Your guesses are fantastic so far!
I hope this next one helps even more.
REJECTED ALBUM #2: Unwound, Leaves Turn Inside You
Why I would have chosen it: This album is a massive statement, one that their previous records barely hinted at. It deserves, nay demands, a place in the pantheon of the greatest of the great double albums. There is not one wasted guitar riff, keyboard stroke, or drum fill here. Why this isn't one of the most-talked about albums of the last 20 years I don't know.
Why I didn't chose it: Currently out-of-print.
YOUR CLUE: Unwound never made another record before this, and, unfortunately for us, they never made another record after this. This was their 7th album.
My album of the month is considered transitional for the band in question. Their most celebrated and popular works, surprisingly, were still ahead of them, built on the sounds created on this, their 5th album.