4 Rock Bands That Took Their Sound in an Unexpected Direction

There’s nothing wrong with a bit of self-reinvention. Plenty of rock bands through the years have changed their sound, sometimes multiple times. The following four rock bands took their music in an unexpected direction, though, and it seems fans either love them or hate them for it. Let’s take a look!

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1. ‘PAX Am Days’ by Fall Out Boy

Fall Out Boy was one of the most well-known emo-punk outfits of the 2000s. It’s no secret that the band has changed drastically since the early years and is now a pretty direct arena pop outfit. 

Surprisingly, the band decided to throw everyone for a loop with the release of PAX Am Days in 2013. This is probably the harshest, most unabashed hardcore punk album the band has ever released.

2. ‘Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys’ by My Chemical Romance

This example of rock bands who took an unexpected direction with their music is this writer’s personal favorite of the bunch. Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys by My Chemical Romance was a notable departure from the doom and gloom of Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge and The Black Parade. 

In fact, one could say it totally lacks the emo elements that MCR was known for. Fans are divided on this final release from the emo-rock icons, but it’s such a fascinating dive into storytelling for the band. The visuals, similarly, are extremely entertaining.

3. ‘There Is A Hell Believe Me I’ve Seen It. There Is A Heaven Let’s Keep It A Secret.’ by Bring Me The Horizon

Bring Me The Horizon started as a deathcore outfit with their debut record in 2006. They’ve since turned into an electro-pop-leaning band. But between there and here, there was one album that didn’t seem to fit either extreme. 

There Is A Hell… was released in 2010 and can only be described as pure metalcore, complete with strings, piano, glitch editing, and other unlikely and monumental effects. 

4. ‘Grave New World’ by Discharge

Lots of hardcore punk rock bands go in an unexpected direction with their sound as they (and music as a whole) evolve. But Discharge went in a really different direction with Grave New World from 1986. 

A lot of fans believed they had sold out, considering how vastly different the album sounded from their debut Hear Nothing See Nothing Say Nothing. The differences are hard to ignore, considering the band started with aggressive hardcore punk and ended up in hair metal territory in just a few years.

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