Rebekah, this is such a fascinating topic. I love how you mention a bunch of different things at once, finding a common thread between all of them. I too find the fisher relatable 😆 Thanks for including The Hum as well!
I knew of the Bloop, and its interstellar equivalent the Wow Signal, but the other undersea noises were new to me. I've also heard of the Kora borehole (possibly via The SCP Foundation?) which just irrationally terrifies me. Maybe due to watching a LOT of Who.
I didn't know The Listeners was an opera! BBC did a drama of it recently which I thoroughly enjoyed (between shouting "wtf are you doing" at the lead character).
Thanks so much! I’m dying to do a horror moments Doctor Who edition so at some point I’ll be asking my followers for their suggestions on the scariest episodes
Interesting! My all-time favourite film trailer is the original trailer for Alien (especially the initial sequence before any actors appear on screen): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjLamj-b0I8 It sounds absolutely terrifying. It occurs to me on listening to the audio samples you've included in your post that it shares an awful lot in common with some of those deep sea recordings and (appropriately) deep space recordings. What is it about droning that's so ... eerie?
The trailer is amazing, I might add that to the end of next week's article...there's definitely a deep sea/ space crossover in a visual sense too. I wrote about how shots from Alien look a lot like the first depictions of deep sea creatures (https://rebekahkingwriter.substack.com/publish/posts/detail/145473419?referrer=%2Fpublish%2Fposts%3Fsearch%3Delse). Also, Stephanie, I took your advice and bought one of those Wacom tablets. I'm still getting the hang of it but so far it's really fun!
I look forward to reading it! Glad to hear you're enjoying the tablet; there's definitely a bit of a learning curve involved (it feels odd at first to look at your computer screen and not the tablet itself), but it becomes second nature after a little while. Which art program(s) are you using?
Krita is nice for getting the hang of things with a tablet! I do personally find Krita's interface a little difficult to work with, though. I use Affinity Designer 2, which I find a little more intuitive. It's not a free program, unfortunately, but it does go on sale at various points in the year, and it's an absolute steal when it's on sale.
Affinity Publisher is great, too. You mentioned recently you'd like to be able to make a downloadable zine, and that's exactly the sort of thing Publisher excels at.
Wow, that superdeep borehole. I simply had to go hunting for it (while keeping your essay open at the same time). And the opera about the hum... I seem to remember discovering a similar story in the 1990s about a village in England. Another urban legend perhaps?
Anyway, thank you for the tour of sounds that could, believably, kill someone.
There's a lot of mystery humming still going on - several are mentioned in the current edition of Fortean Times! They drive residents potty and no one can explain where the sound is coming from. There is some idea that the people hearing it actually have tinnitus (when mine first came on, I thought our neighbour's boiler was too loud!).
Yes, I remember reading that the hum drove villagers mad! I also read an account of a pony who emitted a weird whistling from her ears, which was explained as tinnitus which other people were hearing. I have many questions I want to ask about that...
That’s so bizarre and very creepy! It reminds me of how dogs can sense earthquakes before people can, it makes me wonder whether those who can heat the Hum are sensing some deep terror in the Earth…
It's a bit like some people being able to hear the aurora borealis. It was dismissed for years as people imagining it, but was finally recorded by scientists a few years ago.
LOVE this
Thanks James!
Rebekah, this is such a fascinating topic. I love how you mention a bunch of different things at once, finding a common thread between all of them. I too find the fisher relatable 😆 Thanks for including The Hum as well!
It’s creepy isn’t it? Thanks so much, Kit, I hope you like the second part on Monday!
Wishlisted Iron Lung thanks to you :p
It’s not a very long game but it’s lots of fun, let me know if you enjoyed it!
I can still remember watching Event Horizon with a buddy when the movie came out and how captivated we were by it. Libera te tutemet. Good choice.
Ex Inferis! Thanks ;)
Looks like my ex boyfriend
Wait, Cthulhu??
I knew of the Bloop, and its interstellar equivalent the Wow Signal, but the other undersea noises were new to me. I've also heard of the Kora borehole (possibly via The SCP Foundation?) which just irrationally terrifies me. Maybe due to watching a LOT of Who.
I didn't know The Listeners was an opera! BBC did a drama of it recently which I thoroughly enjoyed (between shouting "wtf are you doing" at the lead character).
Great article!
Thanks so much! I’m dying to do a horror moments Doctor Who edition so at some point I’ll be asking my followers for their suggestions on the scariest episodes
Interesting! My all-time favourite film trailer is the original trailer for Alien (especially the initial sequence before any actors appear on screen): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjLamj-b0I8 It sounds absolutely terrifying. It occurs to me on listening to the audio samples you've included in your post that it shares an awful lot in common with some of those deep sea recordings and (appropriately) deep space recordings. What is it about droning that's so ... eerie?
The trailer is amazing, I might add that to the end of next week's article...there's definitely a deep sea/ space crossover in a visual sense too. I wrote about how shots from Alien look a lot like the first depictions of deep sea creatures (https://rebekahkingwriter.substack.com/publish/posts/detail/145473419?referrer=%2Fpublish%2Fposts%3Fsearch%3Delse). Also, Stephanie, I took your advice and bought one of those Wacom tablets. I'm still getting the hang of it but so far it's really fun!
I look forward to reading it! Glad to hear you're enjoying the tablet; there's definitely a bit of a learning curve involved (it feels odd at first to look at your computer screen and not the tablet itself), but it becomes second nature after a little while. Which art program(s) are you using?
I’ve downloaded Krita which was free! So far so good, but it’s exactly as you describe, I definitely need to practice
Krita is nice for getting the hang of things with a tablet! I do personally find Krita's interface a little difficult to work with, though. I use Affinity Designer 2, which I find a little more intuitive. It's not a free program, unfortunately, but it does go on sale at various points in the year, and it's an absolute steal when it's on sale.
Affinity Publisher is great, too. You mentioned recently you'd like to be able to make a downloadable zine, and that's exactly the sort of thing Publisher excels at.
Excellent shout, thank you!
Fascinating read (also I love The House that Jack Built, where is that article?)!
That’s a good question, I think it’s one I haven’t published yet…
If you ever do, I want to read it 🙂
Ooh, I love this! 💕 Excited for part two.
yay!!
Wow, that superdeep borehole. I simply had to go hunting for it (while keeping your essay open at the same time). And the opera about the hum... I seem to remember discovering a similar story in the 1990s about a village in England. Another urban legend perhaps?
Anyway, thank you for the tour of sounds that could, believably, kill someone.
There's a lot of mystery humming still going on - several are mentioned in the current edition of Fortean Times! They drive residents potty and no one can explain where the sound is coming from. There is some idea that the people hearing it actually have tinnitus (when mine first came on, I thought our neighbour's boiler was too loud!).
Yes, I remember reading that the hum drove villagers mad! I also read an account of a pony who emitted a weird whistling from her ears, which was explained as tinnitus which other people were hearing. I have many questions I want to ask about that...
Omg me too…
That’s so bizarre and very creepy! It reminds me of how dogs can sense earthquakes before people can, it makes me wonder whether those who can heat the Hum are sensing some deep terror in the Earth…
Oh, imagine if that's what they're hearing!
It's a bit like some people being able to hear the aurora borealis. It was dismissed for years as people imagining it, but was finally recorded by scientists a few years ago.
That’s very creepy, just in one village? Sounds quite midwitch cuckoos! Thanks, Roz!
Wow, Rebekah King! I'm so thrilled and honored you'd included my comment on these cosmic sounds into your already awesome essay! 🌌 🕳 🎙 🎧 🌞 🌅 🛸
Thanks for the cool suggestion!
Well done! Quite an interesting symphony you’ve collected.
Thanks for your help!
At the risk of echoing the empty vastness: lovely essay.
Thanks John!!