Since last year, a subreddit has been toiling away to find the source of a particular ‘80s song and it finally hit the jackpot.
Back in 2021, a user named carl92 posted a 17-second audio clip on WatZatSong to see if the other users could get helpidentifying it. The static-filled recording sounded like a typical ‘80s New Wave track that seemed familiar, but no one could put their finger on the song’s name or who made it.
The subreddit r/everyoneknowthat (named after the chorus of the song heard in the clip) was formed last June and was dedicated to uncovering this musical mystery. Then on Sunday, after years of searching, the audio was found. The song was “Ulterior Motives” and it was attributed to Christopher Saint Booth and Phill Booth.
As for how this song was located, here’s the rundown from Reddit user One-Truth-5867:
1. I found a video on YouTube of a scene from an adult movie that had a song that sounded very similar to EKT. 2. I noticed in the description of the video that it said Christopher Saint Booth and Philip Adrian Booth 3. I realized “HOLY SH*T” I remember these names!! They are in BMI and SOCAN with a registry for “Ulterior Motives”
The porno in question is Angels of Passion released in 1986 (no, we’re not linking you to porn). Sure enough, after an “investigation,” the song plays in the background of your typical ‘80s porn action.
There is some speculation on the subreddit post-discovery that this was an elaborate hoax as the sound clip uploaded back in 2021 just happens to be the part of the song that isn’t filled with moans of passionate lovemaking.
Porn music aside, this adventure was another example of what’s been referred to as Lostwave, which is the search for music that doesn’t have an easily identified source. One of the most prominent examples of unsolved musical mysteries is another ‘80s song recorded off of a European radio station almost 40 years ago that has since been dubbed “The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet.”