Sophomore album better than first album?

[Ugly Nora]

..

[Achtane]

Pinkerton

[theactionindex]

The Appleseed Cast.

Mare Vitalis > End of the Ring Wars

[D.o.S.]

Pinkerton

+1.

off the top I've got:
Blues for the Red Sun - Kyuss
Come My Fanatics - Electric Wizard
Holy Mountain - Sleep
Death Walks Behind You - Atomic Rooster
Liquid Swords - GZA
Equal Rights - Peter Tosh

And arguably Liege and Lief, by Fairport Convention, although I don't know if I can really commit to that.

[Doctor X]

as well as the actual songs, sometimes the 2nd album also sounds better because they can afford better recording/engineering/mix/production/time

and variables to the formula include changes of personnel between 1st and 2nd, and releasing singles and EPs

Interpol - Antics>Turn On The Bright Lights
Air - 10,000hz>Moon Safari
Black Sabbath - Paranoid>Black Sabbath
Dream Theater - Images and Words>When Dream and Day Unite
Rush - Caress Of Steel>Rush
M83 - Dead Cities>M83
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Birds Of Fire>Inner Mounting Flame
Massive Attack - Protection>Blue Lines
Midlake - Van Occupanther>Bamnan Silvercork
Peaches - Fatherfucker>Teaches
Prefab Sprout - Steve McQueen>Swoon
Radiohead - The Bends>Pablo Honey
QueenAdreena - Drink Me>Taxidermy
Robin Trower - Bridge Of Sighs>Twice Removed From Yesterday
Santana - Abraxas>Santana

[Helter]

Air - 10,000hz>Moon Safari

Oh shit, I'll need to check out 10,000hz. I blindly bought Moon Safari on amazon for $8 and loved it.

[Doctor X]

Air - 10,000hz>Moon Safari

Oh shit, I'll need to check out 10,000hz. I blindly bought Moon Safari on amazon for $8 and loved it.

3rd one - talkie walkie - is even better!

[Doctor X]

from 10,000hz ,,,, love the line - "Moving, watching, working, sleeping, driving, walking, talking, smiling"

[D.o.S.]

Mahavishnu Orchestra - Birds Of Fire>Inner Mounting Flame

[sonidero]

Although both are my faves...

Loveless > Isn't Anything...

Also by slight margins...

Paul's Boutique > License to Ill...
Low End Theory > People's...
Mezcal Head > Raise...

I have a lot more...

[space6oy]

i totally disagree w/ the weezer & air albums.

nirvana - nevermind > bleach
failure - magnified > comfort

[sonidero]

nirvana - nevermind > bleach

I totally disagree with this...

[Ugly Nora]

Paul's Boutique > License to Ill...

Oh shit, son. That wins the thread.

as well as the actual songs, sometimes the 2nd album also sounds better because they can afford better recording/engineering/mix/production/time

See that is another reason I typically like the 1st album better. I listen to a lot of 70's/80's punk/new wave type stuff and I like the rawness of those early albums. Often times, subsequent albums became more polished which I think caused a diminished product. I guess some of that is not their fault, I am sure there were also pressure from their labels to polish the sound a bit more.

An example of what I am talking about...I don't know if you are familiar with Blondie, but their first 2 albums are very raw. Then on their 3rd album, Parallel Lines, shit got a lot more polished due to the producer. I still think it is a great album, but it is very different from their first 2 albums. And most people are just familiar with their songs from their 3rd album onward so they don't know the awesomeness they were before that.

[dase]

The Nation of Ulysses. 'plays pretty for baby' absolutely kills '13 point program to destroy america'.

[Bellyheart]

Very true!