Hands Be Still
30s preview
- Key
- 7A · D minor
- BPM
- 79
- Double-time
- 158
- Open Key
- 12m
- Energy
- 5/100
- Pop
- 19/100
- Length
- 3:40
- Released
- 2013
- Genre
- Downtempo
- Loudness
- -25.0 dB
- Dynamics
- 15.5 dB
- ISRC
- GBUM71207833
Key, BPM and audio features: model-based audio analysis · how we measure · catalogue updated July 2026
Other versions
- Hands, Be Still - Remastered 2023original7A · 80
Hands Be Still runs 79 BPM in D minor (7A), a downtempo record. Tonally it lands brooding and low-slung. The groove is loose and less beat-driven. The mix is almost entirely instrumental. Its spectrum is centred in the low-mids, warm and bass-forward. The master keeps real dynamic headroom. The master keeps unusual dynamic range for club music (crest 16 dB). A 2013 production that still circulates in sets. More treble-tilted than 94% of Olafur Arnalds's catalogue. In a set it works best as a warm-up or breakdown cut.
- Brightness:
- darker than 87% of Olafur Arnalds's catalogue
- Tempo:
- slower than 75% of Olafur Arnalds's catalogue
Sonic profile
Frequency spectrum
amplitude · bass → treble
- 18%
- Low
- 30-130 Hz
- 46%
- Low-mid
- 130-570 Hz
- 32%
- Upper-mid
- 570 Hz-2.5 kHz
- 4%
- High
- 2.5-11 kHz
FAQ
What key is Hands Be Still in?
Hands Be Still by Olafur Arnalds is in D minor, or 7A on the Camelot wheel.
What BPM is Hands Be Still?
Hands Be Still runs at 79 BPM.
What mixes well with Hands Be Still?
From 7A it blends harmonically with 8A, 7B, 6A. Moving to 8A lifts the energy a step.
Is Hands Be Still good for peak time?
With energy 5 out of 100 at 79 BPM, it works best as a warm-up or breakdown cut.
Mixes harmonically
7A → 6A · 8A · 7BFrom 7A, 8A (A minor) lifts the energy a step; 7B (F major) brightens to the relative major; 6A (G minor) cools the energy down a step.
How to mix it
In 7A at 79 BPM: 8A (A minor) — move to 8A to push the floor harder; 7B (F major) — switch to 7B for a mood change without losing the groove; 6A (G minor) — drop to 6A to bring the room down gently.
Pitch range at ±6%: 74-84 BPM — anything in that window beatmatches without sounding stretched.
Key on the fader: without key lock (Master Tempo on CDJs), above roughly +5% it plays a semitone higher, so treat it as 2A rather than 7A; below -5% it reads as 12A. With key lock on, it stays 7A across the whole range.
Programming: a warm-up or breakdown cut — early set or after a peak to reset the room.
Similar tempo
Within ±3 BPM of 79 — beatmatch without a big tempo pull.
More downtempo
More from Olafur Arnalds
Full profile
Other recommendations
Beyond strict key and genre matches: tracks that still sit in beatmatch range of 79 BPM with a compatible energy and groove — candidates for a key jump or a genre crossover.
