Best/worst first al***s from a band

I find a lot of bands 2nd albums can be pretty crap. I have always assumed it was down to years of writing the songs for the first album and then when signed they don't have the same time to write.

A first album i listened to on my ipod on the way to work this morning is a good example. It was Silent Alarm by Bloc Party which i think is one of the best albums this decade however their follow up didn't really do it for me.

It can depend on the type of band, those with raw energy often make good first albums.

Sometimes someone has a new idea, and the first album is ground breaking and stands for itself in that way.

I have often found that fourth albums are my favourites for some reason, I suspect because the musicians have gained confidence, know how a studio works, but also are at a point where they wish to add something more to their repertoire.

Some examples of good fourth albums:
Led Zeppelin IV
Talk Talk - Spirit of Eden (truly ground breaking)
Radiohead - Kid A (having the confidence to see where else they could push themselves)
Queen - A Night at the Opera
Genesis - Foxtrot
Jethro Tull - Aqualung
Orbital - Insides

This might also be in part that they are completing a four album contract and have a little more freedom to experiment at this stage.

That said there are some great albums at every stage of a career, it just depends on the band.

Jamie

The fourth New Order album was "Brotherhood"so you could be right.

Jono

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The fourth New Order album was "Brotherhood"so you could be right.

Jono

Good album, but I prefer "Technique" (their masterpiece?).

For me their best was Low-Life.

I thought Waiting for the Sirens Call was surprisingly excellent.

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I was looking through my record/CD collection and found that some of best albums were the first outings for a number of bands.

This often the case it is all new and interesting on the first record.

If you consider Creedence Clearwater Revival then the first album was very good, the second album excellent, the third album a masterpiece, the fourth superb, the fifth good in places, the sixth very worthy and the seventh atrocious - after which they called it a day amongst much legal wrangling.

Spooky Tooth second album was the fantastic Spooky Two and the followed it with the ridiculous Ceremony.

Even the great Harry Nilsson made one duff, pointless album called Pussy Cats produced by the equally great John Lennon. Moral: making an album with lots of vocal gymnastics when you have acute laryngitis is not such a great idea. Still Harry's debut Pandemonium Shadow Show remains one of the best albums of all time. Did you know Nilsson's first single was Baa Baa Black Sheep, which he recorded as Bo Pete?

ATB Rotf