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Sophomore album

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Sophomore album is a term for a band or artist's second album. It is a commonly held belief among music aficionados that this second album, rather than the debut album, is the release that actually sets the tone for an artist's career[citation needed]. "Difficult second album", "Sophomore Slump" or "second album syndrome" are terms used to describe when the follow up to a well-received album or film is a critical and commercial disappointment. Conquering the sophomore slump, in the sight of music critics, is often a sign of future success.

[edit] Causes of the sophomore slump/ second album syndrome

The sophomore release from a band or artist whose first album received widespread critical acclaim is often awaited with a certain amount of trepidation. The public usually expects that a follow up to a stunning debut will be just as good, if not better, than its predecessor.

A debut album is essentially that musical act's "best of" as they've most likely been writing for years and have chosen their top material. Traditionally, pressure from a record company will be high to put out a second album soon, however, the musical act has been quite busy performing live and making the press and publicity rounds so their second album has a lot less incubation time before production.

What could be viewed as a good second release might sometimes seem worse. The reason for this may be because the new material no longer breaks boundaries, which the first may have done.

[edit] Examples of sophomore albums

The listed albums are all sophomore albums, some of which were more successful than others.

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