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10 songs that feel like Dark Is the Night for All

Matched to Dark Is the Night for All by a-ha on how the music actually moves — intensity, dynamic swing, texture, tempo — not by genre tag. Here's what makes each one a match.

Dark Is the Night for All
The song you love
Dark Is the Night for All
a-ha
moderate 47/100 intensity 88 BPM
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Alone — The Cure moderate 85 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same melancholy pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (85 BPM).

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Tarifa — Sharon Van Etten moderate 85 BPM

99% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Same layered texture.

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It's Over — Roy Orbison moderate 92 BPM

Keeps the same melancholy pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Measured 99% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (92 BPM).

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Boogie Street — Leonard Cohen moderate 85 BPM

Measures 96% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (43/100). Same layered texture.

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By the Sea — Suede moderate 85 BPM

A 96% feel-match — carries the same melancholy pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (85 BPM).

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Pastime Paradise — Stevie Wonder moderate 80 BPM

96% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (43/100). Same layered texture.

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Power Trip — J. Cole moderate 100 BPM

Keeps the same melancholy pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (44/100). Measured 95% alike.

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Waiting for the Miracle — Leonard Cohen moderate 72 BPM

Measures 95% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (42/100). Same layered texture.

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Hold On — Adele moderate 72 BPM

A 97% feel-match — carries the same melancholy pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (46/100).

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She Even Woke Me Up to Say Goodbye — Jerry Lee Lewis moderate 72 BPM

97% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (46/100). Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Dark Is the Night for All is more than you want right now.

Blowin' in the Wind by Bob Dylan
Blowin' in the Wind — Bob Dylan safe 80 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 3 where the original climbs to 7. Intensity 12/100, down from 47. Nearly the same tempo, too.

If I Were a Boy by Beyoncé
If I Were a Boy — Beyoncé safe 92 BPM

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

Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want by The Smiths

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while nothing in it lurches or startles. Reads 23/100.

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Everybody Hurts — R.E.M. safe 75 BPM

Holds the same feel while its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7. 22/100, versus the original's 47.

White Horse by Taylor Swift
White Horse — Taylor Swift safe 80 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7. Intensity 23/100, down from 47. Nearly the same tempo, too.

The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived by Taylor Swift
The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived — Taylor Swift safe 80 BPM

Its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7, so it lands at 23/100 — the pull without the edge. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Male Fantasy by Billie Eilish
Male Fantasy — Billie Eilish safe 90 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 7. Reads 26/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Sad Beautiful Tragic by Taylor Swift
Sad Beautiful Tragic — Taylor Swift safe 80 BPM

Holds the same feel while its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7. 23/100, versus the original's 47. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Dark Is the Night for All” by a-ha?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “Alone” by The Cure, “Tarifa” by Sharon Van Etten, “It's Over” by Roy Orbison — 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 “Dark Is the Night for All” but calmer?

“Blowin' in the Wind” by Bob Dylan, “If I Were a Boy” by Beyoncé, “Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want” by The Smiths keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Dark Is the Night for All”?

It measures 47/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 7/10, layered texture, mild sudden shifts, and dynamic vocals. Tempo is 88 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 49% of songs, calmer than the other 51%. Its intensity reading of 47/100 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 a slow, unhurried pace: more extreme on that axis than 72% of everything we've measured. At the far opposite end of the library sit the songs built on full chaos — sudden changes, huge quiet-to-loud swings, and relentless energy — 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
Focus8/10
Workout3/10
Dinner7/10
Party / hype3/10

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

1993 in context

The 260 songs we’ve measured from 1993 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

Intensity47
Dynamics67
Tempo27
Surprise25
Density33
Predictability0
Vocal force75
Trigger load13

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

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