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The identity of “Subways of Your Mind,” often called the “most mysterious song on the internet,” was confirmed in November 2024 after 17 years of online detective work. Originally recorded in 1983 by the German band FEX, the song first surfaced as a snippet on a tape made by a German radio listener, sparking widespread fascination.
The search began on YouTube in 2007 and expanded on Reddit, where thousands of community members analyzed the song’s style, instrumentation, and German roots to finally pinpoint its creators. FEX, largely unaware of the song’s fame, confirmed their involvement after a Reddit user contacted a former band member listed in a local newspaper. The band members now plan to re-release the song, celebrating this unexpected journey with their new.
- Ture Rückwardt – vocals, guitar
- Norbert Ziermann – bass
- Michael Hädrich – keyboards
- Hans-Reimer Sievers – drums
My Original Article
“The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet” is an enigmatic track that has puzzled music enthusiasts and internet users for years. Its origin traces back to the 1980s when it was allegedly recorded from a German radio station called NDR (Norddeutscher Rundfunk) by a listener named Darius S.
The song, featuring a male vocalist with a deep voice and a dark, post-punk/new wave style, was recorded on a cassette tape. The precise broadcast date and other details about the track remain unknown, contributing to its mystique. The search for the identity of the song began in earnest in the early 2000s when Darius digitized the cassette tape and posted the song online, seeking information about it.
The track gained significant attention when it was uploaded to various music forums, including a post on a new wave forum in 2007 by a user named Anton Riedel, asking for help to identify the song. This online quest gained traction in 2019 when a Reddit user brought renewed interest to the song by posting it on the subreddit r/ObscureMedia, causing it to spread across multiple social media platforms.
Other Songs Darius Recored at the Same Time
- “Blind Among the Flowers” by The Tourists – This song, released in 1979, is one of the tracks that Darius recorded from the radio around the same time. It was performed by The Tourists, a British pop band that included Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart before they formed Eurythmics.
- “Oh! Susie” by Secret Service – A popular track by the Swedish band Secret Service, released in 1979. It was another song recorded on Darius’s tape, suggesting that the mysterious song was broadcast in the early 1980s, around the time when these songs were popular.
- “Kings of the Wild Frontier” by Adam and the Ants – Released in 1980, this song by the British new wave band was also part of the same radio recording. Its presence on the tape has been helpful in narrowing down the timeframe of the broadcast.
- “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” by Eurythmics – This hit song, released in 1983, was also recorded by Darius. However, this is based on other listeners’ memories and suggests that the tape spans multiple years and contains a mix of songs from different periods.
- “Säbeltanz” by Rondo Veneziano – An instrumental piece by the Italian chamber orchestra Rondo Veneziano, released in 1980. The inclusion of this song helps to establish the eclectic nature of the radio station’s playlist at the time.
Since then, countless internet users have attempted to identify the artist, song title, and origins, but the song’s details remain elusive. Numerous theories have emerged over the years regarding the song’s origin and artist. Some speculate that it could be a rare or unreleased track by a known band,
while others believe it might be from an obscure or defunct local group whose recordings never gained wide recognition. Some theories suggest that the song could have been created specifically for radio or could be a demo or an unreleased track that somehow ended up on air. Despite these theories, no conclusive evidence has been found, and the identity of the artist and the song remains unknown.
The song has become a viral phenomenon due to the mystery surrounding it and the dedicated community that has formed around the search. It has been featured in numerous YouTube videos, podcasts, and articles, drawing attention from all over the world. This phenomenon reflects the broader internet culture of collective investigation and mystery-solving,
where people from different backgrounds and locations come together online to solve puzzles and share information. The search for “The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet” has united thousands of users in a global hunt, reflecting the power of the internet in crowd-sourcing and community-driven detective work.
Possible Keyboards Used in Song
- Yamaha DX7: Released in 1983, the Yamaha DX7 was one of the first commercially successful digital synthesizers. It became hugely popular in the 1980s for its ability to produce a wide range of sounds, from electric pianos to complex synthesized tones. The DX7 is known for its distinctive bell-like sounds and bright, metallic timbres, which could align with some of the tones heard in the mysterious song.
- Roland Juno-60: The Roland Juno-60, released in 1982, is an analog synthesizer famous for its lush pads, rich basses, and distinctive chorus effect. The warm, atmospheric pad sound in the mysterious song could potentially be produced by a Juno-60 or a similar analog synthesizer from the era.
- Korg Poly-61: This synthesizer, released in 1982, is another candidate due to its ability to produce thick, layered sounds typical of early 1980s synth-pop and new wave music. The Poly-61’s sound is characterized by its rich, analog warmth and the ability to create evolving pads, which could match the keyboard sound in the track.
- Sequential Circuits Prophet-5: The Prophet-5, released in 1978, was one of the first fully programmable polyphonic synthesizers. It has been used extensively in new wave, synth-pop, and other genres of the early 1980s. Its ability to produce complex, evolving sounds with a unique analog character makes it a possible candidate for the keyboard sound heard in the mysterious song.
Several titles have been proposed for the song based on its lyrics, which include phrases like “Like the Wind“, “The Sun Will Never Shine“, “Blind the Wind“, “Check It In, Check It Out“, “Take It In, Take It Out“, “Summer Blues” and “The Way You Look at Me.” These potential titles are derived from the most prominent lyrics heard in the track, but none have been officially confirmed.
Some listeners believe that these titles could be reflective of the chorus or key themes of the song, while others suggest that the actual title may not even be mentioned in the lyrics, adding another layer of complexity to the mystery.
Further Reading
Sources
- Wikipedia “The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Most_Mysterious_Song_on_the_Internet
- Forums – The Lost Media Wiki “The Search For the “Most Mysterious Song On The Internet” https://forums.lostmediawiki.com/thread/4768/search-most-mysterious-song-internet
- Rolling Stone “The Unsolved Case of the Most Mysterious Song on the Internet” https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/most-mysterious-song-on-the-internet-885106/
- Wikipedia “Subways of Your Mind” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subways_of_Your_Mind
- Wikipedia “Fex (band)” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fex_(band)
