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Bands/artists that had a massive change in genre from their debut album/early career?

H

hobblygobbly

Member
As per the title and do you still listen to them because the change is still something you find appealing? And by band I mean any group musical project, such as a hip-hop group or metal.

I have spent this week updating/reorganising my black metal collection (both digital and physical), and it prompted this thread because I realised I still listen to a particular band's early output but don't care about their later albums and output today.

In this case the band that prompted this thread would be Ulver. They went from an early career of black metal, to avant-garde/electronic music.

For example, here is a track from their early career, from their 1994 album "Bergtatt":
"Ind i Fjeldkamrene"

Here is a track from their 2017 album "The Assassination of Julius Caesar":
"Nemoralia"

An obvious difference.

I still listen to their album Bergtatt and Nattens Madrigal, but not their later albums.
 
D

disappeared

Banned
Talk Talk. And for the better.

Whenever I hear "It's my life" on the radio I'm fondly reminded of how Laughing Stock and Garden of Eden absolutely destroyed the boundaries of what a band can do if they simply choose to shrug off preconceived expectations and do what they want to.
 
L

lazygecko

Member
Huey Lewis and The News' early work was a little too new wave for my tastes, but when Sports came out in '83, I think they really came into their own, commercially and artistically. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound, and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost.
 
J

JadedWriter

Member
Level 42 started as a jazz fusion band of all things. The Cure was more punk rock oriented when they came out. Rush was more Led Zeppelin-esque when they first started. Dead Can Dance was less world music if I remember right, Cocteau Twins was less complex and relied more on the drum machine.
 
O

OBias

Member
lazygecko said:
Huey Lewis and The News' early work was a little too new wave for my tastes, but when Sports came out in '83, I think they really came into their own, commercially and artistically. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound, and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost.
Click to expand...

WvsD1uu.jpg
 
T

TheLetdown

Member
Screeching Weasal's first album was pretty direct mid-80s hardcore. Middle of the road for that genre. Their second and subsequent albums went to their Ramones-core sound that they stuck with, definitely for the better.

The Notwist started metal-ish and then became the indie melancholy electronica they were successful with, again for the better.

Someone might mention Jawbreaker in this thread. Dirtier to cleaner and caught a lot of shit for it. I prefer the early stuff, though.

Radiohead were always pretty boring. Later, they were boring. There was a middle period there where they were boring, too.

Modest Mouse transitioned from a Pixies-influenced incredible spatial sound of their best outputs, later settling into the scattered disco-ish hi-hat stuff of their later years. That's a change for the worse.
 
X

Xis

Member
Ministry -
Went from synthpop / new wave "With Sympathy"
to industrial / metal "Psalm 69"

Nine Inch Nails went through a slighter version of this as well.

There are also artists who have been all over the place, like Beck.
 
F

Fercho

Member
The first i could think of is Radiohead, they went apeshit with their experimental phase.

The Beatles started as mellow pop goody doody and then they transformed to some sort of progressive rock.

Marylin Manson started as Industrial and now i don't know what the fuck they are.
 
A

admiraltaftbar

Member
Bronx-Man said:
Didn't Katy Perry used to be a christian gospel singer like way back in 2001?
Click to expand...

It wasn't under the Katy Perry name was it? I think that if it wasn't it doesn't really count.

Otherwise you could say Jacob Bannon of Converge went from the post hardcore stylings of Converge to a more lo-fi emo band with his solo project Wear Your Wounds when in fact it's just different groups.

(Or the difference between Thom Yorke electronic albums and Radiohead's more organic electronically sounds)

Edit: Katy Perry's first album was under her name Katy Hudson.
 
L

LiveFromKyoto

Member
Every Madchester/Baggy band became Britpop. Most every original shoegazer band suddenly reinvented themselves as a straight ahead rock & roll band as soon as that went out of style.
 
M

mike6467

Member
theepicoftyler said:
Approximately 75% of hardcore/punk bands lasting over 3 albums in the last 30 years.
Click to expand...

Early AFI was playing in my headphones when I read the thread title, and my mind went the same direction. As you said there's lots of other examples in that vein, maybe not as drastic as some of the examples here, but still a lot of genre shifts.
 
J

Jeramii

Banned
Most bands who are together 10+ years seem to go through massive changes (or evolution). Pink Floyd, Radiohead, Mastodon, etc. etc.

I think it's easier to compare massive changes over a short period of time, and when I think about that I think of Grizzly Bear.

"Fix It" from the 2004 album Horn of Plenty.

"Gun Shy" from the 2012 album Shields.
 
D

DonShula

Member
Blondie

Gwen Stefani (could be argued all of it was just plain pop I suppose)

Jewel (isn't she a country singer now?)

Also I remember Nelly Furtado going from soft pop to singing on dance albums (I think)
 
C

Charcoal

Member
I'm sure gaf doesn't like him, but this is Yelawolf to a T. He started as a full on rap artist under Shady records, but has since changed his style to more of a country, folk-esque style.
 
B

besada

Banned
The Mountain Goats have gone from lo-fi recording in John Darnielle's basement to full orchestration, horn sections, synthesizer, whatever. The difference between Goths, their newest, and the early stuff is pretty big. Don't care though, and I love all of it.
Early: https://youtu.be/4IsXKMkDAMQ (Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton)
Late: https://youtu.be/anS6bcPpvoQ Rain in Soho

Same goes for Low, a band notorious for being slow and minimal and quiet, until suddenly they weren't anymore. It upset a lot of fans, but I enjoy both their slowcore stuff, as well as whatever you'd call what they do now, which is more produced, more instrumented, and less focused on slow drone.

Early:https://youtu.be/e3mB31w7QSw (That's how you sing) Amazing Grace
Late: https://youtu.be/2B1BrLiKMss Monkey
 
S

SoundLad

Member
collige said:
John Frusciante went from being a singer-songwriter and playing guitar for the Red Hot Chili Peppers to producing acid techno and wierd ass IDM like this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_d_yd4Rfm4

I can't think of a bigger switch than that
Click to expand...

I was thinking of John Frusciante as well.

I love his earlier solo stuff (Shadows Collide With People, The Will to Death, Inside of Emptiness, The Empyrean) but his last two solo albums moved onto a totally different (worse) direction, at least in my opinion.

Really a shame since those earlier solo albums hold a special place in my heart.
 
M

Morrigan Stark

Arrogant Smirk
Therion:

- Early days: occult death metal (awesome)
- Transition period: Celtic Frost-tinged symphonic metal (awesome)
- Modern period: symphonic/operatic metal (from awesome to okay, depending on album)

Except for the really recent stuff, all of it is quite good, too. The less said about their 2010's stuff the better. :p


Amorphis:

- Early period: death metal (awesome)
- Transition period 1: epic/proggy metal with some deathgrowls still (awesome)
- Transition period 2: prog rock (from okay to zzzz)
- Modern period: Kind of like transition 1, except more boring :( or I just lost interest, IDK


Samael:

- Early period: black metal (awesome)
- Transition period: ..."dark" metal? IDK (still awesome)
- Later period: electronic weirdness (from decent, to complete awfulness)
- Modern period: "return to roots" that isn't, just a mediocre, inferior version of their mid-period (boo)

Tiamat:

- Early period: death, doom/death metal (seeing a pattern... xD), solid
- Mid period: gothic metal (awesome)
- Later period: gothic rock (from OK to ewww depending on album)

Yeah, seein' a pattern... :D

GeordieMark said:
Pantera
Click to expand...
Good one. Too bad they turned to shit with their tough guy bro-metal. Glamtera is best Pantera, it is known.

Obscura said:
Ulver.

Started out playing Black/Folk Metal like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzZN_izexss

And for the last twenty years have sounded different on each album. Last album is a synthwave album. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waDN99JkFVk
Click to expand...
Good job on reading the OP... e_e
 
J

JadedWriter

Member
Fercho said:
The first i could think of is Radiohead, they went apeshit with their experimental phase.
Click to expand...
I actually prefer a lot of their post OK Computer stuff over their pre OK Computer stuff. Yorke got artsy and heavily into the more synth based aspects of music, I can't even complain. Pretty much if you start listening to a bunch of dream pop, trip hop and dark wave and stuff of that ilk experimental Radiohead won't even bother you.
 
B

Bread

Banned
Charcoal said:
I'm sure gaf doesn't like him, but this is Yelawolf to a T. He started as a full on rap artist under Shady records, but has since changed his style to more of a country, folk-esque style.
Click to expand...
jesus did he really? i liked his early stuff, that's a real shame.
 
K

kris.

Banned
S

ShemhazaiX

Member
Every metalcore band ever, though Still Remains ended up doing a 180 on their changes.

Also He Is Legend went from being post hardcore to a really weird thrash prog sound.
 
K

Kevtones

Member
disappeared said:
Talk Talk. And for the better.

Whenever I hear "It's my life" on the radio I'm fondly reminded of how Laughing Stock and Garden of Eden absolutely destroyed the boundaries of what a band can do if they simply choose to shrug off preconceived expectations and do what they want to.
Click to expand...

Winner.


I actually like some of their early stuff after getting into them via Laughing Stock. The Colour of Spring is legit.
 
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