7 times Musicians tried something Completely different

It’s standard that when a band or musician has established a style, they will often stick to it. For example, it’s not likely ABBA will ever release a death metal song, or Slayer will ever release a k-pop song.

Having said that, some artists have had their fair share of experimentation. And it usually works out pretty well. Let’s have a look at some musicians that tried something quite distant from what they’re known for, that still has their own flavour to it.

Whether any of them are a good thing or not… I’ll let you decide.

Blur – Song 2

Most music lovers will know Blur’s hit “Song 2”. It’s fairly heavy and grungey, and certainly helped them on their way to the level of popularity they’re at today.

However, if this was your first ever flavour of Blur, then you were probably either shocked or disappointed when you listen to the rest of their catalogue, since “Song 2” is pretty much one of its own kind for Blur.

Slipknot – Snuff

The Iowa 9 piece are known for their thrashy, industrial inspired nu metal sound and exploded in popularity amongst angsty teens in the early 2000s. Despite their aggressive and heavy origins, Slipknot are no strangers to a bit of experimentation.

While they already had 3 similar songs beforehand, it was their song “Snuff” from their 2008 release “All Hope is Gone” that probably caught people’s attention the most in terms of difference for the band. Instead of the usual heavy riffs, blast beats and yelling, Snuff sees a more power ballad approach with beautiful clean vocals.

Korn – Get Up!

Another early 2000s nu metal act, Korn have experimented a lot with their music. It was 2011’s “The Path of Totality” that really mixed things up though.

Fans weren’t too forgiving when Korn released their single “Get Up!”, which was produced by dubstep artist Skrillex. It saw a major shift in style by incorporating a lot of electronics to the music. Not all fans were close-minded about it though. I personally love it.

The entirity of “The Path of Totality” followed in the footsteps of electronics, but Korn have since returned to their original style since, making the album a one-off experiment.

Pendulum – Self vs Self

Fans of Pendulum are no stranger to the loud songs of electronic rock. One song in particular caught my attention personally though on their 2010 release “Immersion”.

Self vs Self sees the band team up with Swedish melodic death metal act In Flames. While the song still sounds like pendulum, the combination of drum n’ bass crossed with this metal style makes a rather huge sound, and (for me anyway) it really stands out as its own from the rest of the album.

Lou Reed & Metallica

A lot of Metallica fans will be in complete utter disgust right now. In 2011, the late and great Lou Reed teamed up with the thrash titans Metallica. The result was a collaboration album between the two, and it’s… well, it’s different.

While Reed fans may be quite happy with it, Metallica fans seem to have struggled with it. While Metallica has seen its fair share of style shift, this might be a step too far for that, as it appears to be catered more to people who are familiar with Lou Reed. Take a listen for yourself, see what you think.

Opeth – Heritage (and onwards)

Swedish band Opeth were established for their perfect blend of progressive rock and death metal. No other band has perfected such an interesting sound that caters for the old prog rockers as well as the metal heads.

That was until 2011 anyway, as Opeth appear to have dropped the death metal side all together. A lot of fans are disappointed with this, and the bands Facebook always has that token “do the roar” gif from Shrek on every single post.

Some fans are more forgiving though, and feel that the purging of death metal elements doesn’t take anything away from the quality of their music.

Radiohead – Creep

A lot of people that got into Radiohead may have heard their hit track Creep as their entry. With its huge sing along chorus, people were hooked.

Even though this song kicked Radiohead’s career in the right direction, they didn’t really stick with the loud-quiet style of this anthem. The band have changed their style quite a lot over time, leaving Creep to really stand out as its own song in their discography.

Has your favourite band done something drastically different to what you’d expect from them, and isn’t listed here? Let us know in the comments, as well as how it was received by yourself and fans alike!