
titled "Dinner at Deviants Palace", consisting
almost entirely of ambient sounds and a re-
versed reading of the Lords Prayer
[39]
(a
backwards reading of the Lords Prayer is re-
portedly a major part of the Black
Mass).
[19][40]
Aesthetic use
Backmasking is often used for aesthetics, i.e.,
to enhance the meaning or sound of a
track.
[16]
During the Judas Priest subliminal
message trial, lead singer Rob Halford admit-
ted to recording the words "In the dead of
the night, love bites" backwards into the
track "Love Bites", from the 1984 album De-
fenders of the Faith. Asked why he recorded
the message, Halford stated that "When
youre composing songs, youre always look-
ing for new ideas, new sounds."
[41]
A well-known example of a hidden mes-
sage is recorded backwards into Pink Floyds
1979 song "Empty Spaces": "congratula-
tions. Youve just discovered the secret mes-
sage. Please send your answer to Old Pink,
care of the funny farm, Chalfont." (voice in
background) "Roger! Carolyn is on the
phone!"
[42]
This line may refer to former lead
singer Syd Barrett, who is thought to have
suffered a nervous breakdown years earli-
er.
[42]
One backmasking technique is to reverse
an earlier part of a song. Missy Elliott used
this technique in one of her songs, "Work
It",
[43]
as did Jay Chou ("You Can Hear", from
Ye Hui Mei),
[44]
At the Drive-In ("300 MHz",
from Vaya),
[45]
and Lacuna Coil ("Self Decep-
tion", from Comalies).
[46]
A related technique
is to reverse an entire instrumental track.
John Lennon originally wanted to do so with
"Rain", but objections by producer George
Martin and bandmate Paul McCartney cut
the backward section to 30 seconds.
[9]
The
Stone Roses have made heavy use of this
technique in songs including "Dont Stop",
[47]
"Guernica", and "Simone",
[48]
which are all
backwards versions of other Stone Roses
tracks, sometimes overdubbed with new
vocals.
Artists often use backmasking of sounds
or instrumental audio to produce interesting
sound effects.
[31][49]
One such sound effect is
the reverse echo. When done on tape, such
use of backmasking is known as reverse tape
effects. One example is Matthew Sweets
1999 album In Reverse, which includes re-
versed guitar parts which were played dir-
ectly onto a tape running in reverse.
[50]
For
live concerts, the guitar parts were played
live on stage using a backward emulator.
[51]
The Canadian band Klaatu used the vocal
track, reversed, from their song "Anus From
Uranus" as the vocal track to the song "Silly
Boys", and even included a lyrics sheet that
attempted to translate the backwards vocal
sounds into actual words, however the result
was mostly nonsensical non sequiturs or ima-
ginative license.
[52]
Humorous and parody messages
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Backmasking
4
The manual for the popular sound program
SoX pokes fun at subliminal messages. The
description of the "reverse" option says "In-
cluded for finding Satanic subliminals."
A common use of backmasking is hiding a
comedic or parodical message backwards in
a song. The B-side of the 1966 Napoleon XIV
single "Theyre Coming to Take Me Away Ha-
Haaa!" is a reversed version of the entire for-
wards record, entitled "!aaaH-aH ,yawA eM
ekaT oT gnimoC eryehT". It reached #3 in
the US charts, and #4 in the UK.
[53]
. Tena-
cious D include the backmasked message
"Donkey Crap" at the end of "Karate" from
their self-titled first album.
In "Weird Al" Yankovics "Nature Trail to
Hell", from 1984s "Weird Al" Yankovic in
3-D, Yankovics backmasked voice declares
that "Satan eats Cheez Whiz" (listen ).
[23]
.
Another early example can be found on the J.
Geils Band track "No Anchovies, Please",
from 1980s album Love Stinks. The message,
disguised as a foreign-sounding language
spoken under the narration, is, "It doesnt
take a genius to tell the difference between
chicken shit and chicken salad."
[18]
Electric Light Orchestra and Styx, follow-
ing their involvement in the 1980s backmask-
ing controversy, released songs that parody
the allegations made against them. ELO,
after being accused of Satanic backmasking
on their 1974 album Eldorado, included back-
masked messages in two songs on their next
album, 1975s Face The Music.
[54]
"Down
Home Town" begins with a voice twice re-
peating (in reverse) "Face the mighty water-
fall".
[55]
And the opening instrumental "Fire
On High" contains the backmasked message
"The music is reversible, but time is not. Turn
back! Turn back! Turn back!" (listen ).
[56]
In
1983 ELO released an entire album, Secret
Messages, in response to the controversy.
[57]
Styx, after being accused of Satanic back-
masking, included an actual backmasked
message in Kilroy Was Here: "Annuit Cptis,
Novus Ordo Seclorum".
Among the many backmasked messages on
the album are: "Welcome to the show"
(2x);
[18]
"Thank you for listening"; "Look out
theres danger ahead"; "Hup two three four";
"Time After Time"; and "Youre playing me
backwards".
[55]
Styx also released an album
in response to allegations of Satanic back-
masking:
[58]
1983s Kilroy Was Here, which
deals with an allegorical group called the
"Majority for Musical Morality" that outlaws
rock music.
[17]
A sticker on the album cover
contains the message, "By order of the Ma-
jority for Musical Morality, this album con-
tains secret backward messages", and the
song "Heavy Metal Poisoning" does in fact
contain the backmasked Latin words "Annuit
Cptis, Novus Ordo Seclorum" ("God has
favored our undertakings; a new order for
the ages")part of the Great Seal which en-
circles the pyramid on the back of the Amer-
ican dollar bill.
[29]
Iron Maidens 1983 album Piece of Mind
features a short backwards message, in-
cluded by the band in response to allegations
of Satanism that were surrounding them at
the time.
[59]
Between the songs "The Troop-
er" and "Still Life" is inebriated drummer
Nicko McBrain doing an impression of Idi
Amin Dada: "What ho, sed de ting wid de
tree bonce [said the thing with the three
heads]. Dont meddle wid tings you dont un-
derstand," followed by a belch.
[60]
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Backmasking
5
British band Act of Faith included in their
track Angels in Exile (1988) the reversed
phrase "Satan is bored", parodying the repet-
itive reports from the United States that
"Satan is Lord" and similar phrases were
backmasked into recordings. The message
was recorded out of phase so that it is not
heard if played on monophonic equipment.
Some messages chastise or poke fun at
the listener who is playing the song back-
wards. One such message was included by
"Weird Al" Yankovic in "I Remember Larry",
from the 1996 album Bad Hair Day, on which
Yankovic lightly chastises the listener with
the backmasked remark, "Wow, you must
have an awful lot of free time on your hands"
(listen ).
[61]
Similarly, the B-52s song "De-
tour Through your Mind", from the 1986 LP
Bouncing off the Satellites, contains the mes-
sage, "I buried my parakeet in the backyard.
Oh no, youre playing the record backwards.
Watch out, you might ruin your needle."
[62]
Meanwhile, Christian rock group Petra in-
cluded in their song "Judas Kiss", from the
1982 album More Power To Ya, the message,
"What are you looking for the devil for, when
you ought to be looking for the Lord?"
[18]
The
band Mindless Self Indulgence released a
song titled "Backmask", which contains the
forward lyrics "Play that record backwards /
Heres a message yo for the suckas / Play
that record backwards / And go fuck your-
self". The backwards messages in the song
include, "respect your parents", "clean your
room", and "do your homework".
[45]
Critical or explicit messages
Backmasking has also been used to record
statements perhaps too critical or explicit to
be used forwards. Frank Zappa used back-
masking to avoid censorship of the track "Hot
Poop", from Were only in it for the Money
(1968). The released version contains at the
end of its side "A" the backmasked message
"Better look around before you say you dont
care. / Shut your f...ing mouth bout the
length of my hair. / How would you survive /
If you were alive / shitty little person?" . This
profanity-laced verse, originally from the
song "Mother People", was censored by
Verve Records, so Zappa edited the verse
out, reversed it, and inserted it elsewhere in
the album as "Hot Poop" (though even in the
backward message the word "fucking" is cen-
sored).
[63]
Another example is found in Roger
Frank Zappa used backmasking to avoid
censorship.
Waters 1991 album Amused to Death, on
which Waters recorded a backward message,
possibly critical of film director Stanley
Kubrick, who had refused to let Waters
sample a breathing sound from 2001: A
Space Odyssey.
[64]
The message appears in
the song "Perfect Sense Part 1", in which
Waters backmasked voice says, "Julia,
however, in light and visions of the issues of
Stanley, we have changed our minds. We
have decided to include a backward message,
Stanley, for you and all the other book
burners."
Censorship
A further use of backmasking is to censor
words and phrases deemed inappropriate on
radio edits and "clean" album releases.
[65]
For example, The Fugees clean version of
the album The Score contains various back-
masked profanities;
[65]
thus, when playing
the album backwards, the censored words
are clearly audible among the backward gib-
berish.
[66]
When used with the word "shit",
this type of backmasking results in a sound
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Backmasking
6
similar to "ish". As a result, "ish" became a
euphemism for "shit".
[67]
Accusations
Artists who have been accused of backmask-
ing include Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Pink
Floyd, Electric Light Orchestra, Queen, Styx,
AC/DC, Judas Priest, The Eagles,
[68]
The
Rolling Stones,
[68]
Jefferson Starship,
[29]
Black Oak Arkansas,
[29]
Rush,
[69]
Britney
Spears,
[70]
,t.A.T.u. and Eminem.
[23]
Electric Light Orchestra was accused of
hiding a backward Satanic message in their
1974 album Eldorado. The title track,
"Eldorado", was said to contain the message
"He is the nasty one / Christ, youre infernal /
It is said were dead men / Everyone who has
the mark will live."
[29]
ELO singer and song-
writer Jeff Lynne responded by calling this
accusation (and the related charge of being
"devil-worshippers") "skcollob",
[57]
and stat-
ing that the message "is absolutely manufac-
tured by whoever said, Thats what it said.
It doesnt say anything of the sort."
[62]
The
group included several backward messages
in later albums in response to the
accusations.
In 1981, Styx was accused of putting the
backward message "Satan move through our
voices" (listen ) on the song "Snowblind",
from Paradise Theatre.
[17]
Guitarist James
Young called these charges "rubbish",
[71]
and
responded, "If we want to make a statement,
well do it in a way that people can under-
stand us and not in a way where you have to
go out and buy a $400 tape player to under-
stand us."
[58]
In 1983, the band released a
concept album, Kilroy Was Here, satirizing
the Moral Majority.
A well-known alleged message is found in
rock group Led Zeppelins 1971 song "Stair-
way to Heaven". The backwards playing of a
portion of the song purportedly results in
words beginning with "Heres to my sweet
Satan" (listen ).
[72]
But Swan Song Records
issued a statement to the contrary: "Our
turntables only play in one directionfor-
wards".
[19]
And Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert
Plant denied the accusations in an interview:
"To me its very sad, because Stairway To
Heaven was written with every best inten-
tion, and as far as reversing tapes and put-
ting messages on the end, thats not my idea
of making music."
[73]
Another widely-known
alleged message, "Its fun to smoke
marijuana", in Queens song "Another One
Bites the Dust", is similarly disclaimed by the
groups spokesperson.
[23]
Subliminal persuasion
Further information: Subliminal message
Accusations have been made by various
groups that backmasking can be used to cre-
ate subliminal messages.
Fundamentalist Christian groups
Various fundamentalist Christian groups
have declared that Satanor Satan-influ-
enced musiciansuse backmasked messages
to subliminally alter behavior. Pastor Gary
Greenwald claimed that subliminal messages
backmasked into rock music induce listeners
towards sex and drug use.
[74]
Minister Jacob
Aranza wrote in his 1982 book Backward
Masking Unmasked that rock groups "are us-
ing backmasking to convey satanic and drug
related messages to the subconscious."
[16]
Christian DJ Michael Mills argued in 1981
that "the subconscious mind is being success-
fully affected by the repetition of beat and
lyricsbeing affected through a subliminal
message."
[75]
Mills has toured America warn-
ing Christian parents about subliminal mes-
sages in rock music.
[21]
Some Christian websites have claimed
that backmasking is widely used for Satanic
purposes.
[22]
The web page for Alabama
group Dial-the-Truth Ministries argues for
the existence of Satanic backmasking in
"Stairway to Heaven", saying that the song
contains the backward message, "Its my
sweet Satan Oh I will sing because I live
with Satan."
[76]
The website of Australian
group Bible Believers quotes from Jacob
Aranzas Backward Masking Unmasked re-
garding William Yarrolls proposed
physiology of the mechanism by which mes-
sages in music reach the subconscious:
[A]t the base of the brain there is a
"check valve", the Reticular Activat-
ing System. Based on prior pro-
grammed values, emotional re-
sponses, and our conditioning, a
message will be accepted or rejec-
ted If this interpretive process
fails to match the message to the lo-
gical, conscious brain hemisphere, it
is passed on into the next hemi-
sphere for further evaluation. If the
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Backmasking
7
left conscious brain can find no
known matching information, the
creative right takes over the decod-
ing process. As the right hemisphere
mirrors the strange message the
message is acknowledged and
stored.
This claim, though, of a "left conscious brain"
and a "creative right" which literally mirrors
information coming from the left has abso-
lutely no basis in modern neuroscience. The
Bible Believers website also quotes from a
1983 Psychology Today issue in which a Dr.
Silverman writes that "the perception of stim-
uli too weak to be consciously recognized
is a real phenomenon that has been demon-
strated beyond any reasonable doubt."
[77]
This refers, however, to stimuli that would
otherwise be intelligible, but are simply too
weak to be noticed consciously (e.g. a single
frame of a Coca-Cola ad within a movie), not
to stimuli which must first be manipulated
just to be intelligible, such as deliberately
backmasked audio.
PMRC
In 1985, Dr. Joe Stuessy testified to the Un-
ited States Congress at the Parents Music
Resource Center hearings that:
The message [of a piece of heavy
metal music] may also be covert or
subliminal. Sometimes subaudible
tracks are mixed in underneath oth-
er, louder tracks. These are heard
by the subconscious but not the con-
scious mind. Sometimes the mes-
sages are audible but are backward,
called backmasking. There is dis-
agreement among experts regarding
the effectiveness of subliminals. We
need more research on that.
[78]
Stuessys written testimony stated that:
Some messages are presented to the
listener backwards. While listening
to a normal forward message (often
somewhat nonsensical), one is simul-
taneously being treated to a back-
wards message (in other words, the
lyric sounds like one set of words
going forward, and a different set of
words going backwards). Some ex-
perts believe that while the
conscious mind is absorbing the for-
ward lyric, the subconscious is work-
ing overtime to decipher the back-
wards message.
[78]
Court cases
Serial killer Richard Ramirez, on trial in
1988, stated that AC/DCs music, and spe-
cifically the song "Night Prowler" on High-
way to Hell, inspired him to commit
murder.
[76]
Reverse speech advocate David
John Oates claimed that Highway to Hell, on
the same album, contains backmasked mes-
sages including "Im the law", "my name is
Lucifer", and "she belongs in hell".
[79]
AC/
DCs Angus Young responded that "you didnt
need to play [the album] backwards, because
we never hid [the messages]. Wed call an al-
bum Highway To Hell, there it was right in
front of them."
[80]
In 1990, British heavy metal band Judas
Priest was sued over a suicide pact made by
two Nevada schoolboys. The lawsuit by their
families claimed that the 1978 Judas Priest
album Stained Class contained hidden mes-
sages, including the forward subliminal
words "Do it" in the song "Better By You, Bet-
ter Than Me" , and various backward sublim-
inal messages. The case was dismissed by the
judge for insufficient evidence of Judas Pri-
ests placement of subliminal messages on
the record,
[81]
and the judges ruling stated
that "The scientific research presented does
not establish that subliminal stimuli, even if
perceived, may precipitate conduct of this
magnitude. There exist other factors which
explain the conduct of the deceased inde-
pendent of the subliminal stimuli."
[82]
Judas
Priest members commented that if they
wanted to insert subliminal commands in
their music, messages leading to the deaths
of their fans would be counterproductive, and
they would prefer to insert the command
"Buy more of our records."
[83]
Skepticism
Skeptic Michael Shermer claims that the
emergence of the Paul is dead phenomenon,
including the alleged message at the end of
"Im So Tired", was caused by faulty percep-
tion of a pattern. Shermer argues that the hu-
man brain evolved with a strong pattern re-
cognition ability that was necessary to pro-
cess the large amount of noise in mans en-
vironment, but that today this ability leads to
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Backmasking
8
false positives.
[84]
Stanford University psy-
chology professor Brian Wandell postulates
that the observance of backward messages is
a mistake arising from this pattern recogni-
tion facility, and argues that subliminal per-
suasion theories are "bizarre" and "implaus-
ible."
[32]
Rumors of backmasking in popular
music have been described as auditory par-
eidolia.
[85]
James Walker, president of Chris-
tian research group Watchman Fellowship,
states that "You could take a Christian hymn,
and if you played it backwards long enough
at different speeds, you could make that
hymn say anything you want to"; Led Zep-
pelin publicist BP Fallon concurs, saying that
"Play anything backwards, and youll find
something." Eric Borgos of audio reversal
website talkbackwards.com
[86]
states that
"Mathematically, if you listen long enough,
eventually youll find a pattern",
[23]
while Jeff
Milner of popular backmasking site jeffmil-
ner.com
[72]
recounts, "Most people, when I
show them the site, say that theyre not able
to hear anything, until, of course, I show
them the reverse lyrics."
[87]
Audio engineer Evan Olcott claims that
messages by artists including Queen and Led
Zeppelin are coincidental phonetic reversals,
in which the spoken or sung phonemes form
new combinations of words when listened to
backwards.
[11]
Olcott states that "Actually
engineering or planning a phonetic reversal
is next to impossible, and even more difficult
when trying to design it with words that fit
into a song."
[24]
In 1985, University of Lethbridge psycho-
logists John Vokey and J. Don Read conduc-
ted a study using Psalm 23 from the Bible,
Queens "Another One Bites the Dust", and
other sound passages made up for the experi-
ment. Vokey and Read concluded that if
backmasking does exist, it is ineffective. Par-
ticipants had trouble noticing backmasked
phrases when the samples were played for-
wards, were unable to judge the types of
messages (Christian, Satanic, or commer-
cial), and were not led to behave in a certain
way as a result of being exposed to the back-
masked phrases. Vokey concluded that "we
could find no effect of the meaning of engin-
eered, backward messages on listeners be-
haviour, either consciously or uncon-
sciously."
[88]
Similar results to Vokey and
Reads were obtained by D. Averill in
1982.
[89]
A 1988 experiment by T.E. Moore
found "no evidence that listeners were
influenced, consciously or unconsciously, by
the content of the backward messages."
[90]
In 1992, an experiment found that exposure
to backward messages did not lead to signi-
ficant changes in attitude.
[91]
Psychology
professor Mark D. Allen says that "delivering
subliminal messages via backward masking is
totally and ridiculously impossible".
[92]
The finding of backward Satanic messages
has been explained as caused by the
observer-expectancy effect. The Skeptics
Dictionary states that "you probably wont
hear [backmasked] messages until somebody
first points them out to you. Perception is in-
fluenced by expectation and expectation is af-
fected by what others prime you for."
[93]
In
1984, S. B. Thorne and P. Himelstein found
that "when vague and unfamiliar stimuli are
presented, [test subjects] are highly likely to
accept suggestions, particularly when the
suggestions are presented by someone with
prestige and authority."
[94]
Vokey and Read
concluded from their 1985 experiment that
"the apparent presence of backward mes-
sages in popular music is a function more of
active construction on the part of the perceiv-
er than of the existence of the messages
themselves."
[21]
See also
List of backmasked messages
Phonetic reversal
Reverse speech
Subliminal message
References
Notes
[1] Backward(s) masking has two other
meanings; see backward masking. See
also Crispen, Bob. "Backward Masking
another pious fraud". The Crispen
Family. http://www.crispen.org/rants/
backward.html. Retrieved on
2006-09-01.
[2] ^ Sullivan, Mark (October 1987). "More
Popular Than Jesus: The Beatles and the
Religious Far Right". Popular Music 6
(3): 313326. doi:10.1017/
S0261143000002348.
[3] Kittler, Friedrick. "The Gramaphone".
Adventures in CyberSound. Australian
Centre for the Moving Image.
http://www.acmi.net.au/AIC/
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Backmasking
9
PHONO_KITTLER.html. Retrieved on
2007-03-01.
[4] Blecha, 48
[5] Crowley, Aleister (1997) [1913]. Magick
(Book 4). Weiser. pp. 648. ISBN
0877289190.
[6] White, Ray. "Musique Concrte".
whitefiles.org. http://whitefiles.org/rws/
rx01.htm. Retrieved on 2007-11-05.
[7] Peters, Michael. "The Birth of Loop: A
Short History of Looping Music".
loopers-delight.com. http://www.loopers-
delight.com/history/Loophist.html.
Retrieved on 2007-03-10.
[8] Mugan, Chris (2006-10-13). "Subliminal
advertising: The voice within". The
Independent.
http://arts.independent.co.uk/music/
features/article1847509.ece. Retrieved
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[9] ^ Stevens, John (2002). The Songs of
John Lennon: The Beatles Years. Berklee
Press. pp. 149, 155156. ISBN
0634017950.
[10] Aldridge, Alan (1991). The Beatles
Illustrated Lyrics. Houghton Mifflin.
pp. 135. ISBN 039559426X. "On the end
of Rain you hear me singing it
backwards. Wed done the main thing at
EMI and the habit was then to take the
song home and see what you thought a
little extra gimmick or what the guitar
piece would be. So I got home about five
in the morning, stoned out of my head, I
staggered up to my tape recorder and I
put it on, but it came out backwards, and
I was in a trance in the earphones, what
is it, what is it. Its too much, you know,
and I really wanted the whole song
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[11] ^ Olcott, Evan. "Audio Reversal In
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[12] Giuliano, Geoffrey; Vrnda Devi (1999).
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it for him, he flipped."
[13] Cross, Craig (2005-05-14). The Beatles:
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[42] ^ Patterson, 186
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[46] "Lacuna CoilFrequently Asked
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Bibliography
Blecha, Peter (2004). Taboo Tunes: A
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0879307297.
Denisoff, R. Serge (1988). Inside MTV.
Transaction. ISBN 0887388647.
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Poundstone, William (1983). "Secret
Messages on Records". Big Secrets. New
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Poundstone, William (1986). "Backward
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Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0395453976.
Vokey, John R. (2002). "Subliminal
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External links
Backmask Onlineclips and analysis of
possible backmasked messages
Jeff Milners Backmasking Pagea Flash
player with forward and backward
versions of songs claimed to contain
backmasking; the focus of the Wall Street
Journal article
Backmask Flashflash clips of possible
backmasked messages from Albino
Blacksheep
TalkBackwards.comallows uploaded
music to be reversed
Hidden and Satanic Messages In Rock
Music1981 radio interview with Michael
Mills
Excerpt with alleged backward
messages by Led Zeppelin, The
Beatles, Queen
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Backmasking
13
"Backwards Messages in Rock
MusicRevealed!" podcast featuring The
Beatles, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, Rush,
Jefferson Starship, Wings, Queen, Phil
Collins, Britney Spears, Judas Priest, Pink
Floyd, Iron Maiden, Electric Light
Orchestra, Prince, and Information
Society
Radio program exploring backmasking by
announcer Joe Kleon, broadcast on WRQK-
FM, with audio samples from Britney
Spears, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd,
Metallica, Styx,Cheap Trick, and others
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backmasking"
Categories: Audio engineering, Perception, Urban legends, Popular music, Mind control
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