For example, Pink Floyd’s Another Brick in the Wall part 1 and part 2.
Dream Theater has a song called Metropolis Part 1. Originally they didn’t plan to have any additional parts, but it worked out that eventually they decided to follow it up. Instead of a single song, they did a whole album: Metropolis Part 2: Scenes from a Memory. And I think it’s their best work.
Also In the Presence of Enemies Part I and II
Primus has the four Fisherman’s Chronicles songs.
- John the Fisherman
- Fish On
- The Ol’ Diamondback Sturgeon
- Last Salmon Man
Another thing that might count as an example is that Wings’ Band on the Run and Helen Wheels both mention a character named Sailor Sam.
Edit: Added to post.
It’s post-Primus but Les also has Rumble of the Diesel about fishing. Dude just loves fishin
I’ve got to find a digitally saved copy of the original Cheesy Primus Home Video (I lost the VHS years ago) because it included ample footage of the band on a fishing trip.
Sandstorm by Darude has a song right before it on his album called “the calm before the storm” and I actually enjoy it quite a bit.
Darude Sandstorm lore? Wow lol I’ll keep this on my list to listen too 😂
Tool Parabol - Parabola
Sounds interesting, I shall listen to this 😎
They’re not that popular compared to Pink Floyd or David Bowie, but there’s a band called The Dear Hunter that have 5 albums called Act I through Act V that are one continuous story of a guy’s life.
So in that sense every song on those albums are a sequel and prequel to every other, but some of the musical themes and motifs are more obviously reintroduced, referenced, and re-applied in new contexts as the albums go on.
They have albums that aren’t those 5, which are not in the canon, by the way.
What’s your favorite color? I’m torn between green and orange.
Honestly, I was kinda “meh” on the colours 😅
At first I thought it was maybe a “I like their earlier work” sorta thing, that can sometimes happen with bands, but when I looked up the release dates I was surprised to discover the spectrum came out between III and IV, but I like III and love IV and V, so I guess it’s not that!
I guess maybe the identity of the Acts is just enough that they have something colours lack for me? I don’t know what, but they’ve never grabbed me. Oh well, such is taste!
That is fair, They vary their style a lot, which I think is pretty cool, but when you like one thing and they change it…
After a while, I’ve come to learn why a lot of the popular artists have hundreds of songs but only 1-5 of them get played on repeat.
Yeah, I dunno, I like variety. And it’s not like the Acts are all one style, there’s quite a bit of variety within. I think the colours just felt… soulless? I didn’t hate them, I just listened all the way through and not a single track sparked anything in me. Again, it was okay, it didn’t offend me, but there just wasn’t anything there for me.
But that’s okay! I’m glad you dug it, and maybe I’ll give it another shot someday and realize I was wrong all this time!
David Bowie wrote a continuation to “Space Oddity” (“Ashes to Ashes”) and the original also inspired a few songs by other artists that directly reference it (“Major Tom (Coming Home)” by Peter Schilling, “Hallo Spaceboy” by Pet Shop Boys).
major tom also shows up in the music video for blackstar
deleted by creator
And a brilliant piece of trolling
Tap for spoiler
David Bowie: Hey Pet Shop Boys, wanna remix my reznor-esque “Hallo Spaceboy”?
PSB: alright
PSB: wtf there’s only one verse
Chris lowe: Fuckit, let’s cut up some of his stuff like he does to other artists
Neil Tennant: cackling[a few hours laterrrr]
Bowie: How’s my remix going?
PSB: Yeah we started cutting up Space Oddity
Bowie:…I’m coming over.deleted by creator
GUNSHIP
The Decemberists
The Crane Wife 1 & 2
The Crane Wife 3The Unicorns
I Don’t Wanna Die
Ready To DieHandsome Boy Modeling School
Look At This Face (Oh My God They’re Gorgeous)
Modeling SucksCan’t say I’ve heard of them, but I will listen to these, thanks for your recommendation 🤘🏽
Hold up, tech noir… 2??? Thank you so much for introducing this to my life
I’m recording this because the survivors no longer envy the dead.
The opening of tech noir 2 goes so fricken hard and really sets the radically hopeful tone of the song so well. Wasn’t expecting to see Gunship mentioned on here, but glad someone did.
Basically all of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard’s discography.
Rush: Cygnus X-1 books I and II. More of a two-part story, but kind of fits the question.
Tool - Parabol / Parabola
Tool - Intermission / Jimmy (although probably among their less popular songs)
Tool… Lost keys and Rosetta Stoned
Will give these a listen, always down for listening to different genres 👍🏽
The Smashing Pumpkins- “1979” and “Perfect”.
People said “Perfect” sounded so much like “1979” that the music video was intentionally made to be a sequel to the latter.
EDIT: The Smashing Pumpkins are my favorite band. If you can find a copy of Greatest Hits Video Collection (1991–2000) (a DVD collection of music videos and other goodies; acted as a companion to Rotten Apples), I recommend it. There is extensive audio commentary on the videos. For example, Stéphane Sednaoui who directed “Today”, claimed to had never listen to the song before the first day of filming. “1979” in particular had master tapes got destroyed after someone left them on the roof of their car, so the entire video had to be re-shot. “Perfect” commentary, Corgan makes the connection to the similarities with “1979”; all but one of the original teenage actors from the first video returned. There is a short film version of “Try” that featured a different ending to “Try, Try, Try”. A few live recordings are included, among them “Fuck You (An Ode to No One)” from the final Metro show when they broke up and “Geek USA” (a special mix that utilized maximum volume on the audio system).
To this day I still haven’t heard any of their songs, this might be the day I listen to their songs 😅
If you dive in, here’s one that I love that I feel is a bit of a departure from their more typical formula with some very pleasant strings
Didn’t they also have
The beginning is the end is the beginning & The end is the beginning is the end
?
“The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning” is an alternate version.
EDIT: The tracks on the single for “The End Is the Beginning Is the End” are all alternate versions.
Oh right on
Metallica has the unforgiven, unforgiven 2, and unforgiven 3
From the band Grandaddy (across about 15 years of releases):
Jed’s Other Poem is so fucking good
I like it when songs are connected to each other, like a big storyline kinda of thing, thank you for the recommendation 😎
Radiohead’s Creep, My Iron Lung, and All I Need
Radiohead is good, now there’s more to add to my list 🔥
Ozzy had “Crazy Train” and also “A.V.H.” which contained the lyrics
Riding on a train that I can’t control
One might say such a train was… crazy.
All abooooooooaaard!! R.I.P. Ozzy frfr 😞
This also reminds me of Nelly, his song E.I. the line says “I’m a sucker for cornrows” and then his song Shake Ya Tailfeather “I’m still a sucker for cornrows you know I never changed that”
