What's my neighbor yelling?

December 10, 2015 7:38 AM

I just moved into a new apartment, and an above neighbor yells periodically throughout the day. What is he yelling?

The yelling occurs at different times in the morning, afternoon, evening, and late night. There's no discernible pattern to when it occurs. It's very rapid and staccato, and not in English (or Spanish or French). It's rhythmic and purposeful, and ends after about 15-20 minutes. It's sometimes preceded for a half hour or so by loud music that sounds almost like a reggae or polka beat. Sometimes the music continues and then goes off.

The yelling is not directed at another person, and it doesn't sound like he's on the phone. It also doesn't sound like the sort of yelling that might happen for a psychotic person. It also doesn't have the lyrical rhythm or melody of rap music that I'm used to.

We live below several other people, so it's difficult to discern which neighbor this might be, so I can't ask directly.

What could it be? Links to similar sounds appreciated.

posted by robertthebruce to Grab Bag (31 answers total)

I'm going to guess - prayer?
posted by mosk at 7:44 AM on December 10, 2015 [2 favorites]

There's no way to answer this without hearing it.

I had an upstairs neighbor who would yowl for hours on painkillers. I had another upstairs neighbor who would curse in French for 90 minutes, daily, at 4 a.m. and then hurl her belongings out her window and onto my patio.

Do you have a recording?
posted by mochapickle at 7:44 AM on December 10, 2015 [11 favorites]

He's an online gamer and is yelling at other players during raids?
posted by saffry at 7:46 AM on December 10, 2015 [27 favorites]

Are there associated stomping sounds like he's practicing a karate kata? (following some musical jazzercise warmup?)
posted by aimedwander at 7:48 AM on December 10, 2015

Even if there're no stomping sounds, it could still be some other form of martial art practice.

You said it isn't English, French, or Spanish, but does it sound like a language, or is it nonverbal sounds?
posted by snorkmaiden at 7:55 AM on December 10, 2015

Tourette's?
posted by matildaben at 7:59 AM on December 10, 2015

Music + "rhythmic and purposeful"....could your neighbor be an aspiring drummer? Some are taught that it's all right to be vocal to help with rhythm while playing. If he uses a drum pad, you won't necessarily hear the drumming.
posted by gnomeloaf at 8:01 AM on December 10, 2015 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: It does sound like a language, just one I'm not familiar with. It sounds very angry (to me). I've tried to make a recording, but it's hard to capture well through the ceiling. It doesn't sound like a karate kata. It's very fast, non-stop yelling for 15-20 minutes. There's no foot stomping, clapping, or other associated sounds (besides the music that sometimes plays). The yelling doesn't seem to go with the music that plays in rhythm, but the music is generally very loud.

I'm asking mostly because I'm curious to know what it is. However, it is often quite loud and can be bothersome (very early in the morning or late at night), waking us from sleep. I'd like to figure out how to ask the neighbor to be a bit quieter sometimes, but don't want to be rude or offensive if it is some sort of prayer or ritual.
posted by robertthebruce at 8:03 AM on December 10, 2015 [1 favorite]

Could it be some kind of chanting, for example Nam Myōhō Renge Kyō?
posted by alms at 8:10 AM on December 10, 2015 [1 favorite]

To be honest, I yell a ton in my apartment to amuse myself.
posted by glaucon at 8:20 AM on December 10, 2015 [21 favorites]

Speaking in tongues?
posted by ramix at 8:26 AM on December 10, 2015 [1 favorite]

Are you sure the music and yelling are coming from the same place? IF they're not in rhythm with one another, maybe one of your other neighbours is putting on loud music so they don't have to hear the yelling.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 8:41 AM on December 10, 2015 [15 favorites]

You're sure they're not on the phone? Twenty minutes of one person yelling sounds like one side of a phone call with a family member.
posted by univac at 9:03 AM on December 10, 2015 [17 favorites]

He could just be releasing stress by yelling plus dancing around to loud music without realizing how loud he is. Lots of people "talk to" people they're frustrated with to deal with their feelings when they're alone, and maybe he's using music to try and cover.
posted by blnkfrnk at 9:05 AM on December 10, 2015 [1 favorite]

Maybe you live below a sports fan.
posted by theraflu at 9:05 AM on December 10, 2015 [4 favorites]

I have Tourette Syndrome, and that was my first thought as well, but if he's only yelling for 15-30 at a time, with no much shorter bursts in between, the likelihood drops way, way down.

I mean, it's not that there couldn't be someone whose TS manifests like this, but this is generally not how TS manifests.
posted by Juliet Banana at 9:10 AM on December 10, 2015 [1 favorite]

No one can answer this question except for your neighbor without you uploading a recording of the noise.

Your only real solution is to go to your neighbor's apartment when they are making the noise (assuming you can find the right one. If it is loud enough to be heard from your apartment you probably can hear it through their front door) and let them know you can hear it and ask them to lower the volume. It isn't rude to ask someone to be a bit quieter even if they happen to be praying.
posted by Julnyes at 9:12 AM on December 10, 2015 [4 favorites]

He's yelling at another neighbor or someone in his apartment that is playing loud music.

He's complaining about the music. Does he have teenagers?
posted by jbenben at 9:32 AM on December 10, 2015 [2 favorites]

Could he be practicing his drum 'n' bass MC patter? The linked video has several MCs, so you might skip around for an idea of the different kinds of flavors it comes in. Strong dancey beat under his nonstop loud vocalizing sounds right to me, and that you can't understand it wouldn't be surprising at all.
posted by hollyholly at 12:44 PM on December 10, 2015

Could be praying to Mecca. From the link:

They are required to pray five times a day – at daybreak, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset and evening, although there are some Muslims who combine prayers.
posted by greenland at 1:57 PM on December 10, 2015 [1 favorite]

My thought was praying as well. I once lived below a man who prayed several times a day, at regular intervals. I couldn't make out the words, and it didn't sound angry, but it was definitely a rhythmic chanting. (Now, when he got busy with his ladyfriend at all hours of the day and night, he was extremely loud, and I could hear every word. Every. Damn. Word.)
posted by flyingsquirrel at 2:14 PM on December 10, 2015

Agree it could be one side of a phone conversation that is actually perfectly civil but just uses tones that sound unfamiliar. I had a Greek speaking coworker who would have very dramatic sounding conversations with her family and the rest of us would be concerned and say, hey, coworker. are you ok? And it would turn out they were just talking about what to have for dinner. Just more enthusiastically than us reserved Brits.
posted by kitten magic at 2:57 PM on December 10, 2015 [1 favorite]

I used to have a neighbor who watched football (soccer) and would yell and swear loudly (I thought he was a domestic abuser for weeks until I heard the phrase "oh just kick the damn ball" or something like that) at weird hours of the day. The duration and constancy of your neighbor's noise is throwing me off, I'm not sure what sport it could be (boxing?).
posted by spamandkimchi at 3:41 PM on December 10, 2015

Don't discount mental illness. Just because the yelling doesn't match your impression of "psychotic episode" doesn't mean this person doesn't experience delusions that aren't full-blown psychosis. Yelling at no one in particular--or, more accurately, yelling either at oneself or at people who the person very much thinks can hear them--is not uncommon.
posted by ImproviseOrDie at 4:13 PM on December 10, 2015 [2 favorites]

Oh for heavens sake. Muslims don't yell when they pray.
posted by pravit at 7:36 PM on December 10, 2015 [6 favorites]

Could be speaking in tongues.
posted by St. Alia of the Bunnies at 8:59 PM on December 10, 2015

People who speak in tongues don't yell either.
posted by FencingGal at 4:18 AM on December 11, 2015

Response by poster: It's definitely not Arabic, so I doubt it is any Muslim prayer. (Also as noted above, Muslims don't yell when they pray).

I don't think it's drum and bass patter--it has a very different sound.

Our upstairs neighbors are actually in a different building than us, so I can't go up to the next hall and listen outside of doors, I'm afraid.

The closest I've been able to find, as far as language, is Yoruba, which fits because we live in a neighborhood with many West African immigrants. But why he is yelling, I have yet to find out!

Thanks for all of the replies. I'll post an update if I ever learn what, exactly, it is!
posted by robertthebruce at 8:09 AM on December 11, 2015 [1 favorite]

I have heard people yell in tongues, but it's like any other prayer, if you are disturbing others you're doing it wrong.
posted by St. Alia of the Bunnies at 5:09 PM on December 11, 2015

Oh, wow, the phone conversation thing makes a lot of sense, right? Bad cell reception, only one side of the conversation, language that sounds loud or harsh to people who are not used to the cadences, sounds, and structure.
posted by Juliet Banana at 11:26 PM on December 11, 2015 [1 favorite]

My fiancé just got an Amazon Echo and is constantly experimenting with (read: yelling at) it. Often to get it to play music, skip song, stop playing, turn the lights off, etc. He also likes to "test its range" by shouting at it from the next room over and over at increasing volumes to see exactly how loud he needs to be to get it to respond. So maybe that's what's happening.

To all my present and future neighbors: I am so, so sorry.
posted by BusyBusyBusy at 6:22 PM on December 15, 2015