Most music listeners tend to generally know when their favorite bands and musicians come on while doing things like listening to the radio, a Spotify playlist, through a music player, or even while just out in public being played by others. There are just certain types of sounds we associate with artists based on what we've listened to and what we know about their work. Classic or contemporary, folk or blues, jazz or country, rap or alternative; the goalposts are usually set.

What about when they aren't rigidly in place? What about those times when a band or musician decides to take a complete left turn from where their discography traditionally leans, or where it ended up leaning as their career continued, especially when those tracks were ultimately successful and became highlight songs for these creators? Was there a particular creative, financial, or popularity reasoning behind it, or was it just the way the process worked out? Analyzing these elements is just part of the enjoyment of the artform, and sometimes learning to expect the unexpected - even from your favorites.

10 U2, "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me"

A Batman Forever Thriller

A track originally unused from the band's sessions for the 1993 experimental-leaning album Zooropa, U2 contributed "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" to director Joel Schumacher's 1995 film Batman Forever after U2 lead man Bono turned down a cameo in the comic book-based movie. "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" feels like a cousin to the open-mindedness of Zooropa but has a gothic rock heaviness that played well into Schumacher's claustrophobic, urban take on Batman and less into the typical U2 sound. It's more Smashing Pumpkins than The Joshua Tree.

This pivot worked out well for U2, as "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" reached the charts in multiple countries and was nominated for two Grammy Awards the year it was released. The song is still in and out of the band's live setlist rotation and was even parodied at one point by Weird Al Yankovic in his song "Cavity Search."

9 Katrina And The Waves, "Walking On Sunshine"

Bright Rays In The Gloom

"Walking On Sunshine" was a track released by British rockers Katrina and The Waves as part of their 1983 debut album, also titled Walking On Sunshine. Like a lot of Brit-rock types of the day, most of the Katrina and The Waves' sound was devoted to a moody, glam-inflected, pop-rock tone. They were more reminiscent of a band like Blondie's lighter rock moments than the darker shades of an '80s British group like The Smiths. That lightness came out at its brightest with "Walking On Sunshine," which sounds like a completely different group at their most buoyantly optimistic.

They were more reminiscent of a band like Blondie's lighter rock moments than the darker shades of an '80s British group like The Smiths.

Despite the band initially not caring for the song's uncharacteristically cheery gloss, "Walking On Sunshine" was a chart hit whose popularity continues on. It's also been a long-time favorite in advertising commercials as well as movies, giving Katrina and the Waves and their music life to this day.

8 Green Day, "Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)"

Young Punks Go Sentimental

Arriving as the second single from their 1997 studio album Nimrod, Green Day's "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" was the first major example that the group led by frontman Billie Joe Armstrong could be about more than just their trademark punk rock sound. The acoustic ballad written by Armstrong about the end of a relationship was first introduced on the band's 1995 LP Dookie, but was rejected for being too different in tone. Added along with some strings to Nimrod, "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" showed Green Day could also reflect as well as rage.

That introspection paid off handsomely for Green Day, as the song was not only a chart favorite but was used in media ranging from the finale of the TV show Seinfeld to the movie Deadpool & Wolverine. It also became hugely popular at high school graduations based on the track's themes of moving on from an experience and hoping you had the time of your life with what you had.

7 Len, "Steal My Sunshine"

Alt-Rockers Embrace Pop Sunshine

The Canadian alt-rock band Len certainly put out a record befitting the differing sounds of the '90s with the release of their third studio album, 1999's You Can't Stop the Bum Rush. There were fusions of rock, rap, and pop involved, but perhaps the most unusual song on the LP was the sugary-sweet sunny day pop anthem that was Len's take-off single, "Steal My Sunshine." Sounding like nothing else on Bum Rush, "Sunshine" was initially overlooked by the band and wasn't planned for release, but went on to become their lasting breakout hit.

The sugary-sweet song that featured a looped sample from the 1976 hit disco song "More, More, More" and surrealist lyrics dwelling on the feelings of hangover after a rave was promoted by being featured in the 1999 comedy flick Go. "Steal My Sunshine" later began to receive heavy radio airplay, which in time led to chart success and this initially unlikely song being accepted into the ranks of endless summertime playlists.

6 Mr. Big, "To Be With You"

Headbangers Make A Sing-A-Long

American rock band Mr. Big was known over the years for putting a pretty firm hard rock glaze on their songs, but that didn't mean the group was entirely without a soft side. Most notably, this gentler edge was most prominent with the release of their song "To Be With You" off of their 1991 album Lean into It. Kicking the electric guitars to the curb, prominent heavy metal-style guitarist Paul Gilbert shreds acoustically over lead singer Eric Martin's crooning vocals about wanting to save a girl from her bad choices of boyfriends against sharp band harmonies.

Kicking the electric guitars to the curb, prominent heavy metal-style guitarist Paul Gilbert shreds acoustically over lead singer Eric Martin's crooning vocals.

Originally, "To Be With You" wasn't intended to be one of the album's main singles, but after it received unexpected radio airplay and popularity, the band was forced to go with it. Mr. Big's "To Be With You" ultimately went number one in multiple countries, including the US, and is still held in the same territory as classic ballads.

5 Aerosmith, "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing"

An Armageddon-Sized Sound Departure

The only thing that might have been bigger than the plot of the 1998 disaster movie Armageddon was the size of the unlikely power ballad rock band Aerosmith released that year as the film's theme song, titled "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing." Originally, the band U2 was going to be asked to perform the song; the idea for Aerosmith to play "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" occurred after frontman Steven Tyler's daughter Liv was cast in Armageddon. Despite Aerosmith's reputation as riff-loving rockers, the commercial response to the deep romantic ballad was highly favorable.

In fact, "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" is Aerosmith's only number one single in the United States, also going to number one in several other countries after it was released. It also received an Oscar nomination in 1998, ultimately losing to "When You Believe" from the movie The Prince of Egypt. Nevertheless, "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" is still a popular decade hit that still receives plenty of radio airplay.

4 Kiss, "Beth"

Muted Beneath The Makeup

The band Kiss threw a serious curveball to fans of the outrageous glam-rockers with the fourth single "Beth" off of their fourth studio album, 1976's Destroyer. Shiny guitars and pyrotechnics were replaced with piano, acoustic guitar, and an orchestral backing as Kiss drummer Peter Criss purrs out a vocal worthy of his onstage Catman persona about coming home soon to the woman waiting so long for him. ittedly, "Beth" feels more like "A Day in the Life" exercise by The Beatles than a Kiss track, but it has a surprising level of charm.

Shiny guitars and pyrotechnics were replaced with piano, acoustic guitar, and an orchestral backing.

Despite initially mixed reactions from ers to the shift in sound on the song, "Beth" has gone on to be the biggest commercial hit Kiss has had in the United States. It also received a Gold Record certification from the Recording Industry Association of America, and served as motivation for future hairbands of the '80s to take a softer tone when trying to write a hit single.

3 Radiohead, "Creep"

A Band-Hated Grunge Anomaly

English rock band Radiohead had a very promising debut in the form of their 1993 album Pablo Honey. What was perhaps not expected of this introduction was that an initial fluke throwaway track from the Pablo Honey sessions called "Creep" would become a smash hit. Not just during the Pablo Honey years either; no, "Creep" has continued to define Radiohead's legacy almost as if it were their one-hit wonder. But maybe that was ultimately a good thing for the band, especially given they seem to hate the song and typically refuse to play it.

Radiohead's response to "Creep" and the popularity of its charmingly alienated mumble-grunge has been to turn and strive as hard as possible into electronic, conceptual experimentation and moving so far beyond the track sonically that "Creep" sounds like an entirely different group made it. That hasn't stopped "Creep" from racking up billions of Spotify streams and covers ranging from Prince to Kelly Clarkson, but it did help Radiohead build a legacy much deeper than the best of the '90s type of moment.

2 Taylor Swift, "Look What You Made Me Do"

The Darker Side Of Reputation

For fans of Taylor Swift who grew up with her pop country-leaning roots, it was a shift to see her more deeply embrace the shimmery veneer of pop with the vast popularity of her 1989 album. Swift's bigger left turn, however, was still to come on her sixth studio album Reputation with the release of the first single, the pop-rock-leaning "Look What You Made Me Do."

Propped up by a slithering bass line and lyrics savagely striking out at Swift's very public feud at the time with rapper Kanye West and his then-wife Kim Kardashian, the track feels nothing like the clean-cut image of Swift we've grown to expect. "Look What You Made Me Do" proved she could tread the dark side and her fans would still follow, as the single and Reputation were both wildly well-accepted and a staple during Swift's The Eras Tour.

1 Butthole Surfers, "Pepper"

An Alt-Rock Oddity

Alt-rock oddballs, the Butthole Surfers, have always stretched the alternative in alt-rock pretty far with their strange yet bombastically engaging catalog. Oddly, one of their most accessible songs is "Pepper," from their 1996 studio album Electriclarryland. Coming across as a faithful rave-up to the quirk of musician Beck's earlier discography, "Pepper" has this eerie sort of appeal that's a mix of hushed vocals and gallows lyrics about characters confronting disease, trauma, and death while living in Texas.

"Pepper" has this eerie sort of appeal that's a mix of hushed vocals and gallows lyrics about characters confronting disease, trauma, and death.

Despite the unlikely nature of the song, it went on to chart in the US and other countries and is still a favored staple of many different alt-rock playlists. Additionally, "Pepper" is still considered to be the defining hit of the Butthole Surfers' catalog.