16 artists like Placebo

Matched on how their catalogues actually move — measured intensity, dynamic range, texture and shared mood across 1 Placebo songs (averaging 77/100 intensity). Each one comes with the single song to start with.

Kanye West shares: cathartic · heavy

Shares the same cathartic register and plays calmer overall (50/100). 110 of their songs measured.

Start with Fade · 122 BPM · 96% feel-match to Placebo

Iron Maiden shares: heavy · cathartic

Plays calmer overall (64/100), with the same heavy register running through 107 measured songs.

Start with Senjutsu · 95 BPM · 89% feel-match to Placebo

Eminem shares: cathartic · heavy

90 measured songs that keep the same cathartic register — plays calmer overall (61/100).

Start with Rap God · 148 BPM · 87% feel-match to Placebo

Björk shares: cathartic · heavy

Shares the same cathartic register and plays calmer overall (48/100). 89 of their songs measured.

Start with It's Oh So Quiet · 120 BPM · 94% feel-match to Placebo

Black Sabbath shares: heavy · cathartic

Plays calmer overall (56/100), with the same heavy register running through 84 measured songs.

Start with War Pigs · 138 BPM · 88% feel-match to Placebo

Foo Fighters shares: cathartic · heavy

82 measured songs that keep the same cathartic register — plays calmer overall (59/100).

Start with The Pretender · 105 BPM · 87% feel-match to Placebo

U2 shares: heavy · cathartic

Shares the same heavy register and plays calmer overall (52/100). 82 of their songs measured.

Start with Get On Your Boots · 124 BPM · 94% feel-match to Placebo

Pearl Jam shares: cathartic · heavy

Plays calmer overall (51/100), with the same cathartic register running through 80 measured songs.

Start with World Wide Suicide · 96 BPM · 96% feel-match to Placebo

Radiohead shares: heavy · cathartic

78 measured songs that keep the same heavy register — plays calmer overall (49/100).

Start with Idioteque · 128 BPM · 90% feel-match to Placebo

AC/DC shares: heavy · cathartic

Shares the same heavy register and plays calmer overall (62/100). 74 of their songs measured.

Start with Thunderstruck · 132 BPM · 89% feel-match to Placebo

Bruce Springsteen shares: cathartic · heavy

Plays calmer overall (43/100), with the same cathartic register running through 71 measured songs.

Start with Jungleland · 120 BPM · 84% feel-match to Placebo

The Cure shares: heavy · cathartic

65 measured songs that keep the same heavy register — plays calmer overall (45/100).

Start with Pornography · 120 BPM · 86% feel-match to Placebo

Kendrick Lamar shares: heavy · cathartic

Shares the same heavy register and plays calmer overall (56/100). 64 of their songs measured.

Start with DNA. · 133 BPM · 89% feel-match to Placebo

Pink Floyd shares: cathartic · heavy

Plays calmer overall (49/100), with the same cathartic register running through 64 measured songs.

Start with Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2 · 100 BPM · 96% feel-match to Placebo

Talking Heads shares: cathartic · heavy

60 measured songs that keep the same cathartic register — plays calmer overall (52/100).

Start with Pulled Up · 120 BPM · 83% feel-match to Placebo

Arcade Fire shares: cathartic · heavy

Shares the same cathartic register and plays calmer overall (57/100). 57 of their songs measured.

Start with Wake Up · 80 BPM · 89% feel-match to Placebo

Frequently asked

What artists sound like Placebo?

The closest matches we measure are Kanye West, Iron Maiden, Eminem. Artists are matched by how their catalogs actually move — average intensity, dynamic range, texture and shared mood — across 1 measured Placebo songs, not by genre label or chart adjacency.

Which song should I start with?

Kanye West: “Fade” (96% feel-match); Iron Maiden: “Senjutsu” (89% feel-match); Eminem: “Rap God” (87% feel-match). Each is that artist's single closest track to the Placebo centre of gravity, so it's the least jarring way in.

How intense is Placebo overall?

Across 1 measured songs, Placebo averages 77/100 on our intensity scale. Individual songs vary — see the full catalog breakdown on their artist page.

How do you decide two artists are similar?

Every song is measured on 8 dimensions (intensity, dynamic range, tempo, sudden changes, texture, predictability, vocal force, fine sound detail). We compare an artist's catalogue centre of gravity to every other artist's, then weight shared mood tags. Matches cross genre and era, because the measurements don't know what genre is.

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