Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Room 101 post: ah House of Pain, how you live up to your name

There are many reasons to dislike this song, but credit where credit's due - at least it starts with the good bit: the brass sample from Harlem Shuffle.

At student discos in the 90's that BAAAAA! BA BA BAAAAA! was the signal for a sudden rush to the dance floor for some, but also for an expeditious retreat by yours truly. 

Why? First and foremost, it's The Screech. Wikipedia kindly informs me it's a saxophone - yet another example that of how that instrument can be used to commit great wrongs. The screech is right up there with brushing paving slabs - my own personal 'fingers on blackboard' sound - as one of the most annoying things I've ever listened to.

The only thing that would make it worse it would be sticking The Screech over a lumpen lopsided piano riff. Oh wait...

There's also something about how Jump Around translated onto the UK dancefloor I never liked. The repeated direction to jump around became something mandatory, almost coercive instead of inspirational. It turned the mood hyper-masculine and the battle rhyme threats - removed from their context thousands of miles away - left a sour taste in the mouth.

So, yeah. I discard it utterly.

2 comments:

  1. I was tempted to preserve 'Jump Around' from Room 101, purely for the brass sample from Harlem Shuffle. But what encouraged me to help you shove it through the door is people's almost Pavlovian reaction to it. See also James' 'Sit Down' and anything by Madness.

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  2. Indeed! And you can also just listen to Harlem Shuffle, which is jolly good.

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