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10 songs that feel like Big Time

Matched to Big Time by Peter Gabriel on how the music actually moves — intensity, dynamic swing, texture, tempo — not by genre tag. Here's what makes each one a match.

Big Time
The song you love
Big Time
Peter Gabriel
moderate 52/100 intensity 116 BPM
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Wild Child — The Black Keys moderate 118 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same playful pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (53/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (118 BPM).

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Highway 61 Revisited — Bob Dylan moderate 120 BPM

99% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (53/100). Same layered texture.

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Eat Your Young — Hozier moderate 124 BPM

Keeps the same playful pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (53/100). Measured 98% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (124 BPM).

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Dancing Choose — TV on the Radio moderate 128 BPM

Measures 98% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (54/100). Same layered texture.

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Sir Psycho Sexy — Red Hot Chili Peppers moderate 102 BPM

A 97% feel-match — carries the same playful pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (51/100).

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A Mistake — Fiona Apple moderate 95 BPM

96% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (51/100). Same layered texture.

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Wang Dang Doodle — Howlin' Wolf moderate 120 BPM

Keeps the same playful pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (49/100). Measured 96% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (120 BPM).

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Step Right Up — Tom Waits moderate 120 BPM

Measures 95% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (53/100). Same layered texture.

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Hey! Good Lookin' — Bo Diddley moderate 120 BPM

A 95% feel-match — carries the same playful pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (53/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (120 BPM).

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What Else Can I Do — Lin-Manuel Miranda moderate 116 BPM

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

…and if you want it calmer

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

22 by Taylor Swift
22 — Taylor Swift safe 120 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7. Intensity 39/100, down from 52. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Monday Morning by Fleetwood Mac
Monday Morning — Fleetwood Mac safe 120 BPM

It stays in our safe band start to finish, so it lands at 41/100 — the pull without the edge. Nearly the same tempo, too.

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Stand — R.E.M. safe 106 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it stays in our safe band start to finish. Reads 40/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Head Over Heels by ABBA
Head Over Heels — ABBA safe 118 BPM

Holds the same feel while it stays in our safe band start to finish. 45/100, versus the original's 52. Nearly the same tempo, too.

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Creepin' In — Norah Jones featuring Dolly Parton safe 120 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 7. Intensity 19/100, down from 52. Nearly the same tempo, too.

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Vicar in a Tutu — The Smiths safe 120 BPM

Its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 7, so it lands at 27/100 — the pull without the edge. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Cantaloupe Island by Herbie Hancock
Cantaloupe Island — Herbie Hancock safe 105 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it stays in our safe band start to finish. Reads 30/100.

De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da by The Police
De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da — The Police safe 120 BPM

Holds the same feel while it stays in our safe band start to finish. 41/100, versus the original's 52. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Big Time” by Peter Gabriel?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “Wild Child” by The Black Keys, “Highway 61 Revisited” by Bob Dylan, “Eat Your Young” by Hozier — 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 “Big Time” but calmer?

“22” by Taylor Swift, “Monday Morning” by Fleetwood Mac, “Stand” by R.E.M. keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Big Time”?

It measures 52/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 7/10, layered texture, mild sudden shifts, and dynamic vocals. Tempo is 116 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 7/10, 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 blazing intensity: more extreme on that axis than 68% 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
Workout3/10
Dinner7/10
Party / hype6/10

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

1986 in context

The 223 songs we’ve measured from 1986 average a dynamic range of 6.6/10. At 7/10, 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
Dynamics67
Tempo42
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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