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10 songs that feel like Murder by Numbers

Matched to Murder by Numbers by The Police 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
Murder by Numbers
The Police
moderate 47/100 intensity 132 BPM
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I Wanna Live — Ramones moderate 140 BPM

A 98% feel-match — carries the same cathartic pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (48/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (140 BPM).

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Jonathan Fisk — Spoon moderate 120 BPM

98% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (46/100). Same layered texture.

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Nobody's Diary — Yazoo moderate 129 BPM

Keeps the same cathartic pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Measured 99% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (129 BPM).

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Offend In Every Way — The White Stripes moderate 128 BPM

Measures 99% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Same layered texture.

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No Children — The Mountain Goats moderate 126 BPM

A 95% feel-match — carries the same cathartic pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (126 BPM).

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Maggie's Farm — Bob Dylan moderate 120 BPM

95% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (46/100). Same layered texture.

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Stop That Train — Bob Marley & The Wailers moderate 133 BPM

Keeps the same rebellious pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Measured 99% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (133 BPM).

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Under My Thumb — The Rolling Stones moderate 130 BPM

Measures 99% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Same layered texture.

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This Year — The Mountain Goats moderate 135 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same rebellious pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (135 BPM).

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Casey Jones — Grateful Dead moderate 136 BPM

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

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Murder by Numbers is more than you want right now.

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

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it stays in our safe band start to finish. Intensity 41/100, down from 47.

The Times They Are a-Changin' by Bob Dylan
The Times They Are a-Changin' — Bob Dylan safe 120 BPM

Nothing in it lurches or startles, so it lands at 27/100 — the pull without the edge.

10:15 Saturday Night by The Cure
10:15 Saturday Night — The Cure safe 128 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 20/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Silver by Echo & the Bunnymen
Silver — Echo & the Bunnymen safe 120 BPM

Holds the same feel while it stays in our safe band start to finish. 34/100, versus the original's 47.

It's Too Late by Carole King
It's Too Late — Carole King safe 126 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but nothing in it lurches or startles. Intensity 24/100, down from 47. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Jump by Madonna
Jump — Madonna safe 125 BPM

Nothing in it lurches or startles, so it lands at 45/100 — the pull without the edge. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Spirits in the Material World by The Police
Spirits in the Material World — The Police safe 108 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 18/100.

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

Holds the same feel while it stays in our safe band start to finish. 34/100, versus the original's 47. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Murder by Numbers” by The Police?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “I Wanna Live” by Ramones, “Jonathan Fisk” by Spoon, “Nobody's Diary” by Yazoo — the top match scores 98% 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 “Murder by Numbers” but calmer?

“De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da” by The Police, “The Times They Are a-Changin'” by Bob Dylan, “10:15 Saturday Night” by The Cure keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Murder by Numbers”?

It measures 47/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 6/10, layered texture, mild sudden shifts, and dynamic vocals. Tempo is 132 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 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 88% 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

Sleep4/10
Focus8/10
Workout6/10
Dinner7/10
Party / hype5/10

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

1983 in context

The 242 songs we’ve measured from 1983 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

Intensity47
Dynamics56
Tempo51
Surprise25
Density33
Predictability0
Vocal force75
Trigger load25

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

Want the single closest match, with every dimension compared?

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