Radical Sound Changes

[toymaker]

From the boogie-blues of Rush to the synthy pop of Grace Under Pressure in ten years. Has any other band gone through more radical changes in their sound? Genesis maybe?

 

Ten years seems like such a short period of time to release so many great studio albums. Took them almost 30 years to release the next 10 or so...

Edited May 5, 2016 by toymaker

[Lucas]

The 80s were like the black hole of Cygnus X1 for so many bands that had started in the 1970s, which can be directly attributed to ( or blamed on ) the advent of MTV ..

 

As much as fans what to justify what happened - esp in regards to Rush - the fact of the matter is that they completely changed their image, their music and their vibe in order to get mass exposure ...

 

So many bands did it, but the few that didn;t don't seem to have the same regrets ..

 

We listen to Geddy talking about that raccoon hair, and how embarrassing it is now - which is good for a laugh, and makes him come across as a loveable geek who was just kind of swept up in the moment ..

 

But the fact is that these were guys pushing, and into, their 30s, and they cast aside so much of what influenced them and what they had absorbed during the 30+ years of life, and tried, in a moment's time, to become a band that needed to keep up with what was going on at that moment ..

 

If you were to have asked Lemmy about what he did in the 1980s, he'd probably have no regrets - because he didn't have "his people" come in and dress him or feel the pressure to sell his soul for populatity ...

 

Yes, there is the issue of progress, and not wanting to repeat yourself as an artist ... With what happened in the 80s though, I call bull$hit on that

 

or should I say bull$$$$$$$hit

Edited May 5, 2016 by Lucas

[JohnRogers]

A lot of the bands that didn't evolve just got stale and boring, like for example...almost all '80s Hair Metal.

[Super25Smasher]

J. Geils Band

[Lucas]

A lot of the bands that didn't evolve just got stale and boring, like for example...almost all '80s Hair Metal.

 

That's true, but those bands were extremely limited to begin with

 

The few that attempted to go grunge and transform themselves into the 90s were pathetic

 

Rush could have grown and evolved in any direction - the disappointing thing is that they went from being revolutionary to being second rate

 

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Edited May 5, 2016 by Lucas

[Lucas]

And all of what Rush stood for - the individual standing up in the face of the masses and rejecting the pressure of conformity - all that flew out the window ..

 

 

[EagleMoon]

The popularity of disco in the 70's and then synth pop in the 80's was like the anti-Rush music of the time. Rock bands had a hard time surviving unless they morphed into something else. AC/DC is one aberration that I can think of that made it past that time.

[JARG]

ZZ Top did a big pivot in the 80s as well.

[JohnRogers]

And all of what Rush stood for - the individual standing up in the face of the masses and rejecting the pressure of conformity - all that flew out the window ..

I don't see it that way. I see three guys who claim they weren't metal just maturing, growing up, experimenting. They were never hit makers.

[Union 5-3992]

Anathema had a big change in sound throughout their career. From metal to atmospheric prog stuff

[ZornJedi]

Yes - has gone through quite the change over the years, still changing. Genesis changed over the years, and kept getting more popular as they changed. Porcupine Tree started out as a psychedelic project by Steven Wilson and ended up going through a Pink Floyd phase, rock phase, metal phase, before ending up as a progressive rock band. King Crimson has probably gone through the most radical changes over its career, and is still evolving. David Bowie would be another example.

[grep]

Zappa?

[JohnnyBlaze]

And all of what Rush stood for - the individual standing up in the face of the masses and rejecting the pressure of conformity - all that flew out the window ..

I don't see it that way. I see three guys who claim they weren't metal just maturing, growing up, experimenting. They were never hit makers.

I'm with you Rogers. Rush experimented with the other sounds of the day. They've done that throughout their career.

[Lucas]

The closest to my heart was the fact that I was a KISS fanatic since 1975, and while I did roll with I Was Made For Lovin You ( I was still only 12 at that point ), the short time between 1975 and the complete falling off the track in 1980-81 is still the biggest turn of a band for me ..

 

It is hard to imagine now, but in 1975 and '76, KISS were actually underground and the voice of rebellion for a lot of fans ..

 

That all changed very quickly .. My fanatical attachment to them stems from about 5 years of great music and inspiration

 

After that, they sucked just like any other band that sucked

[Lucas]

And all of what Rush stood for - the individual standing up in the face of the masses and rejecting the pressure of conformity - all that flew out the window ..

I don't see it that way. I see three guys who claim they weren't metal just maturing, growing up, experimenting. They were never hit makers.

I'm with you Rogers. Rush experimented with the other sounds of the day. They've done that throughout their career.

 

Yes, but they were more than just "sounds" in 1976-78

 

They were part of a rebellion and the voice of a lot of kids who didn't want to get on the conveyor belt

 

That all changed, just like it did with KISS

 

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

 

 

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I'm with you Rogers. Rush experimented with the other sounds of the day. They've done that throughout their career.

Edited May 6, 2016 by Lucas

[JohnnyBlaze]

And all of what Rush stood for - the individual standing up in the face of the masses and rejecting the pressure of conformity - all that flew out the window ..

I don't see it that way. I see three guys who claim they weren't metal just maturing, growing up, experimenting. They were never hit makers.

I'm with you Rogers. Rush experimented with the other sounds of the day. They've done that throughout their career.

 

Yes, but they were more than just "sounds" in 1976-78

 

 

Yeah, and nobody is disagreeing with that.

 

You didn't like Rush's sound in the 80s. Ok, I get it. You seem to be saying they were only about "sounds" in the 80s and lost their integrity. They've said countless times in interviews that they were influenced by the music of the day. It doesn't mean they sold out.

[toymaker]

I don't really mind that they changed and absorbed a lot of new sounds. They still wrote a lot of cool songs, and had that chemistry and reaching for something big.

 

 

 

(Speaking of Chemistry, I maintain that's a cool song. I know lots of people don't agree with me, but it's a unique tune.)

[Lucas]

And all of what Rush stood for - the individual standing up in the face of the masses and rejecting the pressure of conformity - all that flew out the window ..

I don't see it that way. I see three guys who claim they weren't metal just maturing, growing up, experimenting. They were never hit makers.

I'm with you Rogers. Rush experimented with the other sounds of the day. They've done that throughout their career.

 

Yes, but they were more than just "sounds" in 1976-78

 

 

Yeah, and nobody is disagreeing with that.

 

You didn't like Rush's sound in the 80s. Ok, I get it. You seem to be saying they were only about "sounds" in the 80s and lost their integrity. They've said countless times in interviews that they were influenced by the music of the day. It doesn't mean they sold out.

 

I have nothing against being influenced by what was happening at the time - one of my all time favorites singers in Stiv Bators left the Dead Boys and went on to Lords Of The New Church, who were very 80s - but he did it well, seamless and the music was still great ..

 

I just don't think Rush did it well .. it wasn't natural ... That doesn't mean I hate it - there is some decent stuff in there, but Geddy, Alex and Neil could have been so much more - they were so creative and adventurous, and could have done really good things ..

[Lucas]

What Rush did in the 1980s was gradual - it wasn't as shocking as a band like Celtic Frost, who put out Cold Lake and started dressing like Winger, which caused an uproar and lost a lot of their fanbase .. It's taken 20 years for Tom to get that back ..

 

Anyways, it wasn't just the 80s with Rush ... The video for Stick It Out is almost as bad as Superconductor - just an attempt to follow the grunge fad

 

I actually like 80s Rush a lot more than the stuff they did in the 90s

 

 

[JohnnyBlaze]

 

I actually like 80s Rush a lot more than the stuff they did in the 90s

Besides the rare psychopath, who doesn't?

[Pale Facsimile]

Drastic changes over the span of a decade? QUEEN, from 1973-1982. From a mostly normal-sounding rock debut, to the proggy Queen II, to the eclectic mixture of songs on Sheer Heart Attack, to the grandiosity of A Night at the Opera and Day at the Races, to the heavy rock of News of the World, to however the heck you can describe the 'Jazz' album, to the mainstream sound of The Game, to the gay-club dance nonsense on Hot Space. How's that for radical changes over just a decade?

[Segue Myles]

Lacuna Coil started out as a death metal band before being signed, and then released about thirteen years later a pop rock album in the vein of Linkin Park.

[HemiBeers]

If you don't progress as a band or musician, you become Ted Nugent (musicially, not politically). Seen any of Ted's shows? Pretty much the same as 30-40 years ago.

 

Now he's not even popular enough to play county fairs.

Edited May 6, 2016 by 2112FirstStreet

[toymaker]

Drastic changes over the span of a decade? QUEEN, from 1973-1982. From a mostly normal-sounding rock debut, to the proggy Queen II, to the eclectic mixture of songs on Sheer Heart Attack, to the grandiosity of A Night at the Opera and Day at the Races, to the heavy rock of News of the World, to however the heck you can describe the 'Jazz' album, to the mainstream sound of The Game, to the gay-club dance nonsense on Hot Space. How's that for radical changes over just a decade?

 

Yeah, Freddie in particular was a pretty restless dude, musically, and John seemed to develop that fondness for funk and dance stuff (bass players . . . sheesh . . .)

[bluefox4000]

Don't know if anyone else said it Radiohead.

 

Kid A alienated so many people in 2000, lol

 

Mick