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10 songs that feel like Taking Control

Matched to Taking Control by Aphex Twin on how the music actually moves — intensity, dynamic swing, texture, tempo — not by genre tag. Here's what makes each one a match.

Taking Control
The song you love
Taking Control
Aphex Twin
intense 60/100 intensity 160 BPM
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Transylvania — Iron Maiden intense 160 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same intense pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (160 BPM).

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Losfer Words (Big 'Orra) — Iron Maiden intense 170 BPM

98% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Same layered texture.

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Hold Tight — Jamie xx intense 128 BPM

Keeps the same cathartic pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Measured 92% alike.

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Measures 94% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Same layered texture.

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Symphony No. 7 in A Major — Ludwig van Beethoven intense 120 BPM

A 90% feel-match — carries the same cathartic pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100).

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He's a Pirate — Hans Zimmer intense 170 BPM

95% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Same layered texture.

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Mombasa — Hans Zimmer intense 145 BPM

Keeps the same intense pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Measured 95% alike.

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Trepak — Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky intense 180 BPM

Measures 94% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (63/100). Same layered texture.

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Logic of a Dream — Explosions in the Sky intense 120 BPM

A 91% feel-match — carries the same cathartic pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100).

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Hungarian Dance No. 5 — Johannes Brahms intense 130 BPM

88% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it runs a little hotter at 67/100. Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

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

Nannou by Aphex Twin
Nannou — Aphex Twin safe 160 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 3 where the original climbs to 8. Intensity 17/100, down from 60. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Flim by Aphex Twin
Flim — Aphex Twin safe 148 BPM

Its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 8, so it lands at 29/100 — the pull without the edge.

Polynomial-C by Aphex Twin
Polynomial-C — Aphex Twin moderate 152 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it eases off just enough to take the edge off. Reads 56/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

We the People.... by A Tribe Called Quest
We the People.... — A Tribe Called Quest moderate 92 BPM

Holds the same feel while it measures markedly calmer overall. 50/100, versus the original's 60.

Fever by The Black Keys
Fever — The Black Keys moderate 110 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it measures markedly calmer overall. Intensity 52/100, down from 60.

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Panic — The Smiths moderate 120 BPM

It eases off just enough to take the edge off, so it lands at 53/100 — the pull without the edge.

Get Up, Stand Up by Bob Marley & The Wailers
Get Up, Stand Up — Bob Marley & The Wailers moderate 76 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it measures markedly calmer overall. Reads 46/100.

I Don't Want to Know by Fleetwood Mac
I Don't Want to Know — Fleetwood Mac moderate 120 BPM

Holds the same feel while it eases off just enough to take the edge off. 60/100, versus the original's 60.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Taking Control” by Aphex Twin?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “Transylvania” by Iron Maiden, “Losfer Words (Big 'Orra)” by Iron Maiden, “Hold Tight” by Jamie xx — 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 “Taking Control” but calmer?

“Nannou” by Aphex Twin, “Flim” by Aphex Twin, “Polynomial-C” by Aphex Twin keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Taking Control”?

It measures 60/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 8/10, layered texture, moderate sudden shifts, and instrumental. Tempo is 160 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 77% of songs, calmer than the other 23%. Its intensity reading of 60/100 comes from a dynamic range of 8/10, layered texture, moderate shifts, and instrumental. Relatively few songs occupy this exact corner of the spectrum.

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.

Dial the feeling up or down

Same feeling, calmer: Hedwig's Theme — John Williams

What it’s good for

Sleep0/10
Focus5/10
Workout7/10
Dinner6/10
Party / hype6/10

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

2001 in context

The 324 songs we’ve measured from 2001 average a dynamic range of 6.3/10. At 8/10, this track is louder and more dynamic than its year.

Mixes smoothly with

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

The fingerprint

Intensity60
Dynamics78
Tempo67
Surprise50
Density33
Predictability50
Vocal force0
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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