All the bands I loved in my life went stale

Springywheel · June 2023

Devin Townsend after Addicted/Ki

Very mediocre albums peppered with the odd gem. Empath was a step in the right direction - I haven't had a chance to fully digest the latest one, Lightwork.

PolarityMan · June 2023

I think he got a bit overboard with the layers. I find it hard to wrap my head around some of his really recent stuff.

fretmeister · June 2023

scrumhalf said:

All bands should disband or change personnel after their third album unless there's a very good reason not to

Pantera really didn't start making good stuff until their 3rd album.

fretmeister · June 2023

distressed said:

Philly_Q said:

I do agree with the basic hypothesis that nearly all bands go stale.

Bolded part is the key. I tried to check it with some of the bands I like, and whose careers spanned at least 20 years:

Nomeansno - killed it til the end. No weak spot in their discography, delivered live every time.

Dinosaur jr - at least solid albums with reformed OG lineup, very consistent.

Sonic Youth - at least solid albums til the end, also very consistent.

Bob Mould - see above.

The Necks - see above.

Guided by Voices - see above.

Yo La Tengo - see above.

...

If you start mediocre it's quite easy to maintain it though.

Vintage65 · June 2023

I follow music, not bands.

Philly_Q · June 2023

Vintage65 said:

I follow music, not bands.

Brief and to the point... but if you like a particular song or album, it must lead you to investigate that band's other material?

Vintage65 · June 2023

Philly_Q said:

Vintage65 said:

I follow music, not bands.

Brief and to the point... but if you like a particular song or album, it must lead you to investigate that band's other material?

Yeah, I'm inquisitive, but I'm not disappointed if a band lose their mojo. There is always the next thing, and the old music I like never goes away. I noticed early on that most bands go off the boil at some point, so enjoy it while it lasts. It's also fun to be late to the game and find a band with a decent back catalogue.

CaseOfAce · June 2023

lustycourtier said:

My first big love affair was Queen. For me their first 7 albums were, and still are pure gold. I was so into the band, but then they did that terrible Flash soundtrack, which inexplicably was marketed as a 'Queen album' rathe than a soundtrack (not good enough!). The first 7 albums all said 'nobody played synth', but for Flash Roger bought one, and then they were used from then on. The game just sounded like the wrong production to me, the next album was DIRE (Hot Space) and although the Works was sort of OK, they lost me. I have never even heard the last few albums.

Hot space is the only Queen record I can tolerate. Its got some great tunes.

For a start it's got Under Pressure.
I quite like Los Palabras De Amor as well - but I do find myself skipping the other Hot Space tracks on Live at the Bowl when I'm giving it a listen...
As I understand it, Freddie wanted to continue with the disco / funk direction and the rest of the band weren't so keen so... this was the album that resulted?

Cranky · June 2023

Gimmicky is too strong of a word, but I think the more gimmicky or specific the band is, the staler it’ll get and more quickly.

U2, Tom Petty, Willie Nelson, the Stones, Radiohead all have good staying power. Just regular old music.

Reverend · June 2023

fretmeister said:

scrumhalf said:

All bands should disband or change personnel after their third album unless there's a very good reason not to

Pantera really didn't start making good stuff until their 3rd album.

Power metal is the last one I listen to

axisus · June 2023

CaseOfAce said:

lustycourtier said:

My first big love affair was Queen. For me their first 7 albums were, and still are pure gold. I was so into the band, but then they did that terrible Flash soundtrack, which inexplicably was marketed as a 'Queen album' rathe than a soundtrack (not good enough!). The first 7 albums all said 'nobody played synth', but for Flash Roger bought one, and then they were used from then on. The game just sounded like the wrong production to me, the next album was DIRE (Hot Space) and although the Works was sort of OK, they lost me. I have never even heard the last few albums.

Hot space is the only Queen record I can tolerate. Its got some great tunes.

For a start it's got Under Pressure.
I quite like Los Palabras De Amor as well - but I do find myself skipping the other Hot Space tracks on Live at the Bowl when I'm giving it a listen...
As I understand it, Freddie wanted to continue with the disco / funk direction and the rest of the band weren't so keen so... this was the album that resulted?

John was the main funk man. They all decided to push that direction due to the massive success of Another one bites the dust. The album was unpopular with Queen fans generally though so they went back to ‘classic Queen’ with the Works.

ICBM · June 2023

I thought the big problem with Hot Space wasn’t the sound or the production, just that there weren’t any good songs on it, other than Under Pressure and Las Palabras De Amor - which are both on the Greatest Hits albums. But it’s a long time since I listened to it… I should probably get it for completeness since I own every other Queen album.

axisus · June 2023

ICBM said:

I thought the big problem with Hot Space wasn’t the sound or the production, just that there weren’t any good songs on it, other than Under Pressure and Las Palabras De Amor - which are both on the Greatest Hits albums. But it’s a long time since I listened to it… I should probably get it for completeness since I own every other Queen album.

I only played the album for the first week after release. Literally haven't played it since. Rubbish!

I have every Rush album on CD except .... Hold your fire. I HATED that album when released, and I didn't much like anything that came after, although I do own them all. Technically I do have HYF but it's vinyl. I will get HYF on CD one day, but I don't want to pay much for it!

Stuckfast · July 2023

As someone said earlier, it's definitely not the case with classical composers. So often the late works are the best. I wonder why that so rarely happens with rock bands?

XTC are one of the few who never got boring. Their final album Wasp Star isn't one of their best, but the two preceding it -- Apple Venus and Nonsuch -- are amazing.

Philly_Q · July 2023

Stuckfast said:

As someone said earlier, it's definitely not the case with classical composers. So often the late works are the best. I wonder why that so rarely happens with rock bands?

Because classical music is "serious" and rock music is naive, snotty and energetic? Of course that's a generalisation.

RocknRollDave · July 2023

axisus said:

ICBM said:

I thought the big problem with Hot Space wasn’t the sound or the production, just that there weren’t any good songs on it, other than Under Pressure and Las Palabras De Amor - which are both on the Greatest Hits albums. But it’s a long time since I listened to it… I should probably get it for completeness since I own every other Queen album.

I only played the album for the first week after release. Literally haven't played it since. Rubbish!

I have every Rush album on CD except .... Hold your fire. I HATED that album when released, and I didn't much like anything that came after, although I do own them all. Technically I do have HYF but it's vinyl. I will get HYF on CD one day, but I don't want to pay much for it!

I don’t get this. Hold Your Fire is by far not the weakest Rush album.

Philly_Q · July 2023

RocknRollDave said:

axisus said:

ICBM said:

I thought the big problem with Hot Space wasn’t the sound or the production, just that there weren’t any good songs on it, other than Under Pressure and Las Palabras De Amor - which are both on the Greatest Hits albums. But it’s a long time since I listened to it… I should probably get it for completeness since I own every other Queen album.

I only played the album for the first week after release. Literally haven't played it since. Rubbish!

I have every Rush album on CD except .... Hold your fire. I HATED that album when released, and I didn't much like anything that came after, although I do own them all. Technically I do have HYF but it's vinyl. I will get HYF on CD one day, but I don't want to pay much for it!

I don’t get this. Hold Your Fire is by far not the weakest Rush album.

@RocknRollDave ;Are you waiting for us to ask?

darthed1981 · July 2023

Philly_Q said:

Stuckfast said:

As someone said earlier, it's definitely not the case with classical composers. So often the late works are the best. I wonder why that so rarely happens with rock bands?

Because classical music is "serious" and rock music is naive, snotty and energetic? Of course that's a generalisation.

It's partly lifespan. Rock acts go from young and inexperienced to sweet spot to old nostalgia act within 20 years if they are lucky... and that's usually with some kind of hiatus.

Nobody ever forced most classical composers to do a stupid album, tour, album, tour cycle all over the world every three years either.

But also it's fair to say we these days generally only remember the top 1% of composers, if that. There were dozens of contemporaries of Mozart in Vienna, we know Salieri because of the play/film, but most are rarely recalled, played or part of the repertoire, despite being successful at the time.

It's vanishingly unlikely more than a handful of artists will be properly remembered from the current "rock" era - most of what we currently love, in historical terms, will prove to be mediocre and forgotten. A huge amount of it is already being forgotten as it's fans die off, you rarely hear Glenn Miller these days, let alone his less well known contemporaries.

RocknRollDave · July 2023

Philly_Q said:

RocknRollDave said:

axisus said:

ICBM said:

I thought the big problem with Hot Space wasn’t the sound or the production, just that there weren’t any good songs on it, other than Under Pressure and Las Palabras De Amor - which are both on the Greatest Hits albums. But it’s a long time since I listened to it… I should probably get it for completeness since I own every other Queen album.

I only played the album for the first week after release. Literally haven't played it since. Rubbish!

I have every Rush album on CD except .... Hold your fire. I HATED that album when released, and I didn't much like anything that came after, although I do own them all. Technically I do have HYF but it's vinyl. I will get HYF on CD one day, but I don't want to pay much for it!

I don’t get this. Hold Your Fire is by far not the weakest Rush album.

@RocknRollDave ;Are you waiting for us to ask?

No, I mean, all subjective anyway, innit.

I should rephrase my point:

I don’t see what is especially objectionable about this album.

Philly_Q · July 2023

For what it's worth, Hold Your Fire's my least favourite Rush album as well. Even when it was released I didn't like all the synths and the '80s production. Or the haircuts...

It all sounds very dated now, and when I think about it I feel as if I already knew how cheesy it was at the time. Which of course I didn't.

Ironically the only time I ever saw Rush live was on the Hold Your Fire tour.

axisus · July 2023

RocknRollDave said:

axisus said:

ICBM said:

I thought the big problem with Hot Space wasn’t the sound or the production, just that there weren’t any good songs on it, other than Under Pressure and Las Palabras De Amor - which are both on the Greatest Hits albums. But it’s a long time since I listened to it… I should probably get it for completeness since I own every other Queen album.

I only played the album for the first week after release. Literally haven't played it since. Rubbish!

I have every Rush album on CD except .... Hold your fire. I HATED that album when released, and I didn't much like anything that came after, although I do own them all. Technically I do have HYF but it's vinyl. I will get HYF on CD one day, but I don't want to pay much for it!

I don’t get this. Hold Your Fire is by far not the weakest Rush album.

Symbolically, it was the album that killed Rush for me, but it’s no worse than those that came after. The latter albums are all just a bunch of overproduced songs with way too many fx on the guitars, all songs the same length, no exciting long solos or tracks that change direction etc.

RocknRollDave · July 2023

Philly_Q said:

For what it's worth, Hold Your Fire's my least favourite Rush album as well. Even when it was released I didn't like all the synths and the '80s production. Or the haircuts...

It all sounds very dated now, and when I think about it I feel as if I already knew how cheesy it was at the time. Which of course I didn't.

Ironically the only time I ever saw Rush live was on the Hold Your Fire tour.

The look of the band at the time, oh yeah, absolute cringe. I can’t watch A Show of Hands.

But, I think other albums of theirs sound more dated and ‘Eighties’ than HYF.

I’m not trying to disagree with your point of view or challenge it, to be clear; it just surprises me, is my point.

viz · July 2023

Offset said:

lustycourtier said:

My first big love affair was Queen. For me their first 7 albums were, and still are pure gold. I was so into the band, but then they did that terrible Flash soundtrack, which inexplicably was marketed as a 'Queen album' rathe than a soundtrack (not good enough!). The first 7 albums all said 'nobody played synth', but for Flash Roger bought one, and then they were used from then on. The game just sounded like the wrong production to me, the next album was DIRE (Hot Space) and although the Works was sort of OK, they lost me. I have never even heard the last few albums.

Hot space is the only Queen record I can tolerate. Its got some great tunes.

I grew up on the first three Queen albums which were fantastic, especially Sheer Heart Attack which must be the most-played album I've ever owned. But I didn't buy another Queen album after SHA

Did they play it in G or D?

Offset · July 2023

axisus said:

Symbolically, it was the album that killed Rush for me, but it’s no worse than those that came after. The latter albums are all just a bunch of overproduced songs with way too many fx on the guitars, all songs the same length, no exciting long solos or tracks that change direction etc.

You've just summed up Rush's entire body of work for me I'm afraid.

Philly_Q · July 2023

Offset said:

axisus said:

Symbolically, it was the album that killed Rush for me, but it’s no worse than those that came after. The latter albums are all just a bunch of overproduced songs with way too many fx on the guitars, all songs the same length, no exciting long solos or tracks that change direction etc.

You've just summed up Rush's entire body of work for me I'm afraid.

Try the first album then, at least.

PolarityMan · July 2023

Reverend said:

fretmeister said:

scrumhalf said:

All bands should disband or change personnel after their third album unless there's a very good reason not to

Pantera really didn't start making good stuff until their 3rd album.

Power metal is the last one I listen to

I dont really listen to them at all anymore just because phil anselmo is such a bell end.

Philly_Q · July 2023

PolarityMan said:

Reverend said:

fretmeister said:

scrumhalf said:

All bands should disband or change personnel after their third album unless there's a very good reason not to

Pantera really didn't start making good stuff until their 3rd album.

Power metal is the last one I listen to

I dont really listen to them at all anymore just because phil anselmo is such a bell end.

He's been trying to clean up his image a bit recently, "disavowing" his past comments about "white power" etc. How genuine that is, I don't know. He is a bell end, but it hasn't stopped me listening to Pantera or Down occasionally.

axisus · July 2023

Offset said:

axisus said:

Symbolically, it was the album that killed Rush for me, but it’s no worse than those that came after. The latter albums are all just a bunch of overproduced songs with way too many fx on the guitars, all songs the same length, no exciting long solos or tracks that change direction etc.

You've just summed up Rush's entire body of work for me I'm afraid.

In all fairness, you can't really level that complaint at Moving pictures and all that came before.

hollywoodrox · July 2023

fretmeister said:

scrumhalf said:

All bands should disband or change personnel after their third album unless there's a very good reason not to

Pantera really didn't start making good stuff until their 3rd album.

A lot of bands I find the third album is a stand out which they build upon from then

sev112 · July 2023

Bob Dylan tried not being stale, but got a lot of grief for it !

Howdy, Stranger!

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All the bands I loved in my life went stale

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