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10 songs that feel like Feels Like We Only Go Backwards

Matched to Feels Like We Only Go Backwards by Tame Impala on how the music actually moves — intensity, dynamic swing, texture, tempo — not by genre tag. Here's what makes each one a match.

Feels Like We Only Go Backwards
The song you love
Feels Like We Only Go Backwards
Tame Impala
moderate 44/100 intensity 110 BPM
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Enjoy the Silence — Depeche Mode moderate 113 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same contemplative pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (44/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (113 BPM).

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99% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (44/100). Same layered texture.

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Tales of Brave Ulysses — Cream moderate 100 BPM

Keeps the same contemplative pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (43/100). Measured 98% alike.

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No One to Depend On — Carlos Santana moderate 100 BPM

Measures 98% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (43/100). Same layered texture.

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Strange Mercy — St Vincent moderate 110 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same contemplative pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (44/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (110 BPM).

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Everybody Wants to Rule the World — Tears for Fears moderate 116 BPM

99% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (44/100). Same layered texture.

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Riders on the Storm — The Doors moderate 90 BPM

Keeps the same contemplative pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (42/100). Measured 96% alike.

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Last Train Home — Fall Out Boy moderate 90 BPM

Measures 96% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (42/100). Same layered texture.

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The Way It Used to Be — Pet Shop Boys moderate 90 BPM

A 96% feel-match — carries the same contemplative pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (42/100).

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Heaven or Las Vegas — Cocteau Twins moderate 118 BPM

98% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (45/100). Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Feels Like We Only Go Backwards is more than you want right now.

Every Breath You Take by The Police
Every Breath You Take — The Police safe 117 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but nothing in it lurches or startles. Intensity 27/100, down from 44. Nearly the same tempo, too.

What a Fool Believes by The Doobie Brothers
What a Fool Believes — The Doobie Brothers safe 100 BPM

Its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7, so it lands at 22/100 — the pull without the edge. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Circles by Post Malone
Circles — Post Malone safe 120 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while nothing in it lurches or startles. Reads 27/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Both Sides, Now by Joni Mitchell
Both Sides, Now — Joni Mitchell safe 82 BPM

Holds the same feel while nothing in it lurches or startles. 27/100, versus the original's 44.

Fire and Rain by James Taylor
Fire and Rain — James Taylor safe 90 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7. Intensity 21/100, down from 44.

Sittin' On The Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding
Sittin' On The Dock of the Bay — Otis Redding safe 88 BPM

Its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7, so it lands at 20/100 — the pull without the edge.

Waterfalls by TLC
Waterfalls — TLC safe 82 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it stays in our safe band start to finish. Reads 38/100.

Mystery of Love by Sufjan Stevens
Mystery of Love — Sufjan Stevens safe 80 BPM

Holds the same feel while nothing in it lurches or startles. 24/100, versus the original's 44.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards” by Tame Impala?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “Enjoy the Silence” by Depeche Mode, “I Don't Know What You Want But I Can't Give It Any More” by Pet Shop Boys, “Tales of Brave Ulysses” by Cream — 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 “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards” but calmer?

“Every Breath You Take” by The Police, “What a Fool Believes” by The Doobie Brothers, “Circles” by Post Malone keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards”?

It measures 44/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 7/10, layered texture, mild sudden shifts, and soft vocals. Tempo is 110 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 41% of songs, calmer than the other 59%. Its intensity reading of 44/100 comes from a dynamic range of 7/10, layered texture, mild shifts, and soft 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 deep calm: more extreme on that axis than 59% 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

Sleep5/10
Focus10/10
Workout3/10
Dinner8/10
Party / hype5/10

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

2012 in context

The 262 songs we’ve measured from 2012 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

Intensity44
Dynamics67
Tempo39
Surprise25
Density33
Predictability50
Vocal force25
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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