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Train station in Osaka plays “most disturbing sound in human history” to announce arrivals

Master Blaster May 8, 2019
Tweet

JR Tennoji Station musically invites you to board one of their trains bound for the…ChAOs ReAlM‽

Osaka has been known to embrace some rather unorthodox sights and sounds relative to the rest of the country. Whether it’s leopard-spotted elderly lady rappers or beer gardens fused with day care centers, this city likes to test the limits of taste.

However, in the bustling hub of JR Tennoji Station, one platform may have gone one step too far beyond the very open minds of Osaka residents with some unusual music choices. A recording of it was captured by musician and Twitter user MC Hyodo (@ko_ma_).

▼ “The most disturbing sound in human history – JR Tennoji Hanwa Line’s Inbound Sound”

人類史上最も不安になる音「JR天王寺阪和線の入線音」 pic.twitter.com/bZttCUBHuY

— 兵藤 (@ko_ma_) May 5, 2019

The tweet got a lot of attention from people who love and/or are creeped out by this unusual notification chime.

“Very avant-garde.”
“Even after the screens go dark, that sound will continue to echo from the speakers forever. Then we will know we are in hell.”
“I’ve heard this all my life, so I didn’t find it disturbing.”
“It kind of motivates me to get on board and get out of there.”
“Imagine having to listen to that on a Monday morning.”
“That’s Shinzo Abe’s entrance music.”
“Osaka’s a pretty wild place.”
“I take that train every day and am still not used to it.”
“Sounds like music from a horror movie.”

And amidst all of this, no one was able to say definitively what this sound is supposed to be.

Sometimes stations will play famous songs such as music from Final Fantasy or Star Wars. I had originally thought it was possibly a deep cut by new wave virtuoso Ryuichi Sakamoto, and to find out I tried to Shazam it. However, it said the tune was “Sonate No. 8 in E Minor – Introduction and Passacaglia” by German composer Josef Rheinberger.

It certainly has the same feeling to it, but I don’t think it’s the same song. I’ll definitely give Shazam an A for effort on that one though.

Also, while train stations have been known to use famous songs as announcement chimes, those are usually for a limited time, and according to comments, this sound is always there.

The prevailing theories are that this is either two separate chimes from different platforms overlapping, or the same sound echoing off the roof and causing the unusual dissonance. Either of those explanations seem to make sense since you can vaguely make out an ordinary train station chime if you really focus on that cacophony.

Still, I’d have to disagree with MC Hyodo’s “most disturbing sound” claim. It’s not a bad bit of chaotic melody and just needs to find a more suitable home than a train station. For example, it might add a bit of whimsy if used as the deep fryer alarm at McDonald’s, or it would have been an excellent door chime at the undead Lawson store, if it were still around.

Source: Twitter/@ko_ma_, My Game News Flash
Featured image: Twitter/@ko_ma_
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