Gimmie 5 bands - when you got into them, and when you became less of a fan

[Skeever]

Always feel like this is interesting, to see how people have developed their tastes over the years.

1. Creed

• When I got into them - 2000ish when "Higher" came out - I was twelve and I hadn't heard much music that aggressive and hard hitting before.
• When I got out of them - A few years later, after Weathered, when it became obvious that Stapp was a raging hypocrite. Also by then I was 14 and starting to discover the broader world of hard rock and metal.

2. Tool

• When I got into them - 2002ish, I think. Just exiting my Creed phase, and Lateralus felt like all the style of Creed but with so much more substance
• When I got out of them - Wasn't wowed with 10,000 Days when that came out, and also was feeling some fatigue from Maynard's bizarre personality. Shortly put, Maynard became a surrogate idol for me (what Stapp had been), and I realized he was also a flawed character. Thankfully after being a Maynard fanboy for a few years, I stopped worshipping rock singers altogether.

3. Dream Theater

• When I got into them - 2004ish, as my Tool phase was dying down and I moved on to discover even more music. Train of Thought hadn't been out long.
• When I got out of them - Systematic Chaos was the first disappointment to me, but I still would have bursts of extreme fandom with every release up until the Luna Park DVD. I got so hyped about Mangini, and wound up feeling disappointed by the much-delayed DVD. I still like DT, but I do yearn for the return of Portnoy, and just feel like something's missing without him.

4. Iron Maiden

• When I got into them - 2004ish, around the same time as DT. BNW and Dance of Death were my first albums.
• When I got out of them - Still a fan, but I feel like I've just lost interested in that old school metal style over the years. My tastes changed a lot from Final Frontier to Book of Souls

5. Opeth

• When I got into them - Sometime around Ghost Reveries
• When I got out of them - Sometime around Heritage. Honestly, not sure I ever really liked them to begin with, but always felt like I should due to the fact that almost every DT fan also like Opeth. So I haven't become "less" of a fan as much as I've just stopped trying to force myself to like them.

[SebastianPratesi]

1. Creed

• When I got out of them - A few years later, after Weathered, when it became obvious that Stapp was a raging hypocrite.

Why was that? I know next to nothing about Creed.

Alright - here's my list:

1. Blink-182

• When I got into them: In 2000. I was 10, and they eventually became the first band I was a fan of. My 11th birthday present was their live album in late 2000; since then, I bought every new music as it got released.
• When I (first) got out of them: In 2004. I bought their self-titled album when I was 14, but I didn't enjoy it as much as their previous music. Plus, I was beginning to get into older, classic bands (Aerosmith, Metallica, Soda Stereo) so I simply stopped caring about Blink for a while. That said, I've gone through phases - I re-discovered my love for them in 2008, from 2010-2013 (during their reunion), and a few months ago, with their new album (which I like a lot).

2. Soda Stereo

• When I got into them: In 2003. They were the first Argentinean band I discovered and loved. I was a huge fan from 2003 to 2005 - I bought every album/EP/DVD. Even though they had disbanded in 1997, I felt deeply connected to their music.
• When I got out of them: By early 2006 I had nothing else to listen to or buy from them, and I had listened to all of their music a lot, so it seemed natural to get into other stuff. In 2007 they reunited for a brief tour, and of course I went, but since then, I don't think I've cared too much about them. Cirque Du Soleil is preparing a show based on their music, which is expected to premiere next year, but I couldn't care less.

3. The Mars Volta

• When I got into them: In 2005, after reading a review of Frances The Mute. I had only heard "Inertiatic ESP" off their first album, but the review was enough evidence that the band's music was what I had been looking for for a long time. So, I went to buy Frances in early July, and it blew my mind - it's the best album released in that decade, in my opinion. I became obsessed with the band for a few years; I felt somewhat proud I was listening to this generation's Zeppelin/Crimson/Floyd/Zappa all in one.
• When I got out of them: In 2010. Eventhough Octahedron (their 5th album) features my favourite Volta song ("Desperate Graves"), the album as a whole didn't have me interested as much as their previous three. They released the follow-up 2 years later, and I bought it, but simply because of 'loyalty': in 2005, I promised to myself that I would buy anything they released, even if their music became simpler, 3 minute songs (which, in a way, they did: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avcE90WXEcE )

4. The Smiths / Morrissey

• When I got into them: In 2004. My parents had a radio compilation which featured "Girlfriend In A Coma", and I had read about the band in Rolling Stone, so I gave the song a listen. I found it incredibly lovely, and thought to myself that if all of their music was as poppy/catchy as this, then they'd probably become my favourite band. So, in late 2005 I got my hands on The Very Best Of The Smiths. Of course, not all of their music was as poppy/catchy as that song, but I became a fan anyway, and after I had listened to all of The Smiths catalogue, I started getting everything by Morrissey - starting in 2006 with Ringleader Of The Tormentors.
• When I got out of them: In 2010. I liked Years Of Refusal - his then current album. It had been produced by Jerry Finn (shortly before he died), so the music featured the classic pop-punk sound I loved/love in Blink. Still, I suppose listening to too much Morrissey and reading too many of his interviews/statements was becoming unhealthy for me. Plus, he was slowly turning into an asshole, and some fans at his shows in late 2009 annoyed him to the point where he insulted them or simply walked out of just-started shows. So, I consciously made the decision to stop listening to him altogether. (I did listen to his 2014 album, though, and I found it really interesting.)

5. Yeah Yeah Yeahs

• When I got into them: In 2010. Eventhough I had discovered their music as early as 2003 (with their caothic "Date With The Night" video), I hadn't felt enough interest in the band. So, in August 2010, I bought their (then) 3 albums the same day, and spent the whole night listening to them. I didn't like the debut too much (besides "Y Control" and "Maps", both of them amazing songs). But, I loved Show Your Bones and It's Blitz!. I loved the fact that each album had a completely different approach/sound from each other, and I loved the fact that the whole band was part of the writing/creative process. It felt like a democratic band (something which also attracted me to Dream Theater in the first place), so soon I started filling the gaps, and bought a couple of Northamerican EPs (their debut and Is Is) which had never been released in Argentina.
• When I got out of them: In 2013. I was anxiously anticipating Mosquito their 4th album, wondering what new, surprising sound the band would have now. It turned out Mosquito sounds (to me, at least) like a mix between the crazy, 'punk-ish' band of Fever To Tell with the electronic, synthetic sound of It's Blitz!. The artwork feels like that as well. I liked only 3 songs on Mosquito: the title-track, "Slave" and "Despair". I was bored by the rest - many slow songs which don't go anywhere.

[ytsejam58]

1 Metallica: Around 2009, or whenever Guitar Hero Metallica was coming out. I wasn't sure if I wanted to buy a whole game of Metallica music if I wasn't going to like it, so I went through discography, well from Master of Puppets through Load, because that's what I could borrow at the time. And oh my goodness! I loved Master of Puppets! ...And Justice is still my favorite album, Metallica is like their Moving Pictures, and Load is meh. From then on I keep searching for more of their albums. This was before I knew how to use the internet properly (cough cough, youtube everything hiccup!) so I resorted to each finding the CD's in stores or buy them from iTunes. I was obsessed with them for a couple of years, but after years and years of inactivity (they haven't released NEW material since 2010 for Beyond Magnetic.. and that was an EP) I'm just not hyped anymore.

This pretty much goes for any band. I get obsessed until I've listened to everything I could listen to and learn everything I can about them. But once I've heard and learned everything, I just get bored and move on.

2. System of a Down. Discovered them through Guitar Hero. Loved Toxicity, LOVED Steal This Album, Hipnotize/Mezmerize are good. and I still follow Serj Tankians solo stuff. But System of a Down as a band I just got bored with.

3. Tool. Honestly, this band is kind of a mystery for me. I was never that interested in their backstory. Their albums were just trippy AF and sounded amazing. But again.. nothing since 2006 so..

4. Yes: I am actually still pretty obsessed with Yes. But let's be honest, they are getting way beyond their age. Chris Squire passed away, sadly, Alan White is still in the hospital for all I know, Jon Anderson left, and I don't know what Rick Wakeman is up to. Really, Steve Howe is the only thing keeping Yes Yes. To me, everything from Yes to Relayer is amazing! Going for The One is when I started to shy away from them. Drama and 90125 are amazing too! but other than that, the last great album was Fly From Here... which was conceived in the Drama days so XD.

5. umm... Emerson Lake and Palmer. Everything from ELP to Brain Salad Surgery is amazing but after that, I don't know what happened. It's an amazing line of albums but it's just weird to think that from '71 to '74 are their only amazing years, 4 years. again, 4 years of music that is still amazing today... but that's it. Carl Palmer still kicks butt in Asia and RIP Keith Emerson... I don't know what Greg Lake is up to.

[Zantera]

1. Dream Theater
+First heard the band around Octavarium and liked what I heard, became a fan when Systematic Chaos came out (my first DT album) and they quickly became my favorite band back in 2007.
-Interest had started to decline in 2010 or so, with MP leaving I felt little excitement about the band. ADTOE was ok but I did not like DT12 at all, and could only get through 1 listen of The Astonishing. I still like their best albums, but half their discography is a miss for me at this point. I'll still give a new album a chance, out of curiosity.

2. Trivium
+Got into them back in 2005 or 2006, was listening a lot to their first two albums and The Crusade when it came out. Won a meet and greet competition in a magazine and got to hang out with them before a show. Shogun was a really great album that I enjoyed, and I thought it was their best album.
-After Shogun I just started losing interest. I got into more interesting music genres and I didn't get around to really listen to In Waves or any of the albums that followed since. From the little I have heard through singles, they're just not that great anymore.

3. Lacuna Coil
+Had a huge Lacuna Coil phase back in 2008 or so, and I will still defend their early albums, everything up until, and including Karmacode is really good IMO. Unleashed Memories and Comalies are both really great albums.
-Unfortunately the band went downhill after that and my interest really fell off the map. I enjoyed some songs on Shallow Life, but it destroyed most of my interest and I didn't get around to the albums following it.

4. Opeth
+Became a huge fan with the release of Watershed and they quickly rose to be one of my favorite bands between 2008-2010.
-Heritage was a disappointment and Pale Communion was not enough to fully recover it for me. I still like them, and I check out new music they put out, but the kind of music Mikael wants to make is not necessarily the kind of music I want to hear. Their last two albums are decent enough, it's just not really my cup of tea compared to what came before.

5. Iron Maiden
+Was a big fan of them around 2003-2006, leading up to finally seeing them live in 2006 on the AMOLAD tour, and then a year or two later when they did the Powerslave/Somewhere in Time/Seventh Son tour (not the Maiden England tour).
-The Final Frontier was a mixed bag and I was kinda going out of classic metal as a whole, with little interest to still listen to them. Book of Souls was good, but that kind of music is not really what I reach for anymore.

[Anguyen92]

1. Creed

• When I got out of them - A few years later, after Weathered, when it became obvious that Stapp was a raging hypocrite.

Why was that? I know next to nothing about Creed.

Well, essentially around 2002 or so, Stapp has started having "personal" problems where he was drinking a lot and was without a sound mind which really affected their tour.  There was this one infamous show in Chicago, in 2002, where he was so intoxicated and/or medicated that he was unable to sing the lyrics of a song and that caused quite the stir.  Eventually, that probably was the tipping point for Mark Tremonti and Scott Phillips where they knew being in Creed was not fun anymore and eventually lay the foundation that became Alter Bridge.

All right,  5 bands when I got into them and when I became less of a fan.

1. Seether.  I first heard about them when back in early 2008, WWE was doing a PPV and they were announcing who was in the main events of it and then came this song playing in the background called "Fake It" and I thought, "huh it had a nice sound to it, I want to hear more from them."  Then I heard songs like "Remedy," "Sold Me," "Broken," and "Rise Above This," and I was sold on them.  Found "Karma & Effect" to be one of my favorite albums from them, it's on my top 50 albums list and all. 

Then, I just find their latest two albums to be not that great.  They got some fine songs and all, but I think they are lacking something.  Mostly, the aggression and emotion captured in Shaun Morgan's  vocals that convinced me to be a fan of theirs.  I think I hear that too clearly, nowadays, and that sort of stuff separated them from a typical post-grunge band, imo, so if they don't have that distinction, I'm eventually going to forget all about them.

2. Saliva.  Same story goes as Seether.  Heard them through WWE.  Heard songs like "Click, Click, Boom", "Always", and "Ladies and Gentlemen" and I was sold on them. 

I honestly can't tell you how I became less of a fan.  Could be that as I was discovering bands like Shinedown, Skillet, and Black Stone Cherry, Saliva eventually just became less relevant to me.

3. Shinedown (disclosure, I still like these guys, but they did stuff that irks me that made me become less of a fan).  Same story goes as the above two bands.  Heard them through WWE.  Heard songs like "I Dare You", "Devour", and "Save Me", but I was really sold on them on "Diamond Eyes".  Really enjoyed their first two albums and respect the change they made and streamlined themselves to be more of an arena-sounding band in the form of their The Sound of Madness album (think Metallica and the changes they made which resulted in the Black Album.  It may not be exactly like their previous works, but they managed to modify their sound, but still retain a solid essence which pleases their fanbase). 

Unfortunately, then came Amaryllis.  It's not a bad album, itself, but I think I can see the writing on the wall when they had songs like "Bully" and "I'm Not Alright" which was way going more into a poppier Nickelback (in a bad sense) sound.  Then came Threat to Survival and I'm like, "Oh dear........" what has happened to the band I liked that created great albums like Leave A Whisper, Us and Them, and The Sound of madness.  Also, I keep hearing rumors that vocalist Brent Smith was miming, in live shows, on some of the harder vocal parts of the songs like "I Dare You" and "Diamond Eyes" and that he keeps talking a lot in between songs and it's just fluff encouragement stuff that does not seem too needed.  Another thing that irked me was that I heard word that when they were supporting Alter Bridge in Manchester, England in an arena, he talked so much in between songs that Alter Bridge had to cut out a song in their set, which resulted in their worst setlist of the tour. That angers me.  So, I'm not as much as a fan of Shinedown, nowadays, as I was back in 2011-2012.

All right, that's all I actually got for now.

[Stadler]

In no order....

Scorpions:  Got into them with Blackout, went back, got way into the Uli Roth years, but they started to lose me with Savage Amusement, and it got worse from there.  It just seemed like they were too calculated.  Albums like "Rockers and Ballads" were lame attempts to put the music in a box that for me, the best metal/rock didn't have.    I also like the straight ahead rock drumming of Herman Rarebell, and while his lyrics were absolutely cringe-worthy, there was a straight-forwardness that was sort of lost with James Kottak and the need for them to be "relevant" (Winds of Change; Humanity Hour 1).

Priest:  Got into them with Screaming...; they were my first concert ever (Maiden opening), and I was just all over their entire catalogue.  I even liked Rocka Rolla.   I loved Defenders, and even like Turbo (though there were cracks; that was basically a Kiss album in disguise) but they started to lose me with Ram It Down and Painkiller.  Not bad music, but they got rid of Dave Holland (before his scandal), and I know he's a pariah, but I loved his drumming.  At the point of Ram It Down, it just seemed they were becoming even more of a cartoon than they were before, and I was getting into Prog, so it wasn't a good mix for me.  EDIT:  I did rejoin the fold with Angel of Retribution; I dig the reunion stuff, even Nostradamus, and the new album is, in my opinion, killer

Marillion:   Got into them with Misplaced Childhood, and hit the Fish years hard.  Got all the singles, etc.; the one regret is that I had a chance to see them twice, once on the MC tour opening for Rush, and once on the CaS tour in Rhode Island and missed both because "they'll come around again".  Haha.  I finally did see them on the Season's End and the Holidays in Eden tours in small clubs in CT, and they were awesome.   Loved Seasons..., didn't care for Holidays, loved Brave, didn't care for Afraid... and HATED This Strange Engine.   I completely jumped off the bandwagon then and stayed off until the momentum of "Marbles" got me to dip back in.  At that point, I got the albums in between TSE and Marbles (which I generally like) and subsequently got into Afraid..., which I LOVE now.   Still hate TSE, it's my least favorite Marillion album by a long shot.  Though I have to say, since Marbles, there hasn't been a lot to love.  I don't much like the Michael Hunter material (MUCH rather have Dave Meegan back) and honestly, if FEAR isn't great, I might be off the bandwagon again.

Ozzy:   Got into him with Sabbath and the first solo album; the two Randy albums are legendary for me (Diary is a top ten album all time, any band).  I really like Zakk, and while it's more commercial, I love No More Tears.   It started to go down hill with Ozzmosis/Down To Earth - I feel like they are lacking in direction and focus.   He's completely lost me with Black Rain and Scream; I do not like what Kevin Churko has brought to the table; it just sounds so generic to me.  I'll still probably buy, just on the off chance that there is something good, but I'm off the bandwagon unless and until I hear something as bright and fresh as Blizzard, Bark..., ...Tears.   

I don't know if this counts, but the Dead.  I got into them only fairly recently, say, around 2000, when I really sat down and listened to Terrapin Station, and started to hear some of those legendary '77 shows.   I listened to the stuff around then, '76 and '78, then went back, like the '72-'74 stuff.  Even some of the '69-'72 stuff.  "Anthem of the Sun" is a great album.   I don't like Pig Pen (his "epic" spot, "Turn On Your Love Light" is a waste of 20 minutes, if you ask me, but they really lost me when the Godcheaux's left (well, Keith died).   Donna was useless (her wails were almost comical) but Keith brought something to that band that no other keyboard player has, and once he died, they lost me again.  I don't like much of the Mydland era, or the Welnick era, and I have not gotten on board any of the "post-Jerry" incarnations (though I had high, high hopes for the Warren Haynes version.  What I heard didn't deliver).  So, in short, I got into them after the point that they lost me, I just didn't know it at the time.

[TAC]

That's funny Stadler, but I hated the drumming of BOTH Rarebell and Holland. Thought they each held their respective bands back.

Ironically Rarebell has been awesome in Schenker's Temple Of Rock..

How can you not like Painkiller??

[Kotowboy]

2. System of a Down. Discovered them through Guitar Hero. Loved Toxicity, LOVED Steal This Album, Hipnotize/Mezmerize are good. and I still follow Serj Tankians solo stuff. But System of a Down as a band I just got bored with.

I loved the first two albums ( eventually. took a while for me to get into the band ).

Thought Steal! was a good album and enjoyed Mezmerize. But thought Hypnotize was horse shit and Daron had ruined the band. Scars on Broadway was worse.

[Zantera]

I was a big SOAD fan back in school when I was 14-15, and all their albums were played frequently in my rotation, but even back then the wait for new material was getting frustrating. Mesmerize/Hypnotize dropped when, in 2005? It's so bizarre to think about SOAD because I did listen to them so much back then, but that's like 10 years ago and there's still no sign of a new album despite them essentially being reunited as of 2010. I did like the Scars on Broadway album though, probably more than most. It had some catchy stuff on it.

[ytsejam58]

Yeah, I really didn't like how much Daron was taking Lead Vocals and Serj was being pushed to the side. To me, Serj's voice was so iconic and MADE System. I know Mezmerize and Hypnotize are like a double album though so I usually pair them together, Like Load and Reload, Juggernaut Alpha and Omega.

[SebastianPratesi]

I was a big SOAD fan back in school when I was 14-15, and all their albums were played frequently in my rotation, but even back then the wait for new material was getting frustrating. Mesmerize/Hypnotize dropped when, in 2005? It's so bizarre to think about SOAD because I did listen to them so much back then, but that's like 10 years ago and there's still no sign of a new album despite them essentially being reunited as of 2010. I did like the Scars on Broadway album though, probably more than most. It had some catchy stuff on it.

Have you checked out Serj's solo albums? I enjoy them as much as SOAD. I haven't listened to the last few (which he crowdfunded), but the rest are pretty good. Imperfect Harmonies might be the more interesting, with its use of orchestral and electronic elements.

Even Serart I think is great - one of my favourite albums ever, and it still surprises me that Columbia released it.

[Snow Dog]

Five bands immediately come to mind.  Three of them I'm regaining interest in since their latest material is more interesting again, the other two I'm not so much...

1. Dream Theater
Loved these guys when I was in high school.  Became a fan just before FII came out.  Loved everything up until Six Degrees' first disc.  The second disc and Train of Thought marked the beginning of a decreased interest as the needless wanking grew tiresome over the years.  And then Black Clouds hit.  I loved the intro riff, but that Portnoy growling section literally drew a laugh and I haven't taken them too seriously since.  I still have bought all of their albums hoping for that return to form, and DT12 was close, but I still haven't even put disc 2 of The Astonishing into my player due to my "Meh..." reaction to the first half...

2. Pain of Salvation
Became a fan around Remedy Lane.  Loved nearly all of their back catalogue.  Then BE came out which I still can't for the life of me get into.  Scarsick was okay, and the Road Salt albums totally lost me.  Haven't cared since.

3. Evergrey
This is where the list starts where there's been a resurgence of interest due to stronger efforts by the bands as of late.  I got into Evergrey around the Recreation Day period, and loved all the back catalogue again up to The Inner Circle.  Totally lost interest when they released Monday Morning Apocalypse for the next three albums as it was such a departure in sound.  Hymns for the Broken brought me back, though, and the upcoming album also seems to be pretty strong, so they're at least back on my radar.

4. Soilwork
Started listening to them around Figure Number Five, and again really liked all of their stuff up through Stabbing the Drama.  Really didn't like Panic Broadcast or Sworn to a Great Divide, but the last two releases by these guys have been absolutely killer.

5. Scar Symmetry
Started with them from their initial release.  Their first three albums are melodeath perfection.  And then Christian left the band and the next few releases didn't match up.  Their last effort in The Singularity is pretty good, but I'm still unconvinced if they're capable of regaining past glory.


One other mention is Vanden Plas.  Up to Christ 0 is some VERY strong material, but since that time I feel that it's been pretty bland overall...