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10 songs that feel like Puppet on a String

Matched to Puppet on a String by The Hives 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
Puppet on a String
The Hives
intense 72/100 intensity 160 BPM
Hey Scenesters — The Cribs intense 160 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same rebellious pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (72/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (160 BPM).

Nice Guys Finish Last — Green Day intense 180 BPM

96% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (74/100). Same layered texture.

All I Want — The Offspring intense 180 BPM

Keeps the same rebellious pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (74/100). Measured 96% alike.

Anthem Part 2 — Blink-182 intense 180 BPM

Measures 96% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (74/100). Same layered texture.

The Handshake — Bad Religion intense 180 BPM

A 96% feel-match — carries the same rebellious pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (74/100).

Rip Her to Shreds — Blondie intense 130 BPM

94% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (70/100). Same layered texture.

Holiday — Green Day intense 190 BPM

Keeps the same rebellious pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (75/100). Measured 94% alike.

I'm Shakin' — Jack White intense 140 BPM

Measures 93% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (74/100). Same layered texture.

Wild One — Jerry Lee Lewis intense 140 BPM

A 93% feel-match — carries the same rebellious pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (74/100).

Relax — Frankie Goes to Hollywood moderate 130 BPM

93% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (70/100). Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Puppet on a String is more than you want right now.

Bring It On — Hard-Fi moderate 130 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it measures markedly calmer overall. Intensity 50/100, down from 72.

Suburban Knights — Hard-Fi moderate 130 BPM

It measures markedly calmer overall, so it lands at 50/100 — the pull without the edge.

Mary Jane — The Vines moderate 130 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it measures markedly calmer overall. Reads 54/100.

Skint and Minted — The Libertines moderate 130 BPM

Holds the same feel while it measures markedly calmer overall. 50/100, versus the original's 72.

Time for Heroes — The Libertines moderate 140 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it measures markedly calmer overall. Intensity 51/100, down from 72.

Up the Bracket — The Libertines moderate 140 BPM

It measures markedly calmer overall, so it lands at 55/100 — the pull without the edge.

Soul Kitchen — X moderate 130 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it measures markedly calmer overall. Reads 50/100.

Year One — X moderate 130 BPM

Holds the same feel while it measures markedly calmer overall. 50/100, versus the original's 72.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Puppet on a String” by The Hives?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “Hey Scenesters” by The Cribs, “Nice Guys Finish Last” by Green Day, “All I Want” by The Offspring — 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 “Puppet on a String” but calmer?

“Bring It On” by Hard-Fi, “Suburban Knights” by Hard-Fi, “Mary Jane” by The Vines keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Puppet on a String”?

It measures 72/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 7/10, layered texture, frequent sudden shifts, and dynamic vocals. Tempo is 160 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

This is one of the more intense things in our library — more energetic than 90% of the 19,209 songs we've measured. Its intensity reading of 72/100 comes from a dynamic range of 7/10, layered texture, frequent shifts, and dynamic vocals. Relatively few songs occupy this exact corner of the spectrum.

What makes it unusual

What stands out most about this song is a fast, driving tempo: more extreme on that axis than 95% 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.

What it’s good for

Sleep0/10
Focus2/10
Workout8/10
Dinner5/10
Party / hype8/10

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 7/10, 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

Intensity72
Dynamics67
Tempo67
Surprise75
Density33
Predictability50
Vocal force75
Trigger load25

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

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