NY Is Killing Me album art

NY Is Killing Me

Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie xx
We're New Here (2011)
Moderate 95 BPM
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Song DNA

Dynamic Range7/10
Sudden Changesmoderate
Texturelayered
Predictabilitymedium
Vocal Stylespoken word
Notes: Gritty dubstep production with tight, cut samples and prominent beat-driven arrangement. Features Gil Scott-Heron's distinctive spoken vocals layered over electronic instrumentation with wonky club elements.

Misophonia Triggers

Mouth Soundsnone
Percussive Clickspresent
Breathing Soundsmild
Repetitive Micro-soundsmild

A dubstep remix of Gil Scott-Heron's original track, transforming introspective lyrics about urban exhaustion into a dance-floor oriented production.

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Hear it the way it was made

The right gear changes everything.

Moods: contemplative, heavy, introspective, melancholy

Traditions: dubstep, electronic, hip-hop

How this song sits on each sensory axis

A dynamic range of 7/10 means this song moves. Expect a real volume climb between quiet sections and the loudest part of the arrangement — enough that you may want to set the initial volume below where you'd normally land.

Sudden changes: present. This song uses surprise as a feature. For focus or background listening, it's likely to pull your attention away; for active listening, that's often the point.

Texture is layered — a full arrangement with clear separation between parts.

Predictability is medium — conventional structure overall, with one or two moments that deviate from what you'd expect.

Vocal style: spoken word.

2011 context

Released in 2011. We have 371 songs from that year in our library, averaging a dynamic range of 6.4/10. This track is about average than the year average. Explore more from the 2010s.

Explore by mood and tradition

Moods
contemplative · 3297heavy · 676introspective · 5721melancholy · 5399
Traditions
dubstep · 23electronic · 918hip-hop · 800

Why this rating

We rate this song Moderate because it falls between our Safe and Intense thresholds on at least one dimension. Moderate is the default for most well-produced music that has real arc but no surprise elements. Full rubric: methodology.

Rating last reviewed: 2026-04-14. Reviewed by the Music I Want editorial team against the documented methodology.

Think this rating is wrong? Email the editor — every message is read and ratings get revised.

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These songs share similar moods but with a gentler sensory profile.

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