Sophomore vs Debut

What 2nd album blew away a bands debut album? There are a few that I may like a little more than the debut. But what second album actually KICKS THE CRAP out of a bands debut?

The first and most extreme that I have been thinking about is Viking - Man of Straw over Do Or Die. Man of Straw was an absolute masterpiece, while Do or Die was a different kind of "piece".

I would also say:

Ride the Lightning over Kill Em All
Overkill over Motorhead [s/t]
The New Order over The Legacy
I'm a Rebel over Accept[s/t]
Knights of the New Thunder over TNT [s/t]

I could come up with a few more I am sure, but what are you thinking?

Off the top of me head I'd say:

Victims Of Deception shytes all over Breaking The Silence

Dark Angel's Darkness Descends completely annihilates We Have Arrived.

100% agree with both the Dark Angel AND the Heathen.

Another would be Spreading the Disease over Fistfull of Metal.

A couple of others:

Delirious Nomad butchered March of the Saint
and

This will be a VERY UNPOPULAR CHOICE, and even not staying with the root of my own thread or the ethical structure therein. But, In my heart Mob Rules OWNS Heaven and Hell [and HnH is brilliant!!!!!!]

Megadeth's Peace Sells over Killing is My Business.

Vicious Rumors' Digital Dictator over SotN
Fates Warning's NiB isn't as kicking as The Spectre Within
Obviously Judas Priest

Saxon -Wheels of Steel over the S/T
Dream Theater -Images and Words over When Dream and Day Unite

as always, my opinion is completely opposite of most peoples...

Legion > Deicide
A Small Deadly Space > War Of Words
Crucible > Resurrection
Blessed are the Sick > Altars of Madness
Sad Wings of Destiny > Rocka Rolla
Hell Awaits > Show No Mercy
Cause of Death > Slowly We Rot

Testament and Anthrax's sophomores better than the debuts? ... you guys are killing me!

Some goods one I agree with listed already, such as:

Slayer, Metallica, Anthrax, Priest, Megadeth, Dream Theater, Accept

I will add Barren Cross - Atomic Arena blows the doors off Rock For The King - I know Keith will agree with me!!!!

Crimson Glory - Transcendence blows away the debut, which is a testament to how good Transcendence is.

Opeth - Morningrise vs Orchid
Augury - Fragmentary Evidence vs Concealed
Atheist - Unquestionable Presence vs Piece of Time
Labyrinth - Return to Heaven Denied vs No Limits
Rainbow - Rising vs Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow

And these are all VERY good debuts....

One I think annihilates the debut completely is Nightwish - Oceanborn which is still my favorite from them by far.

Orion Crystal Ice wrote:

Rainbow - Rising vs Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow

Absolutely. Rising is a masterpiece.


The Last Command over W.A.S.P.
Last Command has the better songs: Blind in Texas, Cries in the Night, Running Wild in the Street, Jack Action, Bullcrusher, Wild Child...the debut has L.O.V.E. Machine, I wanna be Somebody and Hellion

I have to mention Blind Guardian, they got better and better with every album until Imaginations, so Follow the Blind was a lot better than Battalions of Fear.

Savatage also: I prefer Power of the Night over Sirens (The Dungeons are Calling was only a EP so it shouldn't count). I like all the songs of Power... while Sirens only has a few good songs, imo.

Also Shadow Gallery: Carved in Stone is a great album, while the debut was "only" pretty good.

Welcome to Sludge City by Annotations Of an Autopsy was pretty much a display of everything you could do wrong with the Death Metal/Core genre. But the second album blew it out of the water. Sadly, they've gone back to sounding like crap.

exact33 wrote:

Crimson Glory - Transcendence blows away the debut, which is a testament to how good Transcendence is.

I guess I really need to hear Transcendence then because the debut was instantly one of my favourite albums ever!

Spiner202 wrote:

I guess I really need to hear Transcendence then because the debut was instantly one of my favourite albums ever!

Transcendence is great, it's slightly above the debut (both are great albums)

Definitely agree on Rainbow, Metallica, and Slayer

A couple from me that some definitely won't agree with:

Pleasures of the Flesh over Bonded By Blood
Schizophrenia over Morbid Visions
Taking Over over Feel the Fire
Twisted Into Form over Forbidden Evil

Get Your Wings over Aerosmith
Set the World on Fire over We Stitch These Wounds (Black Veil Brides)
Shout at the Devil over Too Fast For Love
High N Dry over On Through the Night

man, I like 'The Last Command' but no wayyyyyyyy am I taking it over the debut. THE TORTUUURRREE NEVERRRRRR STOPS

Come late to this game and the good ones are gone.

Quote :

This will be a VERY UNPOPULAR CHOICE, and even not staying with the root of my own thread or the ethical structure therein. But, In my heart Mob Rules OWNS Heaven and Hell [and HnH is brilliant!!!!!!]

Don't know if I could pick out of the two, both are epic.

Here's a couple:

Night of the Stormrider over the S/T Iced Earth.

Weapons over the S/T Deliverance.

Sortilège's Larmes de héros over Mètamorphose. Both are fantastic albums, though.

Not metal, but Gentle Giant's Acquiring the Taste is much better than the self titled debut.

maudlin of the Well's Bath over My Fruit Psychobells... A Seed Combustible.

Kyuss's Blues for the Red Sun over Wretch.

Gorgut's The Erosion of Sanity over Considered Dead (another case of two awesome albums, with one being a bit better).

I actually prefer 'My Fruit..' and 'Leaving Your Body Map' both to 'Bath' ...

Nightwish
The Showdown
Hammerfall
Amorphis
Obituary
Judas Priest
Iced Earth
Grave Robber
Aerosmith
Sepultura
Anthrax
Damn Yankees
Dream Theater
Shadow Gallery
Edenbridge
Helloween
Jon Oliva's Pain
Khymera
King Diamond
Masterplan
Paradise Lost
Warrant
Rammstein
Rob Rock
Sacred Warrior
Shout
Sunstorm
Testament
Theocracy
Thunderstone
Xentrix

WatchTower - Control and Resistance
Believer - Sanity Obscure

Soundgarden's "Louder Than Love" over "Ultramega OK"

King's X - "Gretchen Goes To Nebraska" over "Out Of The Silent Planet"