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10 songs that feel like Catastrophe and the Cure

Matched to Catastrophe and the Cure by Explosions in the Sky 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
Catastrophe and the Cure
Explosions in the Sky
intense 60/100 intensity 80 BPM
Christmas Steps — Mogwai intense 80 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same transcendent pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (80 BPM).

Killing All the Flies — Mogwai intense 85 BPM

99% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Same layered texture.

Friend of the Night — Mogwai intense 80 BPM

Keeps the same transcendent pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Measured 91% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (80 BPM).

Don't Believe the Fife — Mogwai moderate 90 BPM

Measures 90% the same. It sits a little calmer at 51/100. Same layered texture.

Death Rays — Mogwai moderate 110 BPM

A 92% feel-match — carries the same transcendent pull and sits a little calmer at 53/100.

Isle of the Dead — Sergei Rachmaninoff intense 66 BPM

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

No Time for Caution — Hans Zimmer intense 80 BPM

Keeps the same transcendent pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Measured 96% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (80 BPM).

Man with a Harmonica — Ennio Morricone intense 75 BPM

Measures 96% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Same layered texture.

Symphony No 5 — Jean Sibelius moderate 100 BPM

A 94% feel-match — carries the same transcendent pull and sits a little calmer at 52/100.

Piano Concerto No. 5 (Emperor) — Ludwig van Beethoven intense 80 BPM

99% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Catastrophe and the Cure is more than you want right now.

I Believe by Mahalia Jackson
I Believe — Mahalia Jackson moderate 72 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it eases off just enough to take the edge off. Intensity 59/100, down from 60. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Don't Believe the Fife — Mogwai moderate 90 BPM

It measures markedly calmer overall, so it lands at 51/100 — the pull without the edge. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Sweet Heart Sweet Light — Spiritualized moderate 95 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 61/100.

Walk On — U2 moderate 95 BPM

Holds the same feel while its dynamic range stays a gentler 7 where the original climbs to 9. 51/100, versus the original's 60.

Untitled #4 by Sigur Rós
Untitled #4 — Sigur Rós moderate 70 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 7 where the original climbs to 9. Intensity 48/100, down from 60. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Pagan Poetry by Björk
Pagan Poetry — Björk moderate 92 BPM

Its dynamic range stays a gentler 6 where the original climbs to 9, so it lands at 30/100 — the pull without the edge.

Serenade for Strings in C Major by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Serenade for Strings in C Major — Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky safe 90 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while its dynamic range stays a gentler 7 where the original climbs to 9. Reads 37/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Princess Mononoke (Theme Song) — Joe Hisaishi moderate 80 BPM

Holds the same feel while its dynamic range stays a gentler 7 where the original climbs to 9. 41/100, versus the original's 60. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Catastrophe and the Cure” by Explosions in the Sky?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “Christmas Steps” by Mogwai, “Killing All the Flies” by Mogwai, “Friend of the Night” by Mogwai — 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 “Catastrophe and the Cure” but calmer?

“I Believe” by Mahalia Jackson, “Don't Believe the Fife” by Mogwai, “Sweet Heart Sweet Light” by Spiritualized keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Catastrophe and the Cure”?

It measures 60/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 9/10, layered texture, moderate sudden shifts, and instrumental. Tempo is 80 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 9/10, 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 huge quiet-to-loud swing: more extreme on that axis than 96% 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

What it’s good for

Sleep0/10
Focus5/10
Workout4/10
Dinner6/10
Party / hype4/10

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

2007 in context

The 311 songs we’ve measured from 2007 average a dynamic range of 6.3/10. At 9/10, 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
Dynamics89
Tempo22
Surprise50
Density33
Predictability50
Vocal force0
Trigger load0

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

Want the single closest match, with every dimension compared?

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