Pathways
Blog 3
February 4, 2011
Parade Riddim
I press play on my Ipod and I hear the tap of a symbol four times; tap-tap-tap-tap. The beat immediately drops after that. The hard beat is a synthesized note but it sounds like a slow and irregular heart beat. Boom boom, boom boom, boom, three times consecutively until the heart beat sound changes. Its almost like steps to a dance 1-2 1-2-3. In a car with some nice bass speakers this beat would crash down the street. After the third time the beat turns changes into a sound that is almost like the sound of a bee buzzing. Buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz-buzz another three times but on the fourth you hear buzz buzz buzz. A second later an electronic horn blows twice and at the same time the heart beat begins again. The horn and heart beat repeats 5 times and then the sequences are repeated throughout the riddim in reverse and then in correct order.At the beginning of the song along with the first heart beat sound a cryptic-like chorus plays in the background. The chorus sounds like the beginning of the Halo video game on a loop, gives the riddim a celestial feel. At first it plays for about 21 seconds, then it goes out for another 21 seconds. Thinking that it would play in that sequence for the whole song, I am surprised to hear that it only plays for about 9 seconds and does not play for about 30 seconds after. I feel like I am listening to angels sing while playing video games while at a party dancing. This for sure is a odd combination, but at the same time a euphoric sense.
With this riddim, the DJ that created it decided to put a few, choice words in it. Most of the time there are no words in a riddim alone, until the artists that are given the riddim make the song with it. The voice in the song if that of Gappy Ranks a reggae/dancehall artist. He was one of the artists who made a song on this riddim. Half way threw the song, lines from the song play and every few bars they repeat. The last sounds heard are the horns, bumbum seven times and then four or five seconds later the fading out of the halo chorus.
