This piece was created by entering an 8-note sequence into a Synthi AKS synthesiser made by the British synthesiser manufacturer
EMS and speeding it up, with an added white noise into A channel on the Ring Modulator, and the Sequencer trigger pulse into Channel B of the Ring Modulator thus creating the
hi-hat sound. The band then added backwards
guitar parts, created by dragging a
microphone stand down the
fretboard, reversing the tape, and panning left to right. There are also other Synthi and
VCS 3 synthesizer parts, made to sound like a vehicle passing, giving a
Doppler effect. The 8 note sequence is played at a tempo of 165 BPM, while both filter frequency and resonance are modulated. Near the end, the only guitar part is heard: a chord over the explosion of the presumed aircraft. This gradually fades, segueing into the chiming clocks introduction of the following "
Time". An initial backing track was recorded on 31 May 1972, but scrapped and replaced with the a new version on 13 June. Work on the track continued throughout the rest of the year, with the final overdubs recorded on 9 February 1973. The studio log records this work as "Weird Noises" and "More Weird Noises".
Voices • Twenty-seven seconds into the piece, a female voice on a loudspeaker can be heard; apparently an airport
public address system. She says, "Have your baggage and passport ready and then follow the green line to customs and immigration.
BEA 215 to Rome, Cairo and Lagos." Engineer
Alan Parsons reused this sample on the "Sea Lions in the Departure Lounge" bonus track of the 2007 deluxe edition of
Tales of Mystery and Imagination by
the Alan Parsons Project. • At 1:53, Roger "The Hat" Manifold, Pink Floyd road manager says, "Live for today, gone tomorrow – that's me," then laughs. ==Reception==