History WMG / ToddInTheShadowsTrainwreckordsDeconfirmedAlbums

* ''Music/PaulsBoutique'' by Music/BeastieBoys: Following their debut album ''Music/LicensedToIll'' and their departure from producer Rick Rubin and his label Def Jam, the Beastie Boys' follow-up abandoned the frat hip-hop that they pioneered on their debut and leaned largely into more extensive samples and a wide array of musical genres. Due to their label Capitol Records putting more effort into pushing Donny Osmond's {{self titled|album}} solo CareerResurrection and the public being alienated by the record, it became a major flop only managing to peak at #14 at the Billboard 200. However, the Beastie Boys pressed on and were back on top as hip-hop pioneers with ''Check Your Head'' and remained hugely successful throughout the rest of their careers. Today, the album is not only seen as the Beastie Boys' best album but also [[VindicatedByHistory one of the greatest hip-hop albums ever made]].

* ''Never Say Die!'' by Music/BlackSabbath: By the time the band recorded this album, they were badly running on fumes. The members were [[CreatorBreakdown wrestling with drug and alcohol problems]], while the recording process was an [[TroubledProduction absolute nightmare]]. It was ultimately Music/OzzyOsbourne's final record with Sabbath aside from ''13'' 35 years later. The album itself is widely despised by Sabbath fans due to its confused direction and barely even being a metal album in the first place. Fortunately for the band, they made a huge recovery on their next album, ''Heaven and Hell'', on which Music/RonnieJamesDio became their new frontman and the band emerged figureheads of the NewWaveOfBritishHeavyMetal. Osbourne himself found plenty of success as a solo artist, his career spearheaded by the metal classic "Crazy Train".

* ''Glitter'' and ''Charmbracelet'' by Music/MariahCarey: Released during the turbulent aftermath of Mariah's departure from Columbia Records, both albums were criticized for their poor vocal performances. Coupled with bad PR, including an infamous CreatorBreakdown on TRL, as well as her failed attempt at a Hollywood breakthrough ''Film/{{Glitter}}'' (which Todd has already given a scathing review), Mariah's best days seemed firmly in the past by the time ''Charmbracelet'' came out to mediocre reviews and no hit singles. Against all odds though, she reaffirmed her title as the biggest pop singer in the world with ''The Emancipation of Mimi'' in 2005. Furthermore, the ''Glitter'' album has seen something of a resurgence in recent years, with her fans successfully campaigning in 2018 to get it charting at #1 on the [=iTunes=] album charts.

* ''Blink-182'' by Music/{{Blink 182}}: While the album was a success with critics, fans were split on the new direction of the band. This, along with tensions within the band, caused their initial break up in 2005. Following their breakup, Tom [=DeLonge=] formed Music/AngelsAndAirwaves, while Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker formed +44. Blink reformed in 2009, releasing another album, ''Neighborhoods'', in 2011; however, [=DeLonge=] would leave Blink again in 2015 to focus on AVA, with Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio replacing [=DeLonge=].

** ''Music/NeverLetMeDown'': While it was another commercial success and spawned the fan-favorite single "Time Will Crawl", its cluttered production led to it being widely panned as Bowie's worst album. The record sold noticeably worse than ''Tonight'', the tour for it was critically reviled, and Bowie himself nearly retired altogether in the fallout. While he made a critical and commercial comeback in the 90's that lasted the remainder of his life, he never returned to the influence and relevance of his 70's period until after his death in 2016. Bowie's CreatorBacklash against this album was so strong that he repeatedly attempted to re-do it, culminating in a better-received posthumous remix in 2018.

* ''Splinter'' by Music/TheOffspring: The band already garnered backlash for moving to Creator/ColumbiaRecords and polishing their style, but this album was a major tipping point. Released in the twilight of the pop punk movement that they helped spearhead, the album was notorious for its MoodWhiplash-inducing mix of DarkerAndEdgier songs and DenserAndWackier ones, belying the greater balance of their peak period. Although the two singles were well-received, they weren't enough to save the album. While the band eventually had a couple more minor hits later in the 2000s, their American relevance as trendsetters mostly ended here.

* ''[[Music/MonsterREMAlbum Monster]]'' by Music/{{REM}}: While it has a lot of fans in hindsight, its [[NewSoundAlbum radical shift in style]] alienated both the band's core audience and most of the NewbieBoom they'd recently picked up, ultimately consigning them to middling success at best after they had become one of the biggest bands in the world during the early '90s. R.E.M. had long been accused of having [[SellOut sold out]] since they signed with Creator/WarnerBrosRecords in 1988, but the {{grunge}} approach on ''Monster'' raised them to a fever pitch: it wasn't until after the band's dissolution in 2011 that the album was VindicatedByHistory, though even despite that it is still a very common fixture at music sections in thrift stores. Todd's [[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1213120835734650882 tweets from]] [[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1213157017319346181 January 2020]] suggested that he considered covering it on ''Trainwreckords'' someday.

** ''One More Light'' by Music/LinkinPark: Nearly every album after ''Music/HybridTheory'' and ''Music/{{Meteora}}'' has always been [[BrokenBase a source of contention]] within the Linkin Park fandom about which NewSoundAlbum "ruined" the band; however, ''One More Light'' was thrashed by both critics and fans for being [[SellOut too pop-oriented]] and [[CreatorsOddball too far away]] from their alternative metal roots. Todd even appeared to imply on social media that he intended to make the album the subject of a Trainwreckord (or at least talk about it in some capacity), but Chester Bennington's suicide in July 2017 (only two months after his close friend Cornell did the same) made it join the "Obvious Reasons" list.

* Music/CyndiLauper:
** ''True Colors'': While it did not flat-out end her career as a sccessful pop singer, it wasn't nearly as beloved as her smash debut and decisively lost her battle for the title of "Queen of Pop" with Music/{{Madonna}}, whose rapturously acclaimed ''Music/TrueBlue'' album, released the same year, was setting her on the path towards immortality. Music/JanetJackson was already replacing Cyndi as Madonna's most potent rival, thanks to her groundbreaking breakout album ''Control'', and would prove to be much more evenly matched in the long run. Meanwhile, ''True Colors''' title track became a #1 and eventual gay anthem, while "Change of Heart" and a cover of Music/MarvinGaye's "What's Going On" were also major hits, but they aren't nearly as well-remembered today. The album itself only went Double Platinum, in contrast to ''True Blue'' going 7x Platinum and ''Control'' 5x Platinum. Todd [[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1124732056548847616?s=20 brought this]] [[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1124733987262488576?s=20 album up]] when discussing the disappointing performance of Music/{{Lorde}}'s ''Melodrama'' album, comparing it to Music/AlanisMorissette's ''Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie'' and noting that it was far less popular than her debut, despite producing a few big hits.
** ''A Night to Remember'': Despite the success of the leadoff single "I Drove All Night", this was a tremendous drop in both critical and commercial approval for this '80s pop megastar. The rest of the singles after the first went nowhere on the charts, the album's sales were underwhelming, and Lauper's career was permanently derailed except with the [[LGBTFanbase gay male community]].
*** Both albums jossed in the Music/HootieAndTheBlowfish ''Trainwreckords'', as Todd considered Lauper's decline normal for a pop star. This ultimately gave birth to the "Cyndi Lauper Effect", a term used to describe the mainstream decline of a musical act that wasn't caused by anything significant involved with said act.

* ''Queen'' by Music/NickiMinaj: While Todd liked "Chun-Li", this album ran out of steam rather quickly for Nicki Minaj standards and failed to chart any of its songs in Billboard's Year-End List for 2018, while Music/CardiB, whom she beefed with that year, surpassed her as the biggest female rapper of the day. Her friendship with 6ix9ine, including a heavily derided guest verse on his track "Fefe", only solidified her fall from grace with the public. Even when Todd put "Chun-Li" on his Best list in 2018, he simultaneously mentioned how she basically ruined her own career that year, stating that she had not adapted to changing trends in hip hop and had fallen out of touch with the narrative surrounding her. Amidst her continued decline in 2019, she apparently announced her retirement to focus on raising a family, only to continue making music anyways. Even with a guest verse on "Hot Girl Summer", Todd noted in his 2019 Best list that her career is on its last legs. In 2020, her 6ix9ine collaboration "Trollz" debuted at #1, but plummeted to #34 in its second week and set a new record for largest fall for a number-one debut that didn't drop from the list entirely. However, Nicki eventually worked her way to earning a number one hit on her own with "Super Freaky Girl" and would eventually have a successful follow up album with ''Pink Friday 2'' in 2024.

* ''Music/{{Encore}}'' and/or ''Relapse'' by Music/{{Eminem}}: Todd has referenced both albums as a low point in Eminem's career, the former being an instant drop in quality that led to a hiatus, the latter being a flop attempt at a comeback after said hiatus. Whilst he has previously elaborated on "Just Lose It" in his Top 10 Worst Hit Songs of 2004, ''Encore'' also had the infamously bad "Ass Like That" and ''Relapse'' is notorious for the single "We Made You". While he did make somewhat of a comeback in the 2010s, with "Not Afraid" and two collaborations with Music/{{Rihanna}} topping the Hot 100, Todd deciding to cover Madonna's ''American Life'' suggested at the possibility of an ''Encore'' episode due not only to Eminem's level of fame, but also because he similarly ceased to be a truly controversial figure in music after the album's release.

** Jossed, as Todd covered them on ''One Hit Wonderland'' instead.

* ''Razorblade Suitcase'' by Music/{{Bush}}: This follow-up to their 6x platinum debut ''Sixteen Stone'' was a notorious SophomoreSlump: their attempts at a DarkerAndEdgier sound completely backfired, not helped by the presence of producer Music/SteveAlbini drawing unfavourable comparisons to Nirvana's ''Music/InUtero''. Despite its chart-topping Stateside debut, the album only sold half as many copies as its predecessor and only its first two singles "Swallowed" and "Greedy Fly" (which had a notoriously long, expensive and [[MindScrew confusing]] music video) made much of an impact on the Billboard rock charts, and the band experienced diminishing returns ever since. On his Twitter account, [[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1449144771448999936?s=20 Todd has asked his followers if this album qualifies]], indicating that he's considering reviewing it.
** Likely Jossed, as Todd liked [[https://twitter.com/AlinaIsYou/status/1498779558224482306 a tweet]] positing that Bush were able to recover from ''Razorblade Suitcase''.

* ''Queen'' by Music/NickiMinaj: While Todd liked "Chun-Li", this album ran out of steam rather quickly for Nicki Minaj standards and failed to chart any of its songs in Billboard's Year-End List for 2018, while Music/CardiB, whom she beefed with that year, surpassed her as the biggest female rapper of the day. Her friendship with 6ix9ine, including a heavily derided guest verse on his track "Fefe", only solidified her fall from grace with the public. Even when Todd put "Chun-Li" on his Best list in 2018, he simultaneously mentioned how she basically ruined her own career that year, stating that she had not adapted to changing trends in hip hop and had fallen out of touch with the narrative surrounding her. Amidst her continued decline in 2019, she apparently announced her retirement to focus on raising a family, only to continue making music anyways. Even with a guest verse on "Hot Girl Summer", Todd noted in his 2019 Best list that her career is on its last legs. In 2020, her 6ix9ine collaboration "Trollz" debuted at #1, but plummeted to #34 in its second week and set a new record for largest fall for a number-one debut that didn't drop from the list entirely.
** Possibly jossed based on the "Trollz" Pop Song Review, where Todd said Nicki Minaj still has a large, devoted fanbase in spite of her declining reputation and was the key factor who helped that song get to #1.

** Presumably jossed because Todd tweeted that the album did [[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1302664499502047232?s=20 really well]].

* ''Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino'' by Music/ArcticMonkeys: They had reached arguably the peak of their influence thanks to the groundbreaking success of "Do I Wanna Know?" in 2013, only to go on a hiatus shortly afterwards. While their comeback album got good reviews for its eclecticism, it was also criticized for deviating too much from their previous albums. It was also a huge sales flop, only receiving a UK Gold certification (and no certification in America), whereas ''Music/{{AM}}'' had gone 4x Platinum in Britain and Single-Platinum in the US. However, following some of their older singles (and even non-singles like "505") receiving second wind thanks to Website/{{TikTok}}, their followup album ''The Car'', despite continuing on with the same sound and critical acclaim as the previous album, had three songs chart in the UK top 40 the week following its release, [[Music/TaylorSwift mainly]] [[Music/{{Midnights}} thanks to]] the UK charts' 3-song per artist rule.

* ''Music/{{Tusk}}'' by Music/FleetwoodMac: It was the first time the band's internal drama really hampered their commercial success. Their previous record, ''Music/{{Rumours}}'', is one of the best-selling albums ''of all time'', going 2x Diamond in America and remaining a landmark in pop history. ''Tusk'', however, had an extraordinarily TroubledProduction, with Lindsey Buckingham becoming a control freak and there even an entire studio being constructed just to record the album. It ultimately became the most expensive album to ever produce up to that point, but the subsequent sales were an enormous plunge compared to ''Rumours'', only going 2x Platinum. However, they quickly rebounded with ''Mirage'' and were still a very popular band in the '80s and had several more years of hits (some of which Todd has praised), not to mention this album has been largely VindicatedByHistory.

* ''Music/PaulsBoutique'' by Music/BeastieBoys: Following their debut album ''Music/LicensedToIll'' and their departure from producer Rick Rubin and his label Def Jam, the Beastie Boys' follow-up abandoned the frat hip-hop that they pioneered on their debut and leaned largely into more extensive samples and a wide array of musical genres. Due to their label Capitol Records putting more effort into pushing Donny Osmond's solo career and the public being alienated by the record, it became a major flop only managing to peak at #14 at the Billboard 200. However, the Beastie Boys pressed on and were back on top as hip-hop pioneers with ''Check Your Head'' and remained hugely successful throughout the rest of their careers. Today, the album is not only seen as the Beastie Boys' best album but also [[VindicatedByHistory one of the greatest hip-hop albums ever made]].

* ''Paul's Boutique'' by Music/BeastieBoys: Following their debut album ''License to Ill'' and their departure from producer Rick Rubin and his label Def Jam, the Beastie Boys' follow-up abandoned the frat hip-hop that they pioneered on their debut and leaned largely into more extensive samples and a wide array of musical genres. Due to their label Capitol Records putting more effort into pushing Donnie Osmond's solo career and the public being alienated by the record, it became a major flop only managing to peak at #14 at the Billboard 200. However, the Beastie Boys pressed on and were back on top as hip-hop pioneers with ''Check Your Head'' and remained hugely successful throughout the rest of their careers. Today, the album is not only seen as the Beastie Boys' best album but also [[VindicatedByHistory one of the greatest hip-hop albums ever made]].

* ''Smiley Smile'' by Music/TheBeachBoys: While their previous album ''Music/PetSounds'' is now regarded as a landmark of rock music in general, its ambitious [[GenreShift change in sonic direction]] not only caused deep tensions between Mike Love and the album's creative driving force Music/BrianWilson, but also alienated the band's traditional audience, not helped by the controversy they faced over "God Only Knows". To make matters worse, Wilson was already suffering from [[CreatorBreakdown severe alcoholism and drug addiction]], which would ultimately lead to him becoming a recluse for two decades. Due to these internal issues, the planned followup album to ''Pet Sounds'', ''Smile'', would not be released in any form until nearly half a century later.\\

* ''Prism'' by Music/KatyPerry: Similar to ''Be Here Now'' by {{Music/Oasis}}, the album was a success, boistered only by pure hype and artist goodwill alone, and reaction from both fans and critics was mostly ItsTheSameNowItSucks, with a lot of the songs considered mostly worse versions of the songs off of ''Teenage Dream'' to the point where it was even noticeable in the singles ("Birthday" just being "Last Friday Night", "Dark Horse" just being "E.T.", among other things).
** Todd covered the more obvious choice, ''Witness'', though in that video, he did mention that for all intents and purposes, ''Prism'' was probably the "real" trainwreckord, in that ''Witness'' qualifies for what he calls "the Delayed Flop", where something (''Prism'') manages to sell really well through sheer hype and artist goodwill alone, but nobody ''truly'' likes it and they end up paying for it ''big time'' on the next album.

* ''Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino'' by Music/ArcticMonkeys: They had reached arguably the peak of their influence thanks to the groundbreaking success of "Do I Wanna Know?" in 2013, only to go on a hiatus shortly afterwards. While their comeback album got good reviews for its eclecticism, it was also criticized for deviating too much from their previous albums. It was also a huge sales flop, only receiving a UK Gold certification (and no certification in America), whereas ''Music/{{AM}}'' had gone 4x Platinum in Britain and Single-Platinum in the US. However, following some of their older singles (and even non-singles like "505") receiving second wind thanks to Website/{{TikTok}}, their followup album ''The Car'', despite continuing on with the same sound and critical acclaim as the previous album, had three songs chart in the UK top 40 the week following its release, [[Music/TaylorSwift mainly]] thanks to the UK charts' 3-song per artist rule.

** ''Rave [=Un2=] the Joy Fantastic'': Of Prince's several failed experiments from the '90s, this is usually singled out as the biggest low-point, being an attempted comeback album that only served to drive ''more'' nails into the coffin for Prince's mainstream relevance. Between the seemingly random assortment of guest stars [[note]]It features [[Music/PublicEnemy Chuck D]], Eve, Music/SherylCrow, Music/GwenStefani, and Music/AniDiFranco on the same record[[/note]], all-over-the-place sound, goofy album cover, even goofier title, and promotional concert video ''Rave [=Un2=] the Year 2000'', this record would surely give Todd plenty of material to dig into. The album only had one single, which peaked at a dismal #63 on the Hot 100, and its subsequent two releases were both scrapped due to the record's failure. Although he eventually had both a critical and commercial comeback with ''Musicology'' in 2004, Prince's reputation remained damaged due to his conversion towards rabid Jehovism, negative views on homosexuality (a serious problem considering his [[LGBTFanbase overwhelming popularity with LGBTQ audiences]]), and draconian views on digital music. [[DeadArtistsAreBetter His popularity reignited after his untimely passing in 2016, though]]. Coincidentally, this career-destroying album came out in the year 1999. Todd even mentioned that this album's failure in his review for ''Crown Royal'' stating that while Clive Davis was able to help Santana and Whitney Houston get comebacks, he wasn't able to do it for Prince.

** ''Rave [=Un2=] the Joy Fantastic'': Of Prince's several failed experiments from the '90s, this is usually singled out as the biggest low-point, being an attempted comeback album that only served to drive ''more'' nails into the coffin for Prince's mainstream relevance. Between the seemingly random assortment of guest stars [[note]]It features [[Music/PublicEnemy Chuck D]], Eve, Music/SherylCrow, Music/GwenStefani, and Music/AniDiFranco on the same record[[/note]], all-over-the-place sound, goofy album cover, even goofier title, and promotional concert video ''Rave [=Un2=] the Year 2000'', this record would surely give Todd plenty of material to dig into. The album only had one single, which peaked at a dismal #63 on the Hot 100, and its subsequent two releases were both scrapped due to the record's failure. Although he eventually had both a critical and commercial comeback with ''Musicology'' in 2004, Prince's reputation remained damaged due to his conversion towards rabid Jehovism, negative views on homosexuality (a serious problem considering his [[LGBTFanbase overwhelming popularity with LGBTQ audiences]]), and draconian views on digital music. [[DeadArtistsAreBetter His popularity reignited after his untimely passing in 2016, though]]. Coincidentally, this career-destroying album came out in the year 1999.

*** Both albums jossed based on a tweet Todd [[https://twitter.com/CamDlxEdition/status/1498787083745468418?s=20&t=OrislwoDX6xGjfTcYqLQrA liked]], implying that he does indeed feel that the Beatles' downfall is too overexposed to dissect further.

* Jossed because of what Todd calls "[[https://twitter.com/ShadowTodd/status/1044333158605312000 Obvious Reasons]]"[[labelnote: Namely...]] A band breaking up because one of the main members commited suicide [[/labelnote]]:

* ''I Am Not a Human Being II'' by Music/LilWayne: Todd brought up in the Worst of 2013 video that Weezy had such a bad 2013 that he was forced to apologize for it, and his subsequent relevance didn't extend much beyond guesting on a few songs by other performers. Finally though, he [[CareerResurrection fully rebounded in 2018]]… when his long-awaited and well-received ''Tha Carter V'' landed four top 10 debuts.

* ''Artpop'' by Music/LadyGaga: Released in the wake of mounting HypeBacklash, the album hugely undersold, leading to the nickname ''Artflop'' and ending her dominance of pop music. As epitomized by leadoff single "Applause", the public felt that she'd become a self-parody and lost her former shock value. However, Todd stated in the ''Cyberpunk'' episode that Gaga still has a devoted fanbase, with ''Artpop'' eventually becoming VindicatedByHistory. Indeed Gaga managed to craft a new, more mature niche in the mid-2010's and returned to mainstream prominence and success as the decade continued.

** Todd covered their final album ''Crown Royal'' instead. He mention in his review that while the group was not suited for new jack swing at all, he felt they did have a respectable return to form three years later with ''Down with the King'' and that ''Crown Royal'' was the band's true nail in the coffin as he called it a trend-chasing disaster.

** Todd covered their final album ''Crown Royal'' instead.

* ''Back from Hell'' by Music/RunDMC:: Despite their legendary status for their work in the '80s, the rapidly changing trends in hip hop during the '90s were not kind to them. This record got poor reviews and had disappointing sales figures, signifying the end of their reign as trendsetters.

* ''Born to Reign'' by Creator/WillSmith: Todd hinted at this being Will Smith's career-killer in the "Back in Time" Pop Song Review, where he mentioned the huge failure of "Black Suits Comin' (Nod Ya Head)", the tie-in single to the poorly received ''Film/MenInBlack2'', and how Columbia Pictures was forced to replace him with Pitbull for ''Film/MenInBlack3'' ten years later. The only other single of ''Born to Reign'', "1000 Kisses" (a duet with wife Creator/JadaPinkettSmith), didn't even chart on the Hot 100.

* ''Born to Reign'' by Creator/WillSmith: Todd hinted at this being Will Smith's career-killer in the "Back in Time" Pop Song Review, where he mentioned the huge failure of "Black Suits Comin' (Nod Ya Head)", the tie-in single to the poorly received ''Film/MenInBlack2'', and how Columbia Pictures was forced to replace him with Pitbull for ''Film/MenInBlack3'' ten years later. The only other single off ''Born to Reign'', "1000 Kisses" (a duet with wife Creator/JadaPinkettSmith), didn't even chart on the Hot 100.