Bands whose most iconic record is their first one, but which is also stylistically an outlier in their catalog

JAMC strikes me as a good answer. Feelies too.

I didn't think The Kick Inside was more iconic than The Dreaming or Hounds of Love, although I guess "Wuthering Heights" is a pretty iconic song.

Oasis

ban everyone

Surely there can't actually be that many actual examples of this. Imago is right, this often feels like people just listing the usual bands that crop up on these threads 'cuz they can't think of any actual examples. And no, Fleetwood Mac isn't a correct answer. Or Steely Dan.

The Damned

There probably are a lot of examples of this, but nobody cares because the band became completely obscure after the change. Something like The Bravery for instance.

Elastica (ducks)

There probably are a lot of examples of this, but nobody cares because the band became completely obscure after the change. Something like The Bravery for instance.

I would question how iconic the first album is in this case.

"What Goes On", man

I'll withdraw my offhand VU suggestion if no one agrees but I don't hear this song as all that weird and droney. It seems like a pretty straightforward upbeat rock tune to me, based on a variation on a standard 3-chord progression, at least compared to something like "Venus in Furs".

I would question how iconic the first album is in this case.

― My Body's Made of Crushed Little Evening Stars (Sund4r), 4. marts 2017 14:38 (twenty-five minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

It's definitely their 'most' iconic one, though...

Ha, OK

Casket Girls - first one is their best

A lot of shoegaze/proto-shoegaze bands could go here (some, like Ride and JAMC, have been listed already).

Plenty of second wave techno too, e.g. LFO.

blood sweat & tears, obv.

There's a thread of albums that are 20 years old, and I've seen a bunch of recognition for stuff that is turning 30.

But we all seem to have agreed to let 2017 go by without acknowledging that Velvet Underground & Nico turned 50.