10 Creepy Predictions In Songs That Came True

6. The Who's Relay Predicted The Internet

It’s hard to imagine life without the internet now. Tim Berners-Lee’s invention has permeated almost every aspect of modern life, from socialising to academic research to buying stupid stuff you don’t need at two in the morning after one too many beverages at your local drinking establishment. The world wide web is perhaps the most revolutionary invention since the wheel, and without it how would you be about to learn that The Who wrote a song foreshadowing its creation way back in 1972? Listicle inception right there.

Relay was a pretty minor hit for Pete Townshend and the boys, never included on an album and largely forgotten compared to some of their more iconic work. But it does feature some fairly startling lyrics on the potential omnipotence of a worldwide computer network.

“Every single dream / Is wrapped up in the scheme / They all get carried on the relay” feels like a very apt description of how unavoidable and all-conquering the net has become.

Computer networks were a thing in the early ‘70s, but to foresee how monstrously powerful they would go on to be is bordering on spooky.