So, I'm watching MTV Hits last week, and I almost spit out my Jack & Coke while watching a video. I am not sure if any of you have seen it, but Nelly Furtado’s new video Promiscuous has completely shifted Furtado’s sound, but to quote someone who doesn’t use proper English, “She done changed on us!”. Furtado used to have more of a light-alternative pop sound, perfect for the Lilith Fair (if it were still around).

All of a sudden, she’s turned into the newest R&B skank, popping her ass like Beyonce would in a video, and has a catchy new Timbaland produced hook behind her. The song is a smash, but something is smelly a little desperate about Furtado’s new found success. She has sold her soul, to sound like everything else popular today, and has probably avoided getting dropped from her label for at least one more album.

Looking at Nelly’s Hip-pop makeover, it reminded me of a few others, who have completely switched up their sound, strictly in order for the sake of record sales. Some of them worked better than others, but some have been just plain ugly. Here are some of those ugly ones:

• If you can remember the late 70’s (I was in a crib, sucking on my thumb); hard rock titan Kiss decided to make a disco song. I Was Made For Lovin’ You destroyed their sound, but gained a lot of Top 40 fans. But after that song, the damage was done, and the reign of Kiss was slowly starting to come to an end. That reign was ending, and the era of Gene Simmons trying to pimp everything Kiss related would begin.

• U2’s techno period was one to make a lot of people cringe. At the time, I didn’t mind it too much, but over time, it just seemed awkward. To watch Bono come out of a lemon on their 1997 tour looked a little much like Liberace with a 90’s makeover. We are happy U2 found their senses, and returned back to form.

• Remember the rockin’ Goo Goo Dolls? Of course you don’t. Back in the early 90’s, the band was a Soul Asylum-esque dependable alt-rock band. All of a sudden, they make a power ballad (Name), and they are selling records. Now, they aren’t remembered for their early days; but the sappy and gag-reflex inducing lite rock band they have become.

• Metal fans, what words can you think of when I say the words Stone Sour? Well, there are many that I can’t write in this article, but watching Slipknot lead singer Corey Taylor put out a power ballad (Bother), with his side band Stone Sour was appalling. Taylor tried to pass it off like it was a new Slipknot, but it sounded like the new Staind instead. And guess what? Slipknot’s album still sold more. This summer, Taylor will force us to sit through a new Stone Sour album. Guess what! I am turning their performance at the upcoming Family Values Tour in a silent protest against Stone Bore.

• And of course, who can forget the transformation Mark McGrath and Sugar Ray underwent in the late 90’s? Believe it or not, Sugar Ray used to be a metal band that used to tour with Korn in the early days. Their first album Lemonade & Brownies, was a mid 90’s hard rock guilty pleasure. I am sorry and in danger of losing any credibility, but 10 Seconds Down and Mean Machine are mindless fun. But all of a sudden, they release Fly, and the never ending parade of mellow hits commenced. It scarred us all.

Those are the stories of just a few groups who underwent changes in their sound, in order for the sake of album sales. There are hundreds of other stories that are similar, and this will always be something artists and their fans will have to deal with. One has to wonder what people will think of the unusual and impending ragtime explosion, with new singles by Outkast and Christina Aguilera using elements of the music of the 1930’s. Hopefully, it lasts for those two songs, and never comes back.

In that case, I would probably rather hear Promiscuous over and over again, than a comeback of the 1930’s. Any day…