By “important” I mean that it didn’t just become hugely popular, but it also changed a music genre or launched an entirely new one, or otherwise made a huge impact on music in general.
By “important” I mean that it didn’t just become hugely popular, but it also changed a music genre or launched an entirely new one, or otherwise made a huge impact on music in general.
Rum, Sodomy and the Lash by the Pogues. Seemless blending of punk and traditional irish music that’s still as raw and refined today as ever.
Pretty much anything by the Velvet Underground. They’re the quintessential “barely anyone came to their shows but everyone who did started a band” band.
Early Pixies - Surfer Rosa or Come on Pilgrim. Basically no grunge otherwise.
Probably everything by Sun Ra, but his earliest wrangling of electronic keys into jazz in like the 40s or whatever seems pretty consequential. Plus probably no P-funk as we know it without Sun Ra, which has heaps of knock on effects.