12 Hard Rock Bands That Quit In Their Prime
System Of A Down and the bands that stopped at the top...
Break ups are never an easy thing to do. Whenever bands decide to call it quits, it's normally at a time when the gas has run out and they don't feel that they have any more new music to contribute to their fans. On the other hand, plenty of bands have packed it in when the world was ready for SO MUCH MORE.
For one reason or another, these bands stopped putting out music at the one point where they could have blown us away. Sometimes, the reasons are legitimate given the loss of band members along the way, but on other occasions bands have just thought it better to put their future plans on hold rather than gracing us with another amazing record. While we have to respect the wishes of these artists, it doesn't become any less infuriating when they choose to break it off right when it was getting good.
A lot of these acts were even on the verge of something unprecedented when they severed ties, which looks utterly mind-boggling in hindsight. Even though some of these bands have gotten back together, we can only wonder how they could have built off of that initial sonic momentum.
12. The Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were a shock to the musical system in the mid 70's. While the Ramones were making waves with punk rock in the States, this group of misfits were taking the culture of ringing power chords and snide attitude to the streets of London. While the band made one hell of a start, everything came to a grinding halt way too quickly.
After the band launched a tour, they ended up firing bassist Glen Matlock, whose writing was all over songs like "Pretty Vacant." Already at a disadvantage, the band hired Sid Vicious, who both captured the typical punk stereotype from his gangly persona to his inability to play the bass coherently. This led to the tour being an outright disaster, with many band members falling prey to drug problems.
By the time they finally put an end to the US leg of the tour, everyone was so fed up with each other that the band disbanded, with Johnny Rotten forming PiL and Vicious sinking deeper into drug addiction until his eventual burnout. The Sex Pistols may not have been the most prolific band in the hard rock realm, but what they gave us helped shape the face of rock music to come.