"Editorial abstract illustration evoking the emotional arc of a song titled "Working in the Coal Mine" by Devo. Noticeable climb from quiet to loud. layered composition, overlapping color planes. Mood: energetic, intense, playful, rebellious. Visual style: 1980s editorial aesthetic, neon accents against moody ground. Painterly, grainy film texture, muted palette with strategic accent colors. The composition should read left-to-right like a timeline — calm on one side, intensifying toward the other. Strictly no faces, no text, no logos, no literal objects, no band imagery. Pure color-field abstraction with emotional weight. 16:9 editorial format."
Balanced energy, right in the middle of 19,209 measured songs — measures out best for workout.
120
BPM
Working in the Coal Mine by Devo is 120 BPM — Allegro (fast).
Half-time 60 BPM · Double-time 240 BPM · released 1981
Fan image for "Working in the Coal Mine"
An abstract illustration of what this song feels like. Each image is built from a prompt — the text description fed to the image generator. Listeners submit their own prompts, upvote the ones that fit best, and the top-voted prompt drives the next regeneration. After 100 image votes, we make a new picture.
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Song DNA
Notes: Devo's cover features mechanical, jerky rhythms with Mark Mothersbaugh's distinctive vocal delivery creating an unsettling, robotic energy. The production includes percussive elements mimicking pickaxe sounds and industrial textures.
Misophonia Triggers
Recommended for: deep listening energy movement
A new wave cover of the Allen Toussaint classic about coal mining labor, transformed by Devo into a quirky, mechanistic anthem with their signature jerky rhythmic style.
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Hear it the way it was made
The right gear changes everything.
Moods: energetic, intense, playful, rebellious
Traditions: cover, new wave
Volume Warning
"Working in the Coal Mine" climbs hard.
Dynamic range 7/10 places this in our upper band. The opening volume that feels comfortable will not be comfortable at the climax. If you are setting this up for a focused listen, anchor your volume to the quietest section, not the loudest. The arc is the point of the song; if you blunt it by riding the volume knob, you lose what makes it work. Devo built the dynamic shape on purpose. Plan around it.
How this song sits on each sensory axis
A dynamic range of 7/10 means this song moves. Expect a real volume climb between quiet sections and the loudest part of the arrangement — enough that you may want to set the initial volume below where you'd normally land.
Sudden changes: present. This song uses surprise as a feature. For focus or background listening, it's likely to pull your attention away; for active listening, that's often the point.
Texture is layered — a full arrangement with clear separation between parts.
Predictability is medium — conventional structure overall, with one or two moments that deviate from what you'd expect.
Vocal style: dynamic vocals.
Where this sits in Devo's catalog
We have 18 songs from Devo in the library. Of those, 0 are rated Safe, 12 Moderate, and 6 Intense. This song's dynamic range of 7/10 sits above the artist average of 6.7, making it the #6 most dynamic track of theirs in our library.
Other tracks from New Traditionalists
We have 4 songs from this album. Overall, the album leans moderate in sensory profile.
- Beautiful World — moderate DR 6
- Through Being Cool — moderate DR 7
- Peek-A-Boo! — moderate DR 7
1981 context
Released in 1981. We have 194 songs from that year in our library, averaging a dynamic range of 6.4/10. This track is about average than the year average. Explore more from the 1980s.
Explore by mood and tradition
Guides that may help
low-intensity Workout Music: Energy Without Overwhelm
low-intensity Workout Music: Energy Without Overwhelm — A guide for sensory-sensitive listeners on m…
The Calmest Songs We’ve Ever Measured
Out of 19,144 songs scored for intensity, these measure as the very calmest — the gentlest, steadies…
Even Flow: Pearl Jam’s Song for the Man Everyone Walks Past
Even Flow is Pearl Jam at full throttle — and underneath the riff is a portrait of a homeless man an…
How fast is "Working in the Coal Mine"?
120 BPM — Upbeat (dance-pop / running warm-up)
For running
Slow jog or recovery run pace. Matches a 120-140 stride-per-minute cadence.
For workouts
Steady cardio, power walking, light weights.
For daily life
Driving, getting ready in the morning, light party.
Browse more songs at 120 BPM.
When "Working in the Coal Mine" works, and when it doesn't
Use-case verdicts computed from the song's tempo, dynamics, and sensory profile.
✗
Focus / studying
No — too dynamic or too many surprises. Save for active listening.
✓
Running / workout
Yes — 120 BPM sits squarely in the running / cardio band. Matches natural stride cadence.
✗
Sleep / winding down
No — contains elements that will keep an awake nervous system engaged.
✓
Driving / road trip
Yes — predictable enough for safe driving attention, interesting enough to stay engaged.
✓
Cooking / dinner background
Yes — sits in the background without demanding attention.
~
Emotional release / catharsis
Not really — it's pleasant but doesn't hit hard enough for cathartic listening.
Related reading
Editorial guides that cover this song's use cases, moods, or artist.
The 10 Calmest Albums Ever Recorded — A low-intensity Listening Guide
The 10 Calmest Albums Ever Recorded — A low-intensity Listening Guide — A guide for sensory-sensitive listeners on musiciwant.com
A Sensory Guide to Every Radiohead Album — From Safe to Intense
A Sensory Guide to Every Radiohead Album — From Safe to Intense — A guide for sensory-sensitive listeners on musiciwant.com
Music for Meltdown Recovery: What to Play When the World Is Too Much
Music for Meltdown Recovery: What to Play When the World Is Too Much — A guide for sensory-sensitive listeners on musiciwant.com
Why this rating
We rate this song Moderate because it falls between our Safe and Intense thresholds on at least one dimension. Moderate is the default for most well-produced music that has real arc but no surprise elements. Full rubric: methodology.
This song in the Music Studio
60/100 intensity
See how “Working in the Coal Mine” sits against your own sensitivities, or use it as a waypoint in a calmer set.
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Rating last reviewed: 2026-04-15. Reviewed by the Music I Want editorial team against the documented methodology.
Think this rating is wrong? Contact the editor — every message is read and ratings get revised.
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 7/10, layered texture, moderate shifts, and dynamic vocals. Relatively few songs occupy this exact corner of the spectrum.
What makes it unusual
What stands out most about this song is blazing intensity: more extreme on that axis than 77% 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
Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter — Iron Maiden · 99%Where's The Revolution — Depeche Mode · 99%Cities — Talking Heads · 99%Ain't That Nothin' — Television · 99%
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
Sleep0/10
Focus3/10
Workout7/10
Dinner6/10
Party / hype6/10
Scored from this song’s tempo, intensity, dynamics and texture — not crowd votes.
1981 in context
The 194 songs we’ve measured from 1981 average a dynamic range of 6.4/10. At 7/10, this track is louder and more dynamic than its year.
Mixes smoothly with
Out of the Woods — Taylor SwiftAge of Innocence — The Smashing PumpkinsBring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter — Iron Maiden
Within a few BPM and close in feel — they flow without a jarring transition.
The fingerprint
Intensity60
Dynamics67
Tempo44
Surprise50
Density33
Predictability50
Vocal force75
Trigger load38
The 8-dimension measurement behind every rating on this page.
Frequently asked about "Working in the Coal Mine"
Quick answers pulled from the song's sensory analysis.
What is the BPM of "Working in the Coal Mine" by Devo?
"Working in the Coal Mine" by Devo has a tempo of 120 BPM (Allegro (fast)). At half-time that is 60 BPM, and at double-time 240 BPM.
What is the sensory intensity of "Working in the Coal Mine" by Devo?
"Working in the Coal Mine" by Devo rates as Moderate intensity. Dynamic range 7/10, moderate sudden changes, layered texture. Moderate is the default for well-produced music with real arc but no surprise elements.
How loud is "Working in the Coal Mine" — what is its dynamic range?
"Working in the Coal Mine" has a dynamic range of 7/10. Noticeable climb from quiet sections to loudest point. Set opening volume slightly lower than your preferred peak.
Does "Working in the Coal Mine" have sudden or surprising changes?
Yes. "Working in the Coal Mine" uses surprise as a compositional feature. Expect unsignaled transitions.
What is "Working in the Coal Mine" best for?
In our library "Working in the Coal Mine" is recommended for: deep listening, energy, movement. These tags are assigned only where the song's sensory profile genuinely supports the use case.
When was "Working in the Coal Mine" released?
"Working in the Coal Mine" is from 1981, on the album "New Traditionalists". It appears in our 1980s catalog.
What is the emotional mood of "Working in the Coal Mine"?
We tag "Working in the Coal Mine" as energetic, intense, playful, rebellious. Moods are tonal descriptors based on how the song reads emotionally — separate from the sensory intensity axes.
What is the vocal style of "Working in the Coal Mine"?
The vocal style is dynamic vocals.
Is "Working in the Coal Mine" good for running?
Yes — at 120 BPM it sits in the running-cadence band (120-180 BPM). Match your stride to the beat and it keeps pace with most recreational runners.
Is "Working in the Coal Mine" good for studying?
Only partially. The song's dynamic range (7/10) means there will be loud moments that break focus during deep work.
Can I use "Working in the Coal Mine" for sleep?
Not recommended for sleep. Contains transitions that will wake you up.
Should I listen to "Working in the Coal Mine"?
"Working in the Coal Mine" is Moderate intensity — fine for most listeners, but with enough dynamic activity that it works best as active listening rather than background.
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