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    "We hope you like our new direction …"

    As we all know, The Thamesmen and their antecedents straddled Merseybeat, psychedelia and heavy metal (and I'm not forgetting Derek Smalls' Jazz Odyssey. Or David and Derek's Saucy Jack).

    My question is, which other bands, disregarding the obvious, got away with similar shifts in genre, while following the Zeitgeist?

    I expect Midge Ure will pop up in this thread.

    #2
    I think we could argue the case for Talk Talk on here.

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      #3
      Spinal Tap's psychedelia to heavy rock transition is pretty much Status Quo, isn't it?

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        #4
        Slade of course, going from folky skinheads to full on glam. I think that one may be in Stumpy's "too obvious" realm though.

        Same with that mid-80s mass shift to stadium rock I mentioned in the Tears For Fears thread, most famously with U2 and Simple Minds.

        A better example may be A, who went from "a bit prog" to "quirky lyrics punk-lite" to full on nu-metal for Hi-Fi Serious, because it was the early 2000s by then so of course nu-metal.

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          #5
          Genesis from arty prog to MOR pop.

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            #6
            Coldplay from indie-lite to radio pop featuring assorted singers currently in vogue.

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              #7
              And of course Taylor Swift.

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                #8
                Darius Rucker has reinvented himself as a Country artist but still plays his Hootie & the Blowfish songs at gigs.

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                  #9
                  Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine now plays folk-type music, solo with an acoustic guitar as The Nightwatchman.

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                    #10
                    Tyrannosaurus Rex > T Rex would seem to fit the bill (unless they're too "obvious")

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                      #11
                      I'd think that the Bee Gees fit the bill, too, although again may be too obvious.

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                        #12
                        Take the tap-ins I reckon.

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                          #13
                          Snow Patrol took the Coldplay route only more so.

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                            #14
                            The Four Tops spent years as an unsuccessful jazz and lounge act before becoming the best pop band in the world.

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                              #15
                              Deep Purple, who started out as prog with added strings before hardening up into full blown-metal.

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                                #16
                                The Beloved - from Peel-type indie bedsit-janglers to blissed-out dance-pop. And a significant upturn in sales.

                                Sophie Ellis-Bextor - from introspective studenty indie-pop (as singer of theaudience) to full-on 'murder on the dance floor' pop glamour. And an even-more significant upturn in sales.

                                The Monks (UK edition) - from respected British pop-folk (via The Strawbs) to awful new-wave send-up merchants. Thankfully no significant upturn, etc.

                                As mentioned on t'other thread:

                                Thompson Twins - arty post-punk seven-piece to eighties pop sell-outs contenders.

                                Human League - similar story, but done bigger and better.

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                                  #17
                                  Although I'm on the record as loving Beauty Stab, ABC's first to second album progression would certainly qualify as a rapid (and largely unwelcome) change in direction.

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                                    #18
                                    The Sisters Of Mercy went from being "Gothfathers" to singng about "another motherfucker" pretty quickly.

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                                      #19
                                      The Cult. From “Electric” to the clean stadium rawk of “Sonic Temple”.

                                      Similar 80s Metallica to late 90s Metallica.

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                                        #20
                                        Japan's move from New York Dolls style glam rock to delicate New Romantic pretty boys should make the thread.

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                                          #21
                                          Toby and Ray might have a lot to say on this one, but Rush have gone through quite a few changes. Originally a hard rock outfit they then went full prog with a series of concept albums. When the 80s dawned they started to introduce a lot of synthesisers into their work before settling into a soft rock groove. There's even the odd splash of reggae but let's no go into that!

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                                            #22
                                            Originally posted by Sporting View Post
                                            Deep Purple, who started out as prog with added strings before hardening up into full blown-metal.
                                            Actually that was (at least) their second incarnation. Before that (the Kentucky Woman, Hush period) they were a kind of proto-glam outfit: dyed black big hair (except Jon Lord) and black eye make-up.

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                                              #23
                                              Status Quo and The Cult were the first that sprung to my mind but, also, The Shamen (from indie-crusty types to dance act), Judas Priest (hippyish prog types to proto-thrash-metal), Pantera (party glam metal to racist hardcore-metal) and, possibly most greatly, David Jones from winsome folky to glam to etc. etc.

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                                                #24
                                                Doves was the new name Sub Sub gave themselves when they dropped dance music and went for guitars and rock.

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                                                  #25
                                                  The Prodigy went from ravers to Nine Inch Nails tribute act.

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