• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Another Band Name Thread

L

lilcrate

Tortdaddy
Sep 9, 2013
335
35
St. Louis
#1
We just can't seem to find a name.

Info:
Bluesrock (SRV, Hendrix, Zeppelin, Clapton, Trower, etc)
Covers/Some Original
4 piece, males, ages 21-35
Long-term goals are pretty much local. So we are not worried about giving up a good name or sharing a name with another band that isn't overly famous.

Previous Names (that don't seem to go over too well):
Fuzz
Mojo Daddies

Names Ideas I've came up with:
Blues n Grooves
Mojo Rising
Sinful Riffs
Bad Mojo (a couple of us like this one)
Tonal Haze
Modern Vintage
Raw Fuzz
Original Rendition
Raw n' Relic'd
Tube Warmers


A couple of us like the use of Fuzz or Mojo, but definitely not necessary. We talked with a promoter that said the name "Fuzz" wasn't good and people wouldn't get it. We didn't feel like they needed to (i.e. Bush, Kiss). The promoter seemed to think we should stick with a traditional name like John Doe and the tone kings. I don't like that idea personally. Any ideas?
 
Last edited:
#5
We pretty much all agreed on not naming it after a person, but let's say we change our heart. It is lead guitar driven music, and typically that is who these bands are named after. (hendrix, clapton, SRV, etc).

But our lead guitarist doesn't sing. So technically he isn't the front man. It would be weird to name it after him and then not have him in front, and it would be weird to name it after a pure vocalist/front man, right?
 
#7
To me, names like "John Doe and the Whatevers" make me think of 50s pop music. If I saw that a band with this name was going to be playing at my local pub, I'd assume that they were an "oldies" band playing music from the 50s (and perhaps 60s), or a band that plays pop hits from all eras. (Yeah, I know that there was SRV and Double Trouble, but it seems to me that that's an exception rather than the rule).

If the band really is about John Doe, and you want to feature his name, I'd simply go with The John Doe Band and be done with it.
 
#9
buldog5151bass said:
I think in most cases, the band name is the least important thing. Unless there is a real issue with language that would turn people off/away, it doesn't matter what you call yourselves.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure I agree with this. It probably doesn't matter once you've established a fan base -- they will come see you whatever you call yourselves -- but I suspect it does matter when you're starting out and trying to get people to come out to your gigs. When you see a band name for the first time, it's bound to create an image in your mind of what that band is or isn't like. "Polly and the Pink Flamingoes" puts a very different image in my mind than does, say, "Rat Piss Battery." Of course, the trick is to figure out what kinds of mental associations people will make when they hear a given name, and I certainly don't claim to know how to do that. But I do think it matters in this way.
 
  • Like
Reactions: lilcrate
#10
Part of me agrees with it not mattering much. I know some great local bands that don't have anything interesting about their name. On the other hand, when I talk about it to people and mention the possible names, they definitely react to the name and ponder the name like it matters. So, IDK really.
 
#20
How about ...
Rockbottom Blues (sounds kinda like the music you'll be playing)
Cheap Dates (might draw the crowd if they think its free)
Tangerine Crossfire (kind of a tribute to LZ and SRV)
Purple Daze (kind of a tribute to Hendrix and LZ)
No Freebird (let's the audience know in advance you aren't gonna play it)
TBD (could mean anything - timid blonde drummer, totally bad dudes, two blonde dic*s, you name it)
Sofa Selfies (the audience can read whatever they want into that one)
 
Last edited:

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back