{"id":9750,"date":"2018-10-20T10:02:29","date_gmt":"2018-10-20T14:02:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/millheiser.com\/hokeyblog\/?p=9750"},"modified":"2022-11-01T10:15:00","modified_gmt":"2022-11-01T14:15:00","slug":"buttkickin-halloween-songs-whats-he-building-tom-waits-1999","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/millheiser.com\/hokeyblog\/2018\/10\/20\/buttkickin-halloween-songs-whats-he-building-tom-waits-1999\/","title":{"rendered":"Buttkickin’ Halloween Songs: “What’s He Building” — Tom Waits (1999)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"He has no children of his<\/em>
\nOwn you see… He has no dog<\/em>
\nAnd he has no friends and<\/em>
\nHis lawn is dying… and<\/em>
\nWhat about all those packages<\/em>
\nHe sends. What’s he building in there?<\/em><\/p>\n

Tom Waits’s brilliantly macabre 1999 spoken-word song What’s He Building <\/strong>is absolutely infuriating. Horrifyingly, maddeningly infuriating.<\/p>\n

Of course, it makes for a perfect Halloween song. With its dark, ominous narration, intermittent radio static, metallic percussion, no real melody to speak of, and continuous bursts of random noises, this is a Creep Factor Level 99 exercise in Paranoia.<\/p>\n

We never do find out what, exactly, the subject of the matter is building. Or if he is indeed building anything at all. It’s hardly the point, really.<\/p>\n

What we do discover is that the narrator is a creepy, stalking, obsessive mess who is utterly driven by fear, distrust, and paranoia. He constantly observes the man going about his business, a man who lives alone with no kids, no pets, no friends, and simply keeps to himself.<\/p>\n

This, of course, fuels the intense fear and distrust — and dangerously obsessive anger — of the narrator. He needs to know what’s happening in this man’s house, since he has long given into believing everything the neighborhood rumor mill has pumped into circulation.<\/p>\n

What’s He Building<\/strong> is a terrifying descent into frustration, obsession, and entitlement. Its final line, simply delivered, will thoroughly chill your spine.<\/p>\n

I heard he was up on the<\/em>
\nRoof last night<\/em>
\nSignaling with a flashlight<\/em>
\nAnd what’s that tune he’s<\/em>
\nAlways whistling…<\/em>
\nWhat’s he building in there?<\/em>
\nWhat’s he building in there?<\/em>
\nWe have a right to know…<\/em><\/div>\n
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