"Editorial abstract illustration evoking the emotional arc of a song titled "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" by Radiohead. Dramatic quiet-to-loud arc, stormy climax. harsh clashing textures, abrasive edges. Mood: melancholy, transcendent. Visual style: early-1990s alternative aesthetic, weathered film grain. 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."
Street Spirit (Fade Out)
Radiohead
The Bends (1995)
Balanced energy, right in the middle of 19,209 measured songs — measures out best for focus.
72
BPM
Street Spirit (Fade Out) by Radiohead is 72 BPM — Adagio (slow).
Half-time 36 BPM · Double-time 144 BPM · released 1995
Fan image for "Street Spirit (Fade Out)"
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Song DNA
Notes: Dark and haunting atmosphere.
Recommended for: anxiety relief meditation
Middle of the road on intensity, in the best way. It keeps shifting — not one to fade into the background. The track swings widely from quiet to loud with no sudden shifts to brace for, biting in texture, with a light, easy vocal at an unhurried mid-tempo. Against the 19,209 songs we’ve measured, it sits more energetic than 77% of songs, calmer than the rest.
Cultural Context
Often considered one of their best works.
Listening Prompt
Contemplate the themes of mortality.
What to Expect
Paradoxes define this 1995 profile. Intense overall, yet no sudden changes. Soft vocals, yet harsh texture. Low predictability, yet mapped to anxiety relief and meditation. At 72 BPM it is one of the slowest tracks in this set. Dynamic range scores 8 out of 10, a wide swing, but without sudden changes that gap opens and closes gradually rather than in jolts. Harsh texture at low predictability means the sonic character feels rough-edged and difficult to anticipate structurally, even as it arrives without shocks. Soft vocals are the one element that stays contained. The intensity here is tonal and textural rather than startling — weight rather than percussion. For listeners who can sit with unpredictable, harshly textured material at slow tempos, this offers space for transcendent and melancholy moods without the physical startle risk. Those sensitive to the texture of sound itself, not just its loudness or suddenness, should approach with awareness of the harsh texture rating before deciding.
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Moods: melancholy, transcendent
Intense — what to expect
"Street Spirit (Fade Out)" is in our intense band.
At least one of our five sensory dimensions crosses the threshold that means "this can be a lot." Most commonly: soft vocals or harsh texture, or a dynamic range of 8/10. The full breakdown is below. If you arrived here looking for a calmer alternative, our use-case verdicts section flags songs with similar mood but lower intensity.
How this song sits on each sensory axis
A dynamic range of 8/10 is in the upper band of our library. This song has a significant quiet-to-loud arc. For sensory-sensitive listening, set the opening volume well below your comfortable top-end; the climax will land harder than the intro suggests.
Sudden changes: none. Transitions are musically signaled — nothing will surprise you if you're only half-listening.
Texture is harsh — the mix contains timbres that clash (distortion against bright cymbals, close-mic'd elements against compressed drums, or unresolved dissonances).
Predictability is low — this song does not follow standard verse-chorus form closely, and rewards active listening more than passive listening.
Vocal style: soft vocals.
Where this sits in Radiohead's catalog
We have 78 songs from Radiohead in the library. Of those, 7 are rated Safe, 55 Moderate, and 16 Intense. This song's dynamic range of 8/10 sits above the artist average of 6.6, making it the #4 most dynamic track of theirs in our library.
Other tracks from The Bends
We have 2 songs from this album. Overall, the album leans moderate in sensory profile.
- Fake Plastic Trees — moderate DR 7
1995 context
Released in 1995. We have 329 songs from that year in our library, averaging a dynamic range of 6.5/10. This track is about average than the year average. Explore more from the 1990s.
Explore by mood and tradition
Guides that may help
Jazz for Anxiety Relief: Which Subgenres Help and Which Overwhelm
Jazz for Anxiety Relief: Which Subgenres Help and Which Overwhelm — A guide for sensory-sensitive li…
Karma Police: Radiohead’s Eerie Joke About Power and Paranoia
Karma Police began as a band in-joke and became one of Radiohead’s defining songs — a queasy meditat…
How fast is "Street Spirit (Fade Out)"?
72 BPM — Slow (downtempo / ballad)
For running
Too slow for most running; good for warm-up walks or cool-down.
For workouts
Warm-up, cool-down, yoga, stretching.
For daily life
Sleep, meditation, reading, focus work.
Browse more songs at 72 BPM.
When "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" 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
No — 72 BPM is too slow for sustained cardio.
✗
Sleep / winding down
No — contains elements that will keep an awake nervous system engaged.
~
Driving / road trip
Maybe — the intensity / sudden changes are fine for solo highway driving but skip for city or rainy-weather driving.
✗
Cooking / dinner background
No — too active to function as background; will pull attention away from what you're doing.
✓
Emotional release / catharsis
Yes — this is a song for actively feeling what you came to feel, not for background.
Related reading
Editorial guides that cover this song's use cases, moods, or artist.
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
Jazz for Anxiety Relief: Which Subgenres Help and Which Overwhelm
Jazz for Anxiety Relief: Which Subgenres Help and Which Overwhelm — A guide for sensory-sensitive listeners on musiciwant.com
Classical Music for Sensory Sensitivity: What's Safe, What's Intense, and Why
Classical Music for Sensory Sensitivity: What's Safe, What's Intense, and Why — A guide for sensory-sensitive listeners on musiciwant.com
Why this rating
We rate this song Intense. Our rule is deliberately conservative: any one of high dynamic range, present sudden changes, harsh texture, or a strained/screamed vocal is enough to trigger Intense on its own. Full scoring rubric: methodology.
This song in the Music Studio
60/100 intensity
See how “Street Spirit (Fade Out)” sits against your own sensitivities, or use it as a waypoint in a calmer set.
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Rating last reviewed: 2026-06-20. 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 8/10, harsh texture, no sudden shifts, and soft vocals. Relatively few songs occupy this exact corner of the spectrum.
What makes it unusual
What stands out most about this song is a slow, unhurried pace: more extreme on that axis than 90% 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
God Only Knows — The Beach Boys · 88%Sometimes — My Bloody Valentine · 85%River — Joni Mitchell · 85%Working Class Hero — John Lennon · 85%
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
What it’s good for
Sleep4/10
Focus9/10
Workout4/10
Dinner6/10
Party / hype4/10
Scored from this song’s tempo, intensity, dynamics and texture — not crowd votes.
1995 in context
The 329 songs we’ve measured from 1995 average a dynamic range of 6.5/10. 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
Tempo18
Surprise0
Density85
Predictability100
Vocal force25
Trigger load0
The 8-dimension measurement behind every rating on this page.
Frequently asked about "Street Spirit (Fade Out)"
Quick answers pulled from the song's sensory analysis.
What is the BPM of "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" by Radiohead?
"Street Spirit (Fade Out)" by Radiohead has a tempo of 72 BPM (Adagio (slow)). At half-time that is 36 BPM, and at double-time 144 BPM.
What is the sensory intensity of "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" by Radiohead?
"Street Spirit (Fade Out)" by Radiohead rates as Intense. Dynamic range 8/10, none sudden changes, harsh texture, soft vocals vocal style. Any one of high dynamic range, present sudden changes, or harsh texture triggers the Intense rating.
How loud is "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" — what is its dynamic range?
"Street Spirit (Fade Out)" has a dynamic range of 8/10. Substantial quiet-to-loud arc. Start at a volume well below your top-end; the climax will land harder than the intro suggests.
Does "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" have sudden or surprising changes?
No. "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" has no sudden unsignaled changes. Every transition is musically telegraphed.
What is "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" best for?
In our library "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" is recommended for: anxiety relief, meditation. These tags are assigned only where the song's sensory profile genuinely supports the use case.
When was "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" released?
"Street Spirit (Fade Out)" is from 1995, on the album "The Bends". It appears in our 1990s catalog.
What is the emotional mood of "Street Spirit (Fade Out)"?
We tag "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" as melancholy, transcendent. Moods are tonal descriptors based on how the song reads emotionally — separate from the sensory intensity axes.
What is the vocal style of "Street Spirit (Fade Out)"?
The vocal style is soft vocals.
Is "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" good for running?
Not really — at 72 BPM it's below most running cadences. Better for warm-up, cool-down, or walking. Recreational runners typically step at 140-175 BPM.
Is "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" good for studying?
Only partially. The song's dynamic range (8/10) means there will be loud moments that break focus during deep work.
Can I use "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" for sleep?
Not recommended for sleep. Too intense overall.
Should I listen to "Street Spirit (Fade Out)"?
"Street Spirit (Fade Out)" is Intense in our ratings — dramatic dynamics, possible sudden changes, or strong vocal or textural energy. Best with intention rather than ambient use. If you are sensory-sensitive, the alternatives section surfaces calmer songs in the same mood family.
Songs with the same DNA
harsh texture, similar intensity — across any genre or era.
Safer alternatives with a similar feel
These songs share similar moods but with a gentler sensory profile.
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Where to next?
You know how this one feels — now go find the next one.