To expand a bit on a former post where I was noticing that when a musician or band changes recording labels, their sound changes, sometimes dramatically. I wanted to make up a list of cases where I find this to be true.
| Band | Album>Album | Label>Label |
| Asia | Astra>Aqua | Geffen>IRS |
| Belinda Carlisle | Live Your Life Be Free>Real | MCA>Virgin |
| Boston | Don’t Look Back>Third Stage | Epic>MCA |
| Boston | Walk On>Corporate America | MCA>Artemis |
| Bruce Dickenson | Pretty much Any>Any | Mercury>Castle>CMC>Sanctuary |
| Emerson/Lake/Palmer | Love Beach>Black Moon | Atlantic>Victory |
| Kansas | Monolith>Audio-Visions | Kirshner>Epic |
| Kansas | Drastic Measures>Power | Epic>MCA |
| Kansas | Spirit of Things>Freaks of Nature | MCA>Intersound |
| Rancid | Life Won’t Wait>Rancid (2000) | Epitaph>Hellcat |
| Rush | Hold Your Fire>Presto | Mercury>Atlantic |
| They Might Be Giants | Factory Showroom>Mink Car | Elektra>Restless |
| XTC | Nonsuch>Apple Venus V1 | Geffen/Virgin>TVT |
| Steve Morse | Coast to Coast>Structural Damage | MCA>High Street |
| Genesis | Selling England>Trick of the Tail | Virgin>ATCO/Atlantic |
| Dream Theater | Most Any>Any | ATCO>EastWest>Elektra>Atlantic>Roadrunner |
Contrast that with some other artists that never changed labels and their sound/quality remained consistent:
Billy Joel: CBS/Columbia
David Lee Roth: Warner Bros (although his sound changed between Skyscraper and A Little Ain’t Enough)
Heart: Capitol
Ozzy Osborne: Jet/Epic
Queen: Hollywood Records
Sometimes the changes coincided with personnel changes, which could make sense. Sometimes, it was a turning point in the band’s popularity.
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