Awful band names

[Doomy Dwyer]

The Celibate Rifles. Oh dear. We all know an infinite number of monkey's armed with an infinite number of typewriters would eventually bash out Hamlet. Thsi is a similar type of thing but using only five Australians.[nb]This is racist, but it's the type of thing an Australian would say, between swigs of pissy lager, burping and throwing prawns on barbies. So it's all right. She's apples, good on yer mate and bonza, as they'd no doubt laconically add.[/nb]

[taargus]

anti-Australian sentiment is truly the most satisfying of all the racisms.

I'll nominate A Certain Ratio. Any other bands with maths inspired titles can fuck right off as well.

I actually quite like all that post punk stuff, some of it is humorously wanky and that's what actually attracts me to it but that name is just gets my goat for some reason.

[buttgammon]

I'll nominate A Certain Ratio. Any other bands with maths inspired titles can fuck right off as well.

Is it maths related? I thought they got it from a line in a Brian Eno song ('The True Wheel'), which in turn was an allusion to the Nazis, probably something to do with their insane racial policies.

[Johnny Yesno]

Is it maths related? I thought they got it from a line in a Brian Eno song ('The True Wheel'), which in turn was an allusion to the Nazis, probably something to do with their insane racial policies.

That's what I thought. From bandOpedia:

A Certain Ratio are a Post-punk band formed in 1977 in Manchester, England. While originally part of the punk rock movement, they soon added funk and dance elements to their sound. The band's name is taken from the lyrics of Brian Eno's song "The True Wheel" (from the album Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy), which in turn were taken from a quote from Hitler on the proportion of 'Jewish blood' that was required to determine whether someone was to be classified as 'Jewish'. There is some dispute as to whether the band were aware of the original meaning of the phrase.

[buttgammon]

Thought so!

There was a real thing with Factory Records artists and Nazi references. Joy Division and New Order were at it, and there's probably a few more.

[I accept the terms of the]

Edit: Oops, didn't read earlier posts.

[Johnny Yesno]

Edit: Oops, didn't read earlier posts.

That is a terrible name, yes.

[taargus]

You are probably all correct, well... yep definitely correct. I hereby withdraw myself from public appearances for 2 years. I'll still post here though.

[Oops! Wrong Planet]

Contrary to popular belief, Toploader really do smell like that bloke in Fiddler On The Roof.

[easytarget]

Times New Viking. Ugh.

Really? I was quite taken with that.

Superchunk - astounding band, rubbish name.
See also: mclusky - sounds like some sort of shit McFly boy band doing punk songs about Grange Hill.

[Johnny Yesno]

What about band names that you thought were terrible until you heard the music? Situations where your brain performed some kind of re-analysis allowing the words to have a new definition representing the sound. Examples:

Butthole Surfers
Pixies
Fudgetunnel
Skinny Puppy

[Brundle-Fly]

Geezers Of Nazareth

I used to really like this forgotten early '00's odd pop act but still haven't decided whether their name was brilliant or crap.

[Retinend]

What about band names that you thought were terrible until you heard the music? Situations where your brain performed some kind of re-analysis allowing the words to have a new definition representing the sound. Examples:

Interesting! 'This Mortal Coil' and 'My Bloody Valentine' come to mind, because I had no idea what 'Shoegaze' sounded like before I heard them - I imagined gothy metal with a lot of fast power chords. The latter I subconsciously associated with 'My Chemical Romance' and 'Bullet For My Valentine'. I still think MBV had the wrong name for what they were ('Slowdive', on the contrary, being perfect).

'King Creosote' also was prejudiced in my mind because of its similarity to 'King Crimson', which he couldn't be further from in sound (not that I hate King Crimson, or anything).

[Oops! Wrong Planet]

Wrong thread grief, sorry.

[Key]

Interesting! 'This Mortal Coil' and 'My Bloody Valentine' come to mind, because I had no idea what 'Shoegaze' sounded like before I heard them - I imagined gothy metal with a lot of fast power chords. The latter I subconsciously associated with 'My Chemical Romance' and 'Bullet For My Valentine'. I still think MBV had the wrong name for what they were ('Slowdive', on the contrary, being perfect).

Kevin Shields himself is on record as disliking the name My Bloody Valentine, I think it was chosen by ex-vocalist Dave Conway. Maybe its another thread in itself but there are a few other examples I can think of where the band get tired of their own name. Bradford Cox hates the name Deerhunter (again it was another band member who chose the name.) Thom Yorke disliked the name Radiohead (taken from a rather non-descript Talking Heads tune) until he realised that it could be seen as being about someone who cant stop their brain from picking up signals. 

[Obel]

What about band names that you thought were terrible until you heard the music? Situations where your brain performed some kind of re-analysis allowing the words to have a new definition representing the sound. Examples:

Skinny Puppy

Haha, I'm a huge fan of SP. I remember when somebody asked me what I was listening to and I told them "Skinny Puppy" and they burst out laughing and asked if I made the name up. Before then I'd never considered that the name was kinda silly, as I was always familiar with the image on one of their albums of the malnourished dog, but I suppose from an outsider point of view it's kinda shit.

[Johnny Yesno]

Interesting! 'This Mortal Coil' and 'My Bloody Valentine' come to mind

I was primed for thinking This Mortal Coil was a good name by already liking Coil but I do remember thinking My Bloody Valentine was a rubbish name. But now I struggle to think back to that. It just means that fuzzy swirly noise and blurred imagery to me now.

Haha, I'm a huge fan of SP. I remember when somebody asked me what I was listening to and I told them "Skinny Puppy" and they burst out laughing and asked if I made the name up. Before then I'd never considered that the name was kinda silly, as I was always familiar with the image on one of their albums of the malnourished dog, but I suppose from an outsider point of view it's kinda shit.

I believe that was my first reaction to hearing the name too. Again, I find it difficult to take myself back to that mindset. Instead that name is the words for their specific brand of industrial music. 'Silly' has been completely overwritten by 'intense and serious'.

I wonder if you could do that kind of rewrite on any words whatsoever. I seem to remember that the Pixies felt that the name of their band didn't matter and that they were unwilling to spend too much time agonising over it.

[The Masked Unit]

Scouting for Girls have not only one of the shittest, wettest sounding names in pop history, but by a happy coincidence, create some of the shittest, wettest sounding toss in pop history, so maybe it's actually a really good name, given its aptness.

[Johnny Textface]

'Them Crooked Vultures'

I don't like the use of the word 'them'

stop it

[alan nagsworth]

Thom Yorke disliked the name Radiohead (taken from a rather non-descript Talking Heads tune) until he realised that it could be seen as being about someone who cant stop their brain from picking up signals. 

HAHA THE CRAZY BASTARD

'Them Crooked Vultures'

I don't like the use of the word 'them'

stop it

Agreed, especially since Queens Of The Stone Age, Eagles Of Death Metal and even Desert Sessions are great names. I'm a big Homme fan but I don't think I ever even bothered listening to TCV and the name I'd partly responsible.

[Johnny Yesno]

Scouting for Girls have not only one of the shittest, wettest sounding names in pop history, but by a happy coincidence, create some of the shittest, wettest sounding toss in pop history, so maybe it's actually a really good name, given its aptness.

I think you're right. I think of the name in exactly the same way as I did before I heard their music.


BTW, apropos of nothing other than correcting sloppiness, I said

I seem to remember that the Pixies felt that the name of their band didn't matter and that they were unwilling to spend too much time agonising over it.

when I meant to say

I seem to remember that the Pixies felt that the name of their band didn't matter and that they were unwilling to spend too much time agonising over choosing it.

[Brundle-Fly]

Kevin Shields himself is on record as disliking the name My Bloody Valentine, I think it was chosen by ex-vocalist Dave Conway. Maybe its another thread in itself but there are a few other examples I can think of where the band get tired of their own name. Bradford Cox hates the name Deerhunter (again it was another band member who chose the name.) Thom Yorke disliked the name Radiohead (taken from a rather non-descript Talking Heads tune) until he realised that it could be seen as being about someone who cant stop their brain from picking up signals.

Ray Davies always hated the name, The Kinks as it was meant to be just Kinks without the definite article.

See Buzzcocks, Sex Pistols and inversely, The Pink Floyd.

[Johnny Yesno]

Thom Yorke disliked the name Radiohead (taken from a rather non-descript Talking Heads tune) until he realised that it could be seen as being about someone who cant stop their brain from picking up signals.

That reminded me of a track by a band called Scissor Fits called Radio Teeth, which I'd forgotten I have on a compilation album somewhere. It's amazing what you can find on YouTube these days.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=sNQ_JC4cfz8#t=1813s

[thecuriousorange]

Atoms for Peace

I haven't heard any music by this Thom Yorke side project/supergroup, but Christ that's bad.

[Phil_A]

That reminded me of a track by a band called Scissor Fits called Radio Teeth, which I'd forgotten I have on a compilation album somewhere. It's amazing what you can find on YouTube these days.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=sNQ_JC4cfz8#t=1813s

Heh, I only just discovered the other day that another band on that compilation, The Europeans, went on to have a minor hit in the 80s, the video for which was later mocked by Beavis & Butthead.

[Johnny Yesno]

Heh, I only just discovered the other day that another band on that compilation, The Europeans, went on to have a minor hit in the 80s, the video for which was later mocked by Beavis & Butthead.

Which song was that? The Animal Song?



Edit: :-D  Oh yeah, I bet it was The Animal Song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAN5xt48KhU

I don't remember that episode of B&B, sadly.

[Serge]

Oneohtrix Point Never. A fucking great band who have saddled themselves (himself?) with one of the worst names ever. Apparently it's a play on the frequency of a local radio station (presumably '106.7'), but even that would probably have been a better name.

[I accept the terms of the]

Big Dumb Face. Effective in a way, because it signals them for the Ween-copying, Python-without-the-funny shits that they were.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gd3Y4o95ObU&ob=av3e

Seriously? You're even going to copy that wide smile thing that Ween do?[nb]and Terry Gilliam as Patsy in Holy Grail, come to think of it[/nb] Fuck off.

+ =

[Brundle-Fly]

Big Dumb Face. Effective in a way, because it signals them for the Ween-copying, Python-without-the-funny shits that they were.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gd3Y4o95ObU&ob=av3e

The influence of Tango ad campaign can never be underestimated.

[alan nagsworth]

My Ween sense is tingling.