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10 songs that feel like Racing Like a Pro

Matched to Racing Like a Pro by The National on how the music actually moves — intensity, dynamic swing, texture, tempo — not by genre tag. Here's what makes each one a match.

Racing Like a Pro
The song you love
Racing Like a Pro
The National
moderate 30/100 intensity 95 BPM
I Ain't Quite Where I Think I Am — Arctic Monkeys moderate 95 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same contemplative pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (30/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (95 BPM).

One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below) — Bob Dylan moderate 72 BPM

94% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (32/100). Same layered texture.

Highlands — Bob Dylan moderate 78 BPM

Keeps the same melancholy pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (29/100). Measured 94% alike.

People Are Strange — The Doors moderate 92 BPM

Measures 91% the same. It runs a little hotter at 36/100. Same layered texture.

All the World Is Green — Tom Waits moderate 90 BPM

A 91% feel-match — carries the same contemplative pull and runs a little hotter at 36/100. Nearly the same tempo, too (90 BPM).

Country Feedback — R.E.M. moderate 75 BPM

94% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (29/100). Same layered texture.

Innocent When You Dream — Tom Waits moderate 72 BPM

Keeps the same contemplative pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (28/100). Measured 90% alike.

Real Friends — Kanye West moderate 92 BPM

Measures 88% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (29/100).

Redondo Beach — Patti Smith moderate 90 BPM

A 88% feel-match — carries the same contemplative pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (29/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (90 BPM).

Work Out — J. Cole moderate 92 BPM

96% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (34/100). Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Racing Like a Pro is more than you want right now.

Überlin by R.E.M.
Überlin — R.E.M. safe 92 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it stays in our safe band start to finish. Intensity 17/100, down from 30. Nearly the same tempo, too.

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

It stays in our safe band start to finish, so it lands at 12/100 — the pull without the edge.

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

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it stays in our safe band start to finish. Reads 28/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Thumbing My Way by Pearl Jam
Thumbing My Way — Pearl Jam safe 80 BPM

Holds the same feel while it stays in our safe band start to finish. 23/100, versus the original's 30.

In My Secret Life — Leonard Cohen safe 82 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it stays in our safe band start to finish. Intensity 12/100, down from 30.

You Want It Darker by Leonard Cohen
You Want It Darker — Leonard Cohen safe 80 BPM

It stays in our safe band start to finish, so it lands at 16/100 — the pull without the edge.

People's Parties by Joni Mitchell
People's Parties — Joni Mitchell safe 110 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it stays in our safe band start to finish. Reads 24/100.

New Test Leper by R.E.M.
New Test Leper — R.E.M. safe 110 BPM

Holds the same feel while it stays in our safe band start to finish. 19/100, versus the original's 30.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Racing Like a Pro” by The National?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “I Ain't Quite Where I Think I Am” by Arctic Monkeys, “One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below)” by Bob Dylan, “Highlands” by Bob Dylan — 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 “Racing Like a Pro” but calmer?

“Überlin” by R.E.M., “Blowin' in the Wind” by Bob Dylan, “If I Were a Boy” by Beyoncé keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Racing Like a Pro”?

It measures 30/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 4/10, layered texture, no sudden shifts, and dynamic vocals. Tempo is 95 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 sits near the calm end of everything we've measured — gentler than 80% of the 19,209 songs in the library. Its intensity reading of 30/100 comes from a dynamic range of 4/10, layered texture, no sudden 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 an unusually steady, even volume: more extreme on that axis than 97% 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.

Dial the feeling up or down

Same feeling, bigger: I Turn My Camera On — Spoon

What it’s good for

Sleep7/10
Focus9/10
Workout2/10
Dinner7/10
Party / hype2/10

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 4/10, this track is gentler and steadier than its year.

Mixes smoothly with

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

The fingerprint

Intensity30
Dynamics33
Tempo31
Surprise0
Density33
Predictability0
Vocal force75
Trigger load25

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

Want the single closest match, with every dimension compared?

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