One of the biggest challenges for any band is releasing a successful album that breaks them into the mainstream. However, perhaps an even bigger challenge is following up said successful album with another successful album.

This is certainly not a unique problem. Many bands in rock history have been faced with the daunting task of trying to follow up a super-successful album. These bands range from straight-forward rockers to metal giants to pop-rock heavyweights.

Some of these bands managed to follow up a successful album with an even greater success. Def Leppard is a great example of a band that managed to accomplish this feat.

Other bands took a chance and decided to pivot and experiment with their sound. Fleetwood Mac is a prime example of this, even though it was met with mixed results upon release.

Meanwhile, some bands double-downed on their chosen musical style to deliver more hit songs, like Aerosmith and Bon Jovi.

Without further ado, here are eight albums that had hard acts to follow. There’s a good chance you own an album or two from the list below.