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10 songs that feel like Taking Off

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

Taking Off
The song you love
Taking Off
The Cure
moderate 49/100 intensity 120 BPM
2 Be Loved — Lizzo moderate 120 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same confident pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (49/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (120 BPM).

Solitude Is Bliss — Tame Impala moderate 115 BPM

99% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (49/100). Same layered texture.

Step by Step — Whitney Houston moderate 100 BPM

Keeps the same confident pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Measured 96% alike.

FISHTAIL — Tyler, the Creator moderate 140 BPM

Measures 96% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (51/100). Same layered texture.

Gold — Prince moderate 120 BPM

A 96% feel-match — carries the same confident pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (53/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (120 BPM).

ST 100/6 — Big Star moderate 120 BPM

96% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (53/100). Same layered texture.

Just Because — Jane's Addiction moderate 120 BPM

Keeps the same confident pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (53/100). Measured 96% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (120 BPM).

Measures 96% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (53/100). Same layered texture.

Cuff It — Beyoncé moderate 115 BPM

A 96% feel-match — carries the same confident pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (52/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (115 BPM).

Mighty Mighty — Earth, Wind & Fire moderate 115 BPM

96% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (52/100). Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Taking Off is more than you want right now.

Friday I'm In Love by The Cure
Friday I'm In Love — The Cure safe 135 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it stays in our safe band start to finish. Intensity 34/100, down from 49.

When Tomorrow Comes — Eurythmics safe 117 BPM

It stays in our safe band start to finish, so it lands at 45/100 — the pull without the edge. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Roar — Kidz Bop Kids safe 128 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it stays in our safe band start to finish. Reads 42/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Stand — R.E.M. safe 106 BPM

Holds the same feel while it stays in our safe band start to finish. 40/100, versus the original's 49.

Shiny Happy People by R.E.M.
Shiny Happy People — R.E.M. safe 135 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it stays in our safe band start to finish. Intensity 42/100, down from 49.

Head Over Heels by ABBA
Head Over Heels — ABBA safe 118 BPM

It stays in our safe band start to finish, so it lands at 45/100 — the pull without the edge. Nearly the same tempo, too.

I've Got the World on a String by Louis Armstrong
I've Got the World on a String — Louis Armstrong safe 120 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while nothing in it lurches or startles. Reads 31/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

I've Got the World on a String by Frank Sinatra
I've Got the World on a String — Frank Sinatra safe 120 BPM

Holds the same feel while it stays in our safe band start to finish. 33/100, versus the original's 49. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Taking Off” by The Cure?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “2 Be Loved” by Lizzo, “Solitude Is Bliss” by Tame Impala, “Step by Step” by Whitney Houston — 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 “Taking Off” but calmer?

“Friday I'm In Love” by The Cure, “When Tomorrow Comes” by Eurythmics, “Roar” by Kidz Bop Kids keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Taking Off”?

It measures 49/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 6/10, layered texture, mild sudden shifts, and dynamic vocals. Tempo is 120 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 55% of songs, calmer than the other 45%. Its intensity reading of 49/100 comes from a dynamic range of 6/10, layered texture, mild 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 an unusually steady, even volume: more extreme on that axis than 79% 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

Sleep4/10
Focus7/10
Workout6/10
Dinner7/10
Party / hype5/10

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

Mixes smoothly with

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

The fingerprint

Intensity49
Dynamics56
Tempo44
Surprise25
Density33
Predictability50
Vocal force75
Trigger load13

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

Want the single closest match, with every dimension compared?

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