The song begins with Schneider and Kate Pierson crashing a party, with the opening beat punctuated by a discordant guitar riff implying unexpected arrival, Schneider screaming "Sur-PRI-ise!" and Pierson belting out "PAR-TAY!".
The title "Party out of Bounds" was also used as the title of the 1991 book Party out of Bounds: The B-52's, R.E.M. and the Kids Who Rocked Athens, Ga.