10 Bands That Ditched What Made Them Famous

There is probably no singular act that is as beloved and reviled in metal circles as Metallica. When the band broke out of the San Francisco metal scene in the early 80's, their sound would become the blueprint for all thrash metal going forward.

Though most fans would tell you any of the band's 80's output is mandatory listening for metalheads, the next few decades saw the band toying with their usual style. While the band reached for the gold with their self-titled album in 1991, the hardcore metalheads felt somewhat betrayed by the shift in sound. That betrayal seemed to be kicked into overdrive once the band unleashed Load and Reload, with songs that had more to do with blues rock and alternative music than metal. All this experimentation eventually reached a boiling point with St. Anger, with the band trying to become heavier and falling flat on their faces.

In recent years, the band seemed to be back in full force, with albums that never fail to bring back memories of the group's metallic glory days. Even if the band sounded less like themselves in the 90's, the music they created still holds up as some of the greatest hard rock of all time.