"Poundcake" is a Van Halen song and the opening track on their 1991 album '' For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge''. "Poundcake" was the first song to be released as a single from the album, reaching number one on the US ''Billboard''

Album Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States, a category that combines the formats of active rock and heritage rock. The chart was launched in Ma ...

chart and number 74 on the UK Singles Chart. The CD Single provides an 'interview with Van Halen' which begins with hearing Eddie say, "Hey, this is Eddie Van Halen...". In addition, "Poundcake" begins immediately with the drill and omits the sound of Edward plugging his guitar cable into the amplifier.

Composition

Eddie Van Halen Edward Lodewijk Van Halen ( , ; January 26, 1955 – October 6, 2020) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, keyboardist, backing vocalist, and primary songwriter of the rock band Van Halen, which he co-founded along ...

recalls that the song did not earn much of a reaction until producer Andy Johns suggested that he play the rhythm tracks with a

12-string guitar A twelve-string guitar (or 12-string guitar) is a steel-string guitar with 12 strings in six courses, which produces a thicker, more ringing tone than a standard six-string guitar. Typically, the strings of the lower four courses are tuned in o ...

. Afterwards the band helped the composition of the song over the two electric 12-strings doubled beneath Eddie's usual dirty guitar. Regarding the

guitar solo A guitar solo is a melodic passage, instrumental section, or entire piece of music, pre-written (or improvised) to be played on a classical guitar, electric guitar or an acoustic guitar. In 20th and 21st century traditional music and popular m ...

, Eddie said that "The solo goes four bars, another four bars, then two bars. Al kept insisting that it wasn’t finished. He likes to count, and I never do. I’m strictly feel. I’m always screwing around with time, because I never count.” The song is in the key of

E major E major (or the key of E) is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has four sharps. Its relative minor is C-sharp minor and its parallel minor is E minor. Its enharmonic equivalent, ...

, with the guitar solo in the key of F♯ minor, having a moderate rock common time tempo of 108 beats per minute.

Power drill

The song features

using the sound of a Makita 6012HD power drill in the introduction and during the guitar solo. According to Eddie, a guitar technician was operating one of these drills at

5150 Studios 5150 Studios is Eddie Van Halen's recording studio in the Studio City neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The studio is located at 3371 Coldwater Canyon and was built so that Eddie Van Halen could have more control over the recording proce ...

while he was playing, and the sound captured was akin to "kick starting your engine". Subsequently, Eddie painted a drill with the Frankenstrat stripes to use during concerts.

Music video

The official music video for "Poundcake," directed by Andy Morahan, shows Eddie using the technique with a Makita cordless power drill painted in his trademark red, black and white stripes. The video, itself, cuts between scenes of the band playing and a demure young lady - played by Diane Manzo - who has shown up for an audition (a handmade sign on the wall says "Van Halen Casting"). While waiting, she spies on the other girls through a hole in the changing room door and is fascinated by their provocative dress and behavior. When they finally notice her, one - played by Tania Coleridge - uses a power drill to create a hole in the door and harass her, ultimately scaring her off. The video is also preceded with a young girl reciting a poem of " What Are Little Boys Made Of?". The video ends with a blooper of the girl making a mistake and the director saying they will do another take.

Reception

Chuck Klosterman of

Vulture.com ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, and with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'', ...

ranked it the 35th-best Van Halen song, largely praising the song but calling the lyrics "straight-up sewage-drain awful."

Charts

References

External links

Pound Cake video from VH1Classic.com
{{Authority control 1990 songs 1991 singles Music videos directed by Andy Morahan Song recordings produced by Andy Johns Song recordings produced by Ted Templeman Songs written by Michael Anthony (musician) Songs written by Alex Van Halen Songs written by Eddie Van Halen Songs written by Sammy Hagar Van Halen songs Warner Records singles