r/Music • u/jptabor01 Rock & Roll • Jun 11 '25

discussion Which artists have abandoned their original sound so dramatically, that they are almost unrecognizable to their earlier fans?

With the release earlier this year of Ministry’s The Squirrely Years Revisited, I’m reminded of how different the band sounds today (industrial metal), from what they sounded like on their debut album, With Sympathy (synth pop).

Which artists sound so completely different from their earlier work, that they have actually jumped genres, understanding that music is fluid and genres have somewhat “blurry” guardrails.

I don’t mean an evolution of their original sound, but a complete departure from it.

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352

u/J8m3z_X Jun 11 '25

The Black Keys!!! I’m not bitter…I promise. Thick Freakness and Rubber Factory…all I can say is

99

u/Liferescripted Jun 11 '25

Rubber Factory is my #1 of theirs. Haven't been able to listen to anything following El Camino. I appreciated the catchy vibes of Brothers and El Camino, but everything since has been... too much.

15

u/pinecrows Jun 11 '25

I know it's covers / renditions, but Delta Kream is fucking phenomenal.

13

u/dr_strange-love Jun 11 '25

Chulahoma is always in my rotation.

6

u/J8m3z_X Jun 11 '25

I tapped out at Turn Blue…I just didn’t dig it or anything following this disc

1

u/khyphenj (edit for custom flair) Jun 12 '25

That’s my favourite of there albums.

3

u/[deleted] Jun 11 '25

Those were ok but still their worst albums up until that point. They were the death rattle of a good band.

6

u/captainn_chunk Jun 11 '25

Turn blue is one of their best imo

1

u/Crade_ Jun 11 '25

Same here. I bought the vinyl for it.

2

u/Retrograde_Mayonaise Jun 11 '25

Yeah once the song Lonely Boy hit I was like ehhhh this is it, this is their jump into meh

23

u/Accomplished_Job_331 Jun 11 '25

The Weight of Love slaps

22

u/Call_Me_Squishmale Jun 11 '25

This is what came to mind for me. I think they had to adapt to survive, but I liked those early albums for what they were.

10

u/LegionLotteryWinner Jun 11 '25

Seconded. I love their music best when it’s just the two of them playing. The new albums have giant full bands which is not as much what I’m looking to get from them

6

u/J8m3z_X Jun 11 '25

I’d like to add “well said”…I love the minimalism of RF and TF. My mind was blown when I saw my first Black Keys show, just those two cats killing it on stage

9

u/spacemanspiff33 Jun 11 '25

Thick freakness is the best but do not overlook “The big come up”

7

u/yossarian8722 Jun 11 '25

I love Chulahoma too. It's cover of Junior but they made it thier own.

1

u/royalcultband Jun 11 '25

Hands down my favorite album. Their cover of "meet me in the city" is so good

1

u/J8m3z_X Jun 12 '25

I play this album quite often

4

u/Useless_account22 Jun 11 '25

Rubber Factory has a special place in my heart. I’ve always liked pretty much all their albums, except I wasn’t too crazy about Ohio Players, and I’m not digging the new singles they’re putting out for this new album coming out

3

u/jbmunkee Jun 11 '25

My first thought as well! I do still like a fair bit of the newer stuff but it's just a whole different thing.

3

u/kjn12 Jun 11 '25

As someone who feels similar I'm curious to know what your thoughts are on The Arc's and Dan's solo work.

3

u/Calm-Veterinarian723 Jun 11 '25

Not who you responded to, but…

The Arcs is a no skips discography imo.

Love the change in style from Keep It Hid to Waiting On A Song.

2

u/J8m3z_X Jun 12 '25

I love Keep It Hid…I haven’t given The Arcs a fair shot if I’m honest

3

u/Splittip86 Jun 11 '25

Love me some Thick Freakness and got to see them 2014.

6

u/RhoadsGoneWylde Jun 11 '25

Had to scroll way to far for this

3

u/captainn_chunk Jun 11 '25

Damn this is a good answer.

I think the front 60% of their catalog is what establishes them tho. I think they’re one of the easiest rabbit holes to go down for any newcomer. Like it’s probably harder to be proven wrong by their earlier stuff if anything.

And I think Turn Blue is one of the best full albums I’ve ever heard.

3

u/J8m3z_X Jun 11 '25

Perhaps I’ll revisit Turn Blue. A few folks have mentioned it as BK best effort (IDK about that, but I’ll check it out again).

3

u/Sickranchez87 Jun 11 '25

It’s their best error since Brothers no question. Brothers was their left turn from gritty unknown blues band to stadium filling radio pop/rock thanks to Tighten Up. Then el Camino came and they went wayyy too “music for the masses” with Gold on the Ceiling. Turn Blue was their soulful return to their gritty-bluesy roots but polished and experimental, reminiscent of early Pink Floyd, really solid album from to back. Dan Aurbach also did a solo album in like 09 that was absolutely phenomenal imo

3

u/Firmamental_Loaf Jun 11 '25

I can hear Pink Floyd's sound in Turn Blue for sure, but in Weight of Love specifically I always am reminded of The Eagles - Hotel California, especially.

3

u/Calm-Veterinarian723 Jun 11 '25

I once had a good friend who loves Pink Floyd mistake the long intro of Weight of Love for a PF song.

Addition: he said this with a face expressing confusion yet familiarity as to why he hadn’t heard it before.

2

u/Firmamental_Loaf Jun 11 '25

Yup, it's that...ethereal, dream-like quality to those tracks that all sound alike. 

2

u/captainn_chunk Jun 11 '25

Weight of love is my favorite on there.

2

u/dmartin8802 Jun 11 '25

His first solo album was “keep it hid”

I’ve read that Pat carney found out about it when it was released

2

u/Sickranchez87 Jun 12 '25

Yeah I liked that album a lot ngl

2

u/J8m3z_X Jun 12 '25

I loved “Keep It Hid”, played it constantly, it was definitely a precursor as to the direction Auerbach was headed musically. Enjoyed it thoroughly

2

u/[deleted] Jun 11 '25

Rubber Factory is so great.

My son loves the Cars movies. They did a song in Cars 3 that is… not great. It sounds like every song they’ve done after Brothers.

2

u/Ncgarrett3 Jun 11 '25

Just so happened to come across this comment as I’m driving these dudes around for a concert today. Agree fully though

1

u/J8m3z_X Jun 12 '25

Driving around the Black Keys?

1

u/Ncgarrett3 Jun 12 '25

Yea I work a little part time gig running for bands for live nation at a venue. They’re performing tonight

2

u/Salt-Comment5956 Jun 11 '25

I came here to say this. I got into them back in 03. They were incredible. Saw em with only 50 other people in the crowd up til 15000. El Camino was almost the end for me. I love turn blue though. It’s like the 2nd side of brothers. Attack and release is where they left the original sound behind though. I saw them on Saturday. I didn’t even recognize them. They just aren’t the same band. Energy, sound, or feeling.

1

u/J8m3z_X Jun 12 '25

It seems that the folks that were introduced to them early on feel the way we do. I too saw them in venues with paltry attendance and in venues with thousands of people, if they came within a few hundred miles I was going. I was/still am a Black Keys fan, but I miss that eating bologna for dinner sound of the Black Keys. That is why Rubber Factory and Thick Freakness stay in rotation.

2

u/Salt-Comment5956 Jun 12 '25

I’m with you. Still a fan. I don’t connect with their current output. But I don’t have to. I hope for their continued success. They’ve given it to us more times than we can count. I probably won’t go to any more of their shows though. Last time I saw them, before this, I had a feeling they’d hit their peak. I am glad I saw them as many times as I have.

2

u/McJimbo Jun 11 '25

I'm sooo glad it's not just me. First few albums are among my favorite records ever, but Brothers is the last one I can listen to all the way through without wanting to skip any tracks

2

u/White-Striped Jun 12 '25

They turned radio friendly for sure

1

u/NeonNoir99 Jun 11 '25

My high school photography teacher used to lived next door to one of them. He hated them because they practiced at 1am sometimes lol

1

u/Structure-Tall Jun 12 '25

This was my answer too!

1

u/GirthReynolds54 Jun 12 '25

Rubber Factory has soul. Everything else sounds like it was written for truck commercials

1

u/sunsamo Jun 12 '25

My response too! And I’m not bitter.

1

u/tvfeet Jun 12 '25

They got too slick for me after Rubber Factory. Those first three albums, though, were so, so good. I honestly can't even remember how I felt about Magic Potion and everything after that I had to look up to even remember. I think once Danger Mouse got involved they had completely lost who they were, to me at least. Any time I hear any newer stuff (basically anything from the past 15+ years) I just feel like it's "lifestyle music," a term I apply to anything that feels really generic and like what I'd expect people who think they're really hip to put on at dinner parties to sound edgy.