You didn't get it....but now you do.

[ElectricWiz]

Talking to Soundmaster recently, the phenomenon of suddenly "getting," a band you did not previously get came up. In particular we were chatting up Jethro Tull. Just like you, Soundmaster, I did NOT get them for a long time. I'll even admit to thoughts along the lines of, "What the hell's up with that guy with the flute?" Now, though, I hold them in the highest esteem. They are easily one of my top 5 bands or so, of all time. On many days I'd even put them at #1.
When first I heard Ozzy era Sabbath I didn't really take to it. I was steeped in Dio era stuff (and also had Diary of a Madaman and Blizzard of Oz), but the older stuff just seemed to archaic to me or something. Hey, it was the early 80s, and the "sound," of the time was what I loved. The modern Marshalls, the good production (the difference between Maiden's first album and Killers, for example, or Screaming For Vengeance and the early Priest stuff). Lo and behold, one day Volume IV went in and I was a goner.
There are bands I got right away, sure. Zeppelin, I tuned in on first listen. The first Guns n' Roses album was great in an obvious way to me at the time (I still don't like anything else they did). But many a band was lost to me on first listen.
So there's two for now, early Sabbath and Jethro Tull.

What say? Any bands you didn't get right off the bat?

 

[SoundMaster]

There are quite a few bands that I dismissed out-of-the-box only to totally fall for in later years. Recent examples are:

Motorhead. I always considered them to be nothing more than "noise". I even saw them open for Maiden a couple of years back and thought it was just a wall of distortion coupled with awful vocals. What the hell was I thinking? Lemmy & Phil are amazing musicians....the songwriting is honest and ass-kicking. They are, of course, the real deal!

Rush. I had the "Chronicles" hits collection for almost 15 years before EVER taking the band seriously. I always liked the 'hits', but for reasons unknown just assumed that the albums would suck. And I have no idea why i thought that way. Of course, they are now one of my all-time fav bands. Neil Peart is a god among men and they are truly a phenomenon.

Tull. Again, I had a hits collection for years - purchased mainly for the tune 'Aqualung' - but never ventured out into their back catalogue. Taking EWiz's advice (his musical tastes are superior!), I took a dive into the albums "Aqualung" and "Minstel in the Gallery". I'm STILL amazed at how awesome this band is. They literally do not waste a note - everything played has meaning and purpose. And they emit this awesome atmosphere that few other bands do. At this point, I only have 6 of their albums, but plan on completing the collection in due time.
They may not be metal, but i can see them as being loved by any metal fan.

Dream Theater. To make a long story short, after hearing 2005's "Octavarium", it finally dawned on me. They CAN write/compose songs. And, many of the songs do convey emotion (which, for years, I thought they had no concept of). I still have a hard time 'digesting' the "Awake" and "Seasons" albums, but everything else is awesome.

Blaze Bayley-era Maiden. Again, it was only in recent years that the genius of the "X Factor's" songwriting became apparent to me. Yes, the production is dreadful, yes Harris' production is comically bad and yes, Blaze vocals are below par (overall), but in spite of all that, the songs slay. If this album were to be remixed and Blaze were to re-do the vocals (his performance on his solo records have been phenomenal!), it would be a fav among Maiden fans.
Sadly, "Virtual IX" is just not as strong. In fact, it's probably my least fav Maiden record not named "Fear of the Dark".

 

[Soul of Ice]

Strange, I liked Jethro Tull from the first listen.

Here are the bands I couldn't get into right away
Nevermore - for some reason I didn't like the vocals on DNB at the time

Zero Hour - I loved the music but didn't dig the singer. Then over time I came to tolerate them, then really appreciate the nuances, range, and emotion.

Old and mid period Fates Warning - I think I am sensing a trend of originally not liking higher pitched singing.

Early Forbidden - I don't know what I was thinking.

Old Metal Church - In fact I need to get more early Metal Church.

 

[ElectricWiz]

Yeah, actually I didn't get Nevermore right away either. I liked some of what was on Dreaming Neon Black, but didn't altogether care for Dead Heart...
I now think all their albums (that I have anyway) are brilliant. That would be everything from Dreaming Neon Black till now.

I also didn't get Rush at first. A friend finally forced them on me in High School, and when it clicked it really clicked. I've had the good fortune to see them a couple of times and they were fantastic.

 

[Electronicoil]

In the '80's I loved hair metal and traditional metal like Judas Priest and Iron Maiden.

But thrash was too extreme for me and I didn't really get back into it until the late '90's. So there are a sh7tload of bands I didn't "get" that I now do.

 

[a guy...]

Not metal but at first I hated Pearl Jam back in the day, and now since like 2 years ago I'm a rabid fan.

 

[KMADD]

When I was younger i didn't care for bands like Molly Hatchet, Blackfoot,
Marshall Tucker, Outlaws and so on but in my mid 20's I'd really grew an
appreciation for Southren Rock.

 

[Wyvern]

What say? Any bands you didn't get right off the bat?

Zillions of them, as example some I consider at first listening and now they are :

Judas Priest
Iron Maiden
Metallica
Megadeth
Grim Reaper
Anthrax
Candlemass
Dream Theater

NP: Jorn - 'Sunset Station'

 

[Trans-Siberian Outcast]

Oh yeah, I am guilty of ignoring a band I later came to admire.

Ayreon is the first one that comes to mind. I first downloaded a few songs back in 2001, random tunes from Final Experiment and Electric Castle. I "kinda" liked them, but it wasn't until revisiting them a couple years later that I totally "got" Ayreon. Now they are my second fave only behind Savatage.

90's Iced Earth is another. I downloaded a few songs back in 2003 and I liked them enough to buy Dark Saga and Horror Show. For some reason neither album stuck. Last year I revisited those albums and I'll be damned if Dark Saga didn't kick my ass from pillar to post! I still only like half the songs on HS, but DS became one of my most played cds last summer. I've since gotten Something Wicked This Way Comes and it might even be better than Dark Saga!

NP: Morgana Lefay - Grand Materia