How important are band names?

Shame on you only now just discovering The
Devine Comedy!

As important as album art etc.

All part of the package.

The Alex Harvey Band
The Sensational Alex Harvey Band

Chalk and cheese.

Names are extremely important, and bands agonise over them endlessly.

'Metallica' is one of the best I would say, it tells you exactly what you will get.

Getting a name wrong can limit your appeal greatly. It is even more difficult now, as it helps to have a band name that is searchable on the internet.

It goes for all kinds of performers too. A tall female model I know was initially known by the name 'Amazon', but realised that only brought up searches for the internet site, so she had to change her name.

I also wonder if bands pick, or have names picked for them, that place them near to other bands like them in alphabetical lists. I always suspected that 'S Club 7' were so called because they would appear in lists, racks (those old days of CD shops) near the 'Spice Girls'.

To me: very.

Like one of a German ScumPunk-Band:

Japanische Kampfhörspiele
(Japanese Fightradiodramas)

or

Einstürzende Neubauten (Art-Rock-Noise)
(Crushing buildings under constructions)

...

quote:

'Metallica' is one of the best I would say, it tells you exactly what you will get.

Dito.

Slayer, too.

Motörhead also delivers its meaningful name.

Motörhead, well without the umlaut over the 'o', as far as I know, is/was, a term for someone one speed, and or cocaine.

It does fit the band very well, though, in term of power, and also a little personal history for Lemmy.

I always thought AC/DC was an interesting name, as in their innocence the band only knew of it as a term for electrical power, and only on one of their early UK tour also discovered it was a slang term for bisexuality.

Napalm Death and Extreme Noise Terror have been favourites of mine.

Then there was Death by Milkfloat and Jackdaw With Crowbar. Tinkerbell's Fairydust may have been a psychedelic group name.

That's about it really.

Please click here to listen to 2010 a track recorded in 1967 by Tinkerbell's Fairydust.

Their eponymous elpee has just been reissued on vinyl; the original was worth a small fortune. 2010 is much better than other tracks they did. Fine psych name shame about the material IMHO.

Are Ozric Tentacles, Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane or Alice Cooper good names?

Death by Milkfloat sounds promising - trying to guess what kind of music they play - I'm guessing they are not a Country band.

Not important at all. Their music is all that counts.

Look what happened as a result of 'Pink Floyd'........

Jon

quote:

Originally posted by BigH47:
Not important at all. Their music is all that counts.

I tend to agree, but fancy if it is really like the cover of a book.

If it is too dull and too dusty, then you mght pass it by and find a book with a brighter cover with a catchier theme, and miss a work of true enjoyability.

I often think the only problem with classical music is that it is identified in a way which is the equivalent of buff cloth lined boards with plain black print ... No wonder it is scary or dull-looking to the uninitiated!

If it had the equivalent of a pretty young person on the cover then it would attract more people.

In this regard it is surely true that many people buy recordings of music on the basis of the beauty of the performing artist on the record cover [regardless of the actual quality of said artist], but a picture of the long dead composer of the music would most likely put the potential purchaser off ...

Only a thought from George

The Teardrop Explodes is a cracking name, but surely the best of them all is The Islets of Langerhans...great name, and befitting the best looking guitarist in rock.

Splodgenessabounds

When Tyrannosaurus Rex were formed in 1967 would one have feared ear bleeds?

quote:

Originally posted by Mat Cork:
The Islets of Langerhans.

Probably medical students? The Islets of Langerhans are not coastal landmarks, but part of the intestines as far as I can remember from A'level Biology.

I don't agree that a name is not important, yes the music is what counts, but if there is no guide from the name, then they will get passed by, or renamed by someone in the industry.

That said, Jethro Tull was not a carefully considered name, but the one they had the week their first single charted. They played live so much, their management changed their name regularly to stop people not bothering to go to their gigs.

I wish I could remember the name of a prog band from the 80's who's name was completely wrong for the music, and they quickly disappeared, or quietly renamed themselves.

quote:

Jethro Tull was not a carefully considered name

Wasn't the first single released under the name Jethro Toe?

The Islets of Langerhans are not coastal landmarksThanks Jamie, you've saved me some time there. I spent the last hour looking for Islets in my Atlas

I think a band's name is important, as not having heard a band's music, there has to be something that attracts me to the band to make me explore their music. It is psychological, but I'm more likely to think I wonder what they sound like about some band names than others. If a name is in any way offensive then I'm likely to pass them by as I immediately think the group would rather try to shock than entertain me. If a band is called Satan's Death Squad then I assume something about them and am unlikely to click play whereas a band called They Think It's All Over would probably get a play.

Strangely They Way We Live changed their name on John Peel's advice to Tractor; I preferred the first name. Made no difference, nobody listened to them anyway, which is great shame as they were really good.

ATB Rotf

quote:

wish I could remember the name of a prog band from the 80's who's name was completely wrong for the music, and they quickly disappeared, or quietly renamed themselves.

60s band Kaleidoscope renamed themselves Fairfield Parlour for the 70s when they went prog - highly underrated in both guises IMHO.

quote:

Originally posted by JamieL:
Probably medical students? The Islets of Langerhans are not coastal landmarks, but part of the intestines as far as I can remember from A'level Biology.

Sorry mate...it was a band I was in years ago. You're right about the origins of the name. We just thought it evoked a lovely place, but was closer to home. We had everything, apart from talent.

I like names that sound good and mean something The Levellers being a prime example.

It is interesting to the find out the meaning of some names.

Why Orbital chose that name shows how they were part of the rave culture at the end of the 80's. Orbital is taken from the M25 motorway (around London), which those in search of raves used to drive around looking fro sings stuck up to show where the latest impromptu dance night was happening. The M25 is also called, and labelled, the London Orbital motorway.

Although the early raves were unlicensed events, it wasn't until the Criminal Justice Bill of the early 90's that they became specifically illegal, although they were often breaking other laws.

ROTF:
Yes the first Jethro Tull single had 'Toe' instead of Tull, but that was a typo on the disc label, and the band were called Tull in other publicity.

A lot of the old blues players went under the name of Blind xyz (e.g. Blind Willie Johnson) and, indeed, they were blind.

An amusing variation turned up in the 80s or 90s. This band called themselves the Colourblind James Experience.

The Smiths was a good name too.

Blind Lemon Jefferson takes some beating (as does his music).

How important? Imagine Motorhead were called The Spice Boys.

Cheers,
OW