> Counter-examples are bands like Trivium and Tool, which also have evolved musically over the years but not specifically in a direction to please a larger audience, they just kept making music they like for the sake of music.
Another counter-example is Radiohead, which almost got gripped by the music industry marketing and managed to spectacularly break out of it after OK Computer and the following albums.
They broke off the image that labels wanted to push them into and sell with Pablo Honey which would have been a shame.
The most prominent example in the metal world of this is Volbeat and to a lesser extent Metallica. The first few albums were generally well received by music fans, while both bands slowly changed their style over the years to accommodate more mainstream audiences, leading to a drop in quality.
Counter-examples are bands like Trivium and Tool, which also have evolved musically over the years but not specifically in a direction to please a larger audience, they just kept making music they like for the sake of music.