← Back to Death of a Disco Dancer

10 songs that feel like Death of a Disco Dancer

Matched to Death of a Disco Dancer by The Smiths on how the music actually moves — intensity, dynamic swing, texture, tempo — not by genre tag. Here's what makes each one a match.

Death of a Disco Dancer
The song you love
Death of a Disco Dancer
The Smiths
moderate 57/100 intensity 85 BPM
Lionsong — Björk moderate 80 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same cathartic pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (56/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (80 BPM).

June — Florence + The Machine moderate 75 BPM

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

Pilot Jones — Frank Ocean moderate 92 BPM

Keeps the same cathartic pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (57/100). Measured 95% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (92 BPM).

Hard Feelings/Loveless — Lorde moderate 74 BPM

Measures 95% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (52/100). Same layered texture.

You Had Your Soul With You — The National moderate 95 BPM

A 95% feel-match — carries the same cathartic pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (58/100).

Automate — Snail Mail moderate 95 BPM

95% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (58/100). Same layered texture.

The Kids — Lou Reed intense 95 BPM

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

Untitled #6 — Sigur Rós intense 70 BPM

Measures 95% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (60/100). Same layered texture.

Make Art Not Friends — Sturgill Simpson moderate 85 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same melancholy pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (57/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (85 BPM).

Boyish — Japanese Breakfast moderate 85 BPM

99% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (57/100). Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Death of a Disco Dancer is more than you want right now.

If I Were a Boy by Beyoncé
If I Were a Boy — Beyoncé safe 92 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but nothing in it lurches or startles. Intensity 28/100, down from 57. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Dark Side of the Gym — The National safe 70 BPM

Its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 7, so it lands at 15/100 — the pull without the edge.

Revolution 0 by boygenius
Revolution 0 — boygenius safe 70 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7. Reads 25/100.

Silent All These Years by Tori Amos
Silent All These Years — Tori Amos safe 70 BPM

Holds the same feel while its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 7. 15/100, versus the original's 57.

Everybody Hurts — R.E.M. safe 75 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7. Intensity 22/100, down from 57. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Have You Ever by Brandy
Have You Ever — Brandy safe 80 BPM

Nothing in it lurches or startles, so it lands at 24/100 — the pull without the edge. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Blowin' in the Wind by Bob Dylan
Blowin' in the Wind — Bob Dylan safe 80 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while its dynamic range stays a gentler 3 where the original climbs to 7. Reads 12/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lightfoot
If You Could Read My Mind — Gordon Lightfoot safe 85 BPM

Holds the same feel while its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 7. 16/100, versus the original's 57. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Death of a Disco Dancer” by The Smiths?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “Lionsong” by Björk, “June” by Florence + The Machine, “Pilot Jones” by Frank Ocean — 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 “Death of a Disco Dancer” but calmer?

“If I Were a Boy” by Beyoncé, “Dark Side of the Gym” by The National, “Revolution 0” by boygenius keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Death of a Disco Dancer”?

It measures 57/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 7/10, layered texture, moderate sudden shifts, and dynamic vocals. Tempo is 85 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 76% of songs, calmer than the other 24%. Its intensity reading of 57/100 comes from a dynamic range of 7/10, layered texture, moderate shifts, and dynamic vocals. It shares this stretch of the spectrum with thousands of other tracks, so the finer fingerprint below is what really separates it.

What makes it unusual

What stands out most about this song is a slow, unhurried pace: 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 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

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
Focus4/10
Workout4/10
Dinner6/10
Party / hype4/10

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

1987 in context

The 205 songs we’ve measured from 1987 average a dynamic range of 6.5/10. At 7/10, this track is right in line with its year.

Mixes smoothly with

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

The fingerprint

Intensity57
Dynamics67
Tempo25
Surprise50
Density33
Predictability50
Vocal force75
Trigger load0

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

Want the single closest match, with every dimension compared?

Find its sonic twin →
Share on X
Check another song →