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10 songs that feel like Bad Day

Matched to Bad Day by R.E.M. on how the music actually moves — intensity, dynamic swing, texture, tempo — not by genre tag. Here's what makes each one a match.

The song you love
Bad Day
R.E.M.
moderate 52/100 intensity 148 BPM
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Love Me Two Times — The Doors moderate 148 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same rebellious pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (52/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (148 BPM).

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Who Do You Love? — Bo Diddley moderate 148 BPM

99% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (52/100). Same layered texture.

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Oxford Comma — Vampire Weekend moderate 150 BPM

Keeps the same rebellious pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (52/100). Measured 99% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (150 BPM).

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Two States — Pavement moderate 145 BPM

Measures 99% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (51/100). Same layered texture.

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Down the Line — Jerry Lee Lewis moderate 145 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same rebellious pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (51/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (145 BPM).

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Girl U Want — Devo moderate 152 BPM

99% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (52/100). Same layered texture.

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Red Light Indicates Doors Are Secured — Arctic Monkeys moderate 142 BPM

Keeps the same rebellious pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (51/100). Measured 99% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (142 BPM).

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Oh No — Wet Leg moderate 142 BPM

Measures 99% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (51/100). Same layered texture.

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Conceited — Flo Milli moderate 140 BPM

A 98% feel-match — carries the same rebellious pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (51/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (140 BPM).

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Sugar Never Tasted So Good — The White Stripes moderate 140 BPM

98% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (51/100). Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Bad Day is more than you want right now.

Don't Think Twice, It's All Right by Bob Dylan
Don't Think Twice, It's All Right — Bob Dylan safe 154 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 6. Intensity 30/100, down from 52. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Concerto for 4 Violins in B Minor, Op. 3 No. 10, RV 580 by Antonio Vivaldi

It stays in our safe band start to finish, so it lands at 39/100 — the pull without the edge.

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Concerto in E-flat "Dumbarton Oaks" — Igor Stravinsky safe 120 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it stays in our safe band start to finish. Reads 35/100.

Epiphany by BTS
Epiphany — BTS safe 136 BPM

Holds the same feel while nothing in it lurches or startles. 25/100, versus the original's 52.

Friday I'm In Love by The Cure
Friday I'm In Love — The Cure safe 135 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it stays in our safe band start to finish. Intensity 34/100, down from 52.

Buffalo Soldier by Bob Marley and the Wailers
Buffalo Soldier — Bob Marley and the Wailers safe 81 BPM

Nothing in it lurches or startles, so it lands at 28/100 — the pull without the edge.

Guiltiness by Bob Marley
Guiltiness — Bob Marley safe 75 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 6. Reads 24/100.

Talkin' Bout a Revolution by Tracy Chapman
Talkin' Bout a Revolution — Tracy Chapman safe 90 BPM

Holds the same feel while its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 6. 17/100, versus the original's 52.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Bad Day” by R.E.M.?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “Love Me Two Times” by The Doors, “Who Do You Love?” by Bo Diddley, “Oxford Comma” by Vampire Weekend — the top match scores 99% alike. Matching is by how the songs actually move (intensity, dynamic range, texture, tempo, predictability, vocal force), not by genre tag or popularity.

What songs are like “Bad Day” but calmer?

“Don't Think Twice, It's All Right” by Bob Dylan, “Concerto for 4 Violins in B Minor, Op. 3 No. 10, RV 580” by Antonio Vivaldi, “Concerto in E-flat "Dumbarton Oaks"” by Igor Stravinsky keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Bad Day”?

It measures 52/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 6/10, layered texture, mild sudden shifts, and dynamic vocals. Tempo is 148 BPM.

How do you decide which songs are similar?

Every song in our catalog is measured on 8 dimensions — intensity, dynamic range, tempo, sudden changes, texture, predictability, vocal force and fine sound detail. Similarity is the distance between two songs across those measurements, so matches cross genres and eras. Shared mood tags break ties.

By the numbers: how this song compares

Computed from this song’s place among the 19,209 songs we’ve measured.

Where it sits in 19,000 songs

On our 19k-song scale this lands in the middle band — more energetic than 68% of songs, calmer than the other 32%. Its intensity reading of 52/100 comes from a dynamic range of 6/10, layered texture, mild shifts, and dynamic vocals. It shares this stretch of the spectrum with thousands of other tracks, so the finer fingerprint below is what really separates it.

What makes it unusual

What stands out most about this song is a fast, driving tempo: more extreme on that axis than 95% of everything we've measured. At the far opposite end of the library sit the songs built on near-total stillness — steady volume, no surprises, a slow and unhurried pulse — the kind of track this one is the counterpoint to.

Feels almost identical to

Closest matches by feel across all 19,209 measured songs — not by genre or artist, by how they actually move.

What it’s good for

Sleep3/10
Focus7/10
Workout6/10
Dinner7/10
Party / hype6/10

Scored from this song’s tempo, intensity, dynamics and texture — not crowd votes.

2003 in context

The 365 songs we’ve measured from 2003 average a dynamic range of 6.5/10. At 6/10, this track is right in line with its year.

Mixes smoothly with

Within a few BPM and close in feel — they flow without a jarring transition.

The fingerprint

Intensity52
Dynamics56
Tempo60
Surprise25
Density33
Predictability50
Vocal force75
Trigger load13

The 8-dimension measurement behind every rating on this page.

Want the single closest match, with every dimension compared?

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