Strange use of background music

Several times during this film I felt that the background music didn't suit the tone of what was actually happening in the scene. I guess in 1932 the art of film scoring was still pretty new, but there were moments in Polly of the Circus when no music at all would have been better than what was used. In a general sense it struck me that the melodies were too zippy and up-tempo during serious scenes. (And often too loud.) This was especially noticeable when Raymond Hatton was on screen. His character, Downey, is a creepy, woman-hating alcoholic, yet every time he staggers in we hear a "funny drunk" theme. Totally inappropriate, especially in the scene when he attacks Polly and has to be restrained. No music, or ominous suspense music, would have worked a lot better.