A once great rock band that broke up gets back together
September 26, 2015 3:51 PM Subscribe
What are some examples of bands that had a long hiatus and then got back together for a significant second incarnation?
and: What are bands composed of members of previously good bands? (Cream, Foo Fighters, Asia, Audioslave, Damn Yankees come to mind)
and: What are bands composed of members of previously good bands? (Cream, Foo Fighters, Asia, Audioslave, Damn Yankees come to mind)
How long is long? And how about a hiatus that wasn't a breakup?
Pink Floyd had 7 years between A Momentary Lapse of Reason and The Division Bell, both of which were huge successes with equally successful tours.
(20 years after The Division Bell, they released The Endless River, which in fairness can't be described as "significant" by anyone but true fans, as it was a studio project culled mostly from material recorded during the Division Bell sessions.)
posted by The Deej at 5:48 PM on September 26, 2015
Pink Floyd had 7 years between A Momentary Lapse of Reason and The Division Bell, both of which were huge successes with equally successful tours.
(20 years after The Division Bell, they released The Endless River, which in fairness can't be described as "significant" by anyone but true fans, as it was a studio project culled mostly from material recorded during the Division Bell sessions.)
posted by The Deej at 5:48 PM on September 26, 2015
I don't know if you'd call "Indie Cindy" significant, but the Pixies have had a pretty good second act.
Lou Barlow from Sebadoh was in Dinosaur Jr before J Mascis kicked him out. Matt Cameron now drums for Pearl Jam after spending most of his career in Soundgarden. Heck, PJ itself is a successor band to Green River (who also birthed Mudhoney) and Mother Love Bone. Wilco and Son Volt both rose from the ashes of Uncle Tupelo. Sugar from Hüsker Du. Big Audio Dynamite was Mick Jones from the Clash. I could probably think of others with some time.
posted by kevinbelt at 6:13 PM on September 26, 2015 [1 favorite]
Lou Barlow from Sebadoh was in Dinosaur Jr before J Mascis kicked him out. Matt Cameron now drums for Pearl Jam after spending most of his career in Soundgarden. Heck, PJ itself is a successor band to Green River (who also birthed Mudhoney) and Mother Love Bone. Wilco and Son Volt both rose from the ashes of Uncle Tupelo. Sugar from Hüsker Du. Big Audio Dynamite was Mick Jones from the Clash. I could probably think of others with some time.
posted by kevinbelt at 6:13 PM on September 26, 2015 [1 favorite]
Aerosmith were broken up for something like 5 years in the late 70s/early 80s
posted by koahiatamadl at 6:14 PM on September 26, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by koahiatamadl at 6:14 PM on September 26, 2015 [1 favorite]
Descendents have had several reformations, with hiatuses based on Milo's academic career. The rest of the guys play in All otherwise. There's a really good documentary on them called Filmage that is free to stream if you have Amazon Prime.
Black Flag has had a huge revolving door of members, most notably Keith Morris (who went on to found the Circle Jerks) and Henry Rollins (also, obviously, of the Rollins Band).
posted by Ufez Jones at 6:45 PM on September 26, 2015
Black Flag has had a huge revolving door of members, most notably Keith Morris (who went on to found the Circle Jerks) and Henry Rollins (also, obviously, of the Rollins Band).
posted by Ufez Jones at 6:45 PM on September 26, 2015
Sleater-Kinney went on an indefinite hiatus in the mid-00s and released an excellent album this year. I'd say that's pretty long.
posted by tonycpsu at 6:53 PM on September 26, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by tonycpsu at 6:53 PM on September 26, 2015 [2 favorites]
Metal bands:
Heathen sort of fits the criteria - they had two albums in the late '80s/early '90s, broke up for years, came back with an excellent album a few years ago.
Cynic - they never broke up but it was 15 years between their first and second albums.
Celtic Frost also sort of fits the criteria. They had a lot more than one album under their belt but it was 16 years between their then-last album and their comeback album which blew everyone away and a lot of people consider better than anything they'd done before. It's a seriously unbelievable album.
Broken Hope broke up for over a decade before getting back together with a different lineup and putting out another solid album. They also had way more than one album before the break up.
Little-known band Dr. Shrinker broke up for 2 decades before getting back together recently. They had some killer demos in the late '80s. Their first studio album (!) is coming out soon and I'm sure it won't disappoint so I am preemptively adding them to the list.
Satan's Host broke up for a few years but it was over a decade between their early stuff and when they picked up again, they've been active and putting out excellemt material since.
There's a band named Hell that put out some stuff in the '80s, broke up for two decades, and got back together and put out a top-notch album a few years ago.
I'll add others if I think of any.
posted by atinna at 7:04 PM on September 26, 2015
Heathen sort of fits the criteria - they had two albums in the late '80s/early '90s, broke up for years, came back with an excellent album a few years ago.
Cynic - they never broke up but it was 15 years between their first and second albums.
Celtic Frost also sort of fits the criteria. They had a lot more than one album under their belt but it was 16 years between their then-last album and their comeback album which blew everyone away and a lot of people consider better than anything they'd done before. It's a seriously unbelievable album.
Broken Hope broke up for over a decade before getting back together with a different lineup and putting out another solid album. They also had way more than one album before the break up.
Little-known band Dr. Shrinker broke up for 2 decades before getting back together recently. They had some killer demos in the late '80s. Their first studio album (!) is coming out soon and I'm sure it won't disappoint so I am preemptively adding them to the list.
Satan's Host broke up for a few years but it was over a decade between their early stuff and when they picked up again, they've been active and putting out excellemt material since.
There's a band named Hell that put out some stuff in the '80s, broke up for two decades, and got back together and put out a top-notch album a few years ago.
I'll add others if I think of any.
posted by atinna at 7:04 PM on September 26, 2015
For the second part of your question, since you mentioned Cream what about Blind Faith.
posted by irisclara at 7:04 PM on September 26, 2015
posted by irisclara at 7:04 PM on September 26, 2015
Phish broke up in 2004 and reunited in 2009. Since then, they've released several albums and have toured consistently.
posted by griseus at 7:11 PM on September 26, 2015
posted by griseus at 7:11 PM on September 26, 2015
Back to add Amon/Deicide - Amon changed their name to Deicide in 1989. The Hoffman brothers left Deicide in 2004 and reformed under the Amon moniker, put out a killer album a couple of years ago. Unusual situation.
posted by atinna at 7:12 PM on September 26, 2015
posted by atinna at 7:12 PM on September 26, 2015
Squeeze (well, really, Difford and Tilbrook) have broken up and reunited multiple times. They did some good stuff after the first reunion, even breaking into the US Top 40, with diminishing returns after subsequent breakups and reunions.
posted by JoeZydeco at 7:32 PM on September 26, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by JoeZydeco at 7:32 PM on September 26, 2015 [1 favorite]
My Bloody Valentine
A great band with three stellar albums in: 1988, 1991 and …… 2013
posted by stagewhisper at 7:33 PM on September 26, 2015 [4 favorites]
A great band with three stellar albums in: 1988, 1991 and …… 2013
posted by stagewhisper at 7:33 PM on September 26, 2015 [4 favorites]
How could I forget Blur?
No albums since 2003 and then their 2015 release is pretty solid.
posted by stagewhisper at 7:38 PM on September 26, 2015
No albums since 2003 and then their 2015 release is pretty solid.
posted by stagewhisper at 7:38 PM on September 26, 2015
Dexys midnight runners put out 3 stellar albums in the early 80s and released a 4th in 2012.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dexys_Midnight_Runners
posted by askmehow at 7:48 PM on September 26, 2015
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dexys_Midnight_Runners
posted by askmehow at 7:48 PM on September 26, 2015
NIN was on hiatus for a few years. So was Spinal Tap, if parody bands make the cut. Duran Duran recently bounced back after a 5-year break. Tough to say if it counts as a Velvet Underground reunion or not, but John Cale and Lou Reed scored a lot of great reviews with Songs for Drella.
posted by Ursula Hitler at 8:19 PM on September 26, 2015
posted by Ursula Hitler at 8:19 PM on September 26, 2015
Crowded House had their "Farewell to the World" show in 1996 and reunited in 2006, though Neil Finn continued to put out music, both solo and with his brother Tim.
Also Britpoppers James broke up in 2001 and reunited in 2007, with their most recent album released last year.
And I almost forgot Afghan Whigs! Defunct from 2001 to 2012, now back and just as dirty as ever.
(Why yes, I did watch a lot of Alternative Nation as a teen, why do you ask?)
posted by jacy at 9:52 PM on September 26, 2015
Also Britpoppers James broke up in 2001 and reunited in 2007, with their most recent album released last year.
And I almost forgot Afghan Whigs! Defunct from 2001 to 2012, now back and just as dirty as ever.
(Why yes, I did watch a lot of Alternative Nation as a teen, why do you ask?)
posted by jacy at 9:52 PM on September 26, 2015
Little Feat was apart for several years; reforming without Lowell George, who died shortly after they disbanded.
posted by coldhotel at 10:01 PM on September 26, 2015
posted by coldhotel at 10:01 PM on September 26, 2015
Guided by Voices broke up, got back together and released a few pretty good albums and then broke up again.
posted by mcmile at 11:12 PM on September 26, 2015
posted by mcmile at 11:12 PM on September 26, 2015
Slowdive vanished in 1995, then three of them continued as Mojave 3 for a while and then reformed again last year, and are working on a new record.
Suede disbanded in 2003 after a poor 5th album, Brett Anderson (vocalist) re-united with Bernard Butler (guitar in first two albums) as The Tears for a couple of years, and then in 2010 the Coming Up era line-up reunited and released a rather good record.
posted by lmfsilva at 12:12 AM on September 27, 2015
Suede disbanded in 2003 after a poor 5th album, Brett Anderson (vocalist) re-united with Bernard Butler (guitar in first two albums) as The Tears for a couple of years, and then in 2010 the Coming Up era line-up reunited and released a rather good record.
posted by lmfsilva at 12:12 AM on September 27, 2015
I came to say Wire and Mission of Burma. From the thread, Sleater-Kinney, too. All have put out really strong albums after being on hiatus.
posted by persona au gratin at 1:07 AM on September 27, 2015
posted by persona au gratin at 1:07 AM on September 27, 2015
Steely Dan.
posted by crLLC at 5:25 AM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by crLLC at 5:25 AM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
The Moody Blues went on a hiatus from 74 to 77.
posted by neilbert at 5:53 AM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by neilbert at 5:53 AM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
I am a die-hard Finn fan and the post-hiatus Crowded House output pales in contrast to their first 4 (5 if you count "Afterglow") albums. By the contrast, the "Dizzy Heights" solo album that came out 13 years after "One Nil" was pretty solid.
Not a rock band, but Kate Bush is probably the best example I can think of in terms of a musical act with significant artistic output with a long break in the middle. 1993 for "The Red Shoes" - then 2005 for "Aerial". And I'm not even a Kate Bush fan.
posted by kariebookish at 6:30 AM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
Not a rock band, but Kate Bush is probably the best example I can think of in terms of a musical act with significant artistic output with a long break in the middle. 1993 for "The Red Shoes" - then 2005 for "Aerial". And I'm not even a Kate Bush fan.
posted by kariebookish at 6:30 AM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
If you count bands that got back together solely to tour, The Replacements broke up about 10 years ago, but just finished a reunion tour that was, in typical Replacements fashion, a shambolic success.
posted by pdb at 8:21 AM on September 27, 2015
posted by pdb at 8:21 AM on September 27, 2015
Rush never formally broke up, but they did take a 5 year hiatus when drummer/lyricist Neil Peart lost his daughter and wife with a year.
posted by spinifex23 at 10:06 AM on September 27, 2015
posted by spinifex23 at 10:06 AM on September 27, 2015
Van der Graaf Generator brought out their album The Quiet Zone/The Pleasure Dome in 1977 before going on hiatus, and returned in 2005 with Present.
posted by bleston hamilton station at 10:31 AM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by bleston hamilton station at 10:31 AM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
The Pixies come to mind, although their story is a little weirder than just getting back together, and while they've released EPs, they haven't yet released an album.
Blink 182 was on indefinite hiatus for nearly 5 years.
The Early November was on hiatus for four years.
Second question:
Transplants a weird punk-rap hybrid that featured Tim Armstrong from Rancid and Travis Barker from Blink-182.
The Mighty Forces of Evil was a ska supergroup.
I mean, there's a wiki page for supergroups.
posted by General Malaise at 10:36 AM on September 27, 2015
Blink 182 was on indefinite hiatus for nearly 5 years.
The Early November was on hiatus for four years.
Second question:
Transplants a weird punk-rap hybrid that featured Tim Armstrong from Rancid and Travis Barker from Blink-182.
The Mighty Forces of Evil was a ska supergroup.
I mean, there's a wiki page for supergroups.
posted by General Malaise at 10:36 AM on September 27, 2015
The Bee Gees had two phases, with a breakup ending the first. Their earlier, late-60s hits were mainly vocalized by Gibb brother Robin while Barry's falsetto voice was a key component of the sound of their later disco hits. The hiatus wasn't long, though -- only a few years -- but their second incarnation was more significant.
posted by Rash at 10:52 AM on September 27, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Rash at 10:52 AM on September 27, 2015 [2 favorites]
Swans. Reformed in 2010 after 13 years to release three (soon to be four) apparently successful albums, perhaps more successful than in their initial reincarnation.
posted by Richard Holden at 4:28 AM on September 28, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Richard Holden at 4:28 AM on September 28, 2015 [1 favorite]
There's a bunch of '90s UK bands which have reformed over the past couple of years, many of which have already been mentioned in this thread, to which I'd add Ride. (Though they haven't recorded or played any new material so far in their new form, as far as I know.) And (from an announcement on Twitter 10 minutes ago) we can now add Lush to that list. Yes, that's right ...
LUSH
posted by Sonny Jim at 5:14 AM on September 28, 2015
LUSH
posted by Sonny Jim at 5:14 AM on September 28, 2015
Styx was one of the biggest bands in the world in the late 1970s. After a break-up and several solo projects, they got back together, with both James Young and Tommy Shaw still part of the line-up. (Ricky Phillips, formerly with The Babys and Bad English, stepped in after founding bassist Chuck Panozzo semi-retired due to health concerns.)
The re-formed Styx has been touring heavily for the past 20 years.
posted by kristi at 10:24 AM on September 29, 2015
The re-formed Styx has been touring heavily for the past 20 years.
posted by kristi at 10:24 AM on September 29, 2015
Seeing Godspeed You! Black Emperor tonight- which reminded me of the fact they went 10 years between their first three albums and their last two.
posted by stagewhisper at 11:22 AM on September 29, 2015
posted by stagewhisper at 11:22 AM on September 29, 2015
« Older What's the trick to removing this lock? | Whom do you trust with your shoes and how? (West L... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 5:22 PM on September 26, 2015 [5 favorites]