[Kai]

As always, Metafilter edifies and amuses on a lazy afternoon.

Worst band names ever

Inexcusably bad


Sample from the former for those slightly lazier than me at the moment (horizontal, looking out the window at the steady snowfall and contemplating going back to bed) and thus unable to muster the effort to click on a link:

Quote

Band names should not be intentionally misspelled
Nothing is less hip than an obvious attempt to be hip.
Krap: Limp Bizkit
Baaaad: 'N Sync
Un-4-tunate: Def Leppard
Honorable Mentions: Korn, Linkin Park, Boyz II Men, NOFX, 24-7 Spyz
Exception: Lynyrd Skynyrd (because revenge against gym teachers is sublime)
The Mother of All Exceptions: The Beatles

Band names should not be stupid catch phrases
We're fun; we're whimsical--we're Wham! Kill me.
Talk to the Hand: Enuff Z'nuff
Don't Go There, Girlfriend: No Doubt
Oh No You Didn't: Take That
Honorable Mention: Go West
Exception: Nomeansno gets a special pass because they're two Canadian guys who aren't really P.C. feminists

My favorite band name is still Someone and the Somebodies (Boston, c. 1980.)

I've also been part of the bad band name phenomenon: In the mid 80s we had been The New Deal (as in Roosevelt), a name used by several other bands after us; that one's debatable in hindsight, but what wasn't was the replacement name that Norm the guitarist insisted we needed (because it must be the name that was holding us back from instant success, of course): Curtis Gone Bad.

I was outvoted - the previous name seemed OK to me - despite my protestations that perhaps not having a good manager might be contributing to our stagnation. ("The New Deal" looked a lot better on the bill for a gig, for instance, where we opened for The Dark and O Positive.) The new name was derived from an incident after rehearsal once where we decided to go bowling and in the next lane over were a bunch of drunken oafs all calling each other Curtis - "hey Curtis, you're up!" "Aftah this beah, Curtis!" etc.

[jahloon]

The first band I joined were called Skyrack, after something I know not what.

To our eternal shame a local newspaper covered one of our gigs and cited the band name as "The Sky Rockets" which with the advent of punk some years later became rather chic.

[Brock]

My garage band was "Axathon". The name, and the format, really aren't favorites.

The deliberately sucky music from the last 15+ years has been under the "Ramogasm" flag. I like that name. It sucks. "Check out this new Ramogasm!" doesn't sound appealing, which is the idea.

Unlike one of those articles, I have no issue with non "The" names, I think "The" (and "El/La" as well as "Al" and "Le") are overused for the most part. I think "Rush" and "Ween" are reasonable names. "Queen" is fine.

There's still some debate on the title of my current project (title, not band name) on whether to go with "Traveler" or "The Traveler". I'm leaning towards "Traveler".

Band names with numbers is a bad idea in general. No argument there.


-Brock

[gazmungus]

Notice that the more of his daft rules you attempt to simultaniously try to break - the cooler the name you come up with...

Most notable of mine were:-

Yacuncha (not my idea, 'twas a jug band of acoustic folk musos)

Corky's Big Pants (retired 3 piece - yes mine - still used if needed)

The stupidest was when me and my femail duo partner a new years eve party at a working men's club and we called ourselves "Maggie and Dennis" (UK humour only, though nobody saw the funny side for some reason)

The band I had with Chris (dfgf fame) was called "Mappatazzi" (short of "map of tasmania") which is australian slang for the female pubic ladygarden bits, being triangular back in the days before wax and razors....



"Wax and the Ladygarden Razors"

[Kai]

corcoran, on Feb 23 2009, 03:41 AM, said:

Notice that the more of his daft rules you attempt to simultaniously try to break - the cooler the name you come up with...

Most notable of mine were:-

Yacuncha (not my idea, 'twas a jug band of acoustic folk musos)

Corky's Big Pants (retired 3 piece - yes mine - still used if needed)

The stupidest was when me and my femail duo partner a new years eve party at a working men's club and we called ourselves "Maggie and Dennis" (UK humour only, though nobody saw the funny side for some reason)

The band I had with Chris (dfgf fame) was called "Mappatazzi" (short of "map of tasmania") which is australian slang for the female pubic ladygarden bits, being triangular back in the days before wax and razors....



"Wax and the Ladygarden Razors"

for Maggie & Dennis too. (I get it. Tony & Cherie just doesn't have quite the same ring to it.) How many buskers covered Dylan's "I Ain't Gonna Work on Maggie's Farm No More" back in the 80s?

Judy's Tiny Head was another Boston band (after a B. Kliban cartoon.) Of course, that inspired the usual band room wags to graffiti "Judy's Tiny Sphincter" all over the place...

Brock, I think the guy was exaggerating for comic effect.

I do remember thinking the first time I heard the name "Toad the Wet Sprocket", WTF were those guys smoking? Stupidest name ever. Since outdone by many others.