# Band names that don't fit their style **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 25, 2014, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576 "2014-06-25T01:55:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/81 "2014-06-27T05:24:33Z")
> [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](#): > > \*\*Vampire Weekend \*\*sounds like they would be a goth band, not an African rhythm-influenced alt-pop band. Perfect name for that band. Because what does a Vampire do? > [@Accidental\_Martyr](#): > > Ben Folds Five was a trio. Dammit! I just spent a half-hour reading this tread to post this! Now I gotta come up with something! . . . Combustible Edison! Whatever the fuck you call what they do, it doesn’t sound what you would expect from the band name! Pulled that outta my ass last minute! ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/82 "2014-06-27T05:41:11Z")
> [@Critical1](#): > > Regarding Slaughter I seriously doubt that was his name, He is a former frontman for the Vinnie Vincent Invasion and Slaughter is nothing more than a more pop friendly version of that band. According to [wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Slaughter), “Slaughter” is, indeed, his last name at birth. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/83 "2014-06-27T05:42:51Z")
> [@Critical1](#): > > Regarding Slaughter I seriously doubt that was his name, He is a former frontman for the Vinnie Vincent Invasion and Slaughter is nothing more than a more pop friendly version of that band. Mark Slaughter > **[Mark Slaughter](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Slaughter)** > > Mark Allen Slaughter (born July 4, 1964) is an American singer and musician, and one of the founders of the glam metal band Slaughter. > Slaughter was born in Las Vegas, Nevada, on July 4, 1964. Before the formation of Slaughter, he fronted Xcursion, a Las Vegas-based metal band that released two albums and appeared on three compilation albums from 1981-86. He later replaced Robert Fleischman in Vinnie Vincent Invasion. After the band disbanded in the late 1980s, Slaughter and Dana Strum forme... ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/84 "2014-06-27T10:35:09Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Daft Punk, to my knowledge, has never recorded a punk song. > > Nor did the Moody Blues ever record many blues songs. Pink Floyd was named after two bluesmen Pink Anderson and Floyd Council. Never recorded any blues songs. ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/85 "2014-06-27T10:46:24Z")
I just listened to Mark Maron interviewing Chris Cornell on the WTF podcast, and Cornell said that the Soundgarden name worked in their favor when they were an opening act. People expected something ethereal or a bunch of noodling shoegazers, and were pleasantly surprised. ---
**Author:** ![Penfeather](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penfeather/32/384_2.png) [@Penfeather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penfeather)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/86 "2014-06-27T11:21:19Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > In their early days, the Moodies WERE a pop/soul/rhythm and blues band. They also hoped for sponsorship from Birmingham brewery Mitchells and Butlers, billing themselves as The M&B 5 and painting the initials MB on the bass drum: when the brewery declined, they were stuck with finding a name that matched the initials. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2014, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/87 "2014-06-27T12:21:13Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > According to [wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Slaughter), “Slaughter” is, indeed, his last name at birth. > [@Accidental\_Martyr](#): > > Mark Slaughter > [Mark Slaughter - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Slaughter) Or, as my hair metal-despising friends and I used to call him, Mark S. Laughter. ---
**Author:** ![jimpatro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b9e5f3/32.png) [@jimpatro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimpatro)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2014, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/88 "2014-06-29T23:07:10Z")
Blues Traveler. Folk Traveler maybe, Blues, not so much. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2014, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/89 "2014-06-29T23:26:09Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **John Bredin** : > > Now, now, the name isn’t We Might Be Giants. Since we don’t know who the “they” is, they indeed might be giants. Windmills. The name is an indirect reference to Don Quixote. There was an old movie with the same name, containing the exchange (paraphrased from memory): “You’re just like Don Quixote, always tilting at windmills.” “Nonsense. Quixote thought that every windmill was a giant. I merely think that they might be giants.” ---
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/90 "2014-06-30T00:08:48Z")
> [@jimpatro](#): > > Blues Traveler. Folk Traveler maybe, Blues, not so much. At least they feature the harmonica, so the name isn’t completely off the wall. The [Jon Spencer Blues Explosion](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vuxZZJlWS4) is much less bluesy. ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/91 "2014-06-30T16:38:16Z")
I went through most of my life thinking **Grateful Dead** were a heavy metal band, also due to their skull-with-pigtails logo. **King Crimson** also sounds like some dark metal band. **The Velvet Underground** sound like some jazz lounge act. **Rainbow** sounds like a Carpenters or Mamas & Papas style band. …and the winner goes to…_tears envelope_… **Joy Division**. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/92 "2014-06-30T17:12:32Z")
> [@GargoyleWB](#): > > **King Crimson** also sounds like some dark metal band. So, what are they? I’ve always assumed, based on the name, that they were one of those faux-Satanism metal bands. ---
**Author:** ![neofishboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/neofishboy/32/444_2.png) [@neofishboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neofishboy)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/93 "2014-06-30T17:16:28Z")
**Strapping Young Lad** sounds like the name of a 70’s Glam Rock band. [They are not.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BW9WUCJSK1E) ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/94 "2014-06-30T17:20:38Z")
If you told me there was a band named after a character in _The Neverending Story_, I would expect some kind of light, kid-friendly pop band. Nope. [Atreyu](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atreyu_(band)) is a metal band. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/95 "2014-06-30T17:31:37Z")
Even if you don’t think much of their music, **Blondie** is aurally distinguishable from Hitler’s dog. ---
**Author:** ![neofishboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/neofishboy/32/444_2.png) [@neofishboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neofishboy)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/96 "2014-06-30T17:39:50Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > So, what are they? I’ve always assumed, based on the name, that they were one of those faux-Satanism metal bands. English Prog Rock band. Contemporaries of **Yes** , **Emerson, Lake & Palmer** and the like. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/97 "2014-06-30T17:52:17Z")
The Traveling Wilburys. They didn’t travel, and there is no Wilbury. Funny, just reading on Wikipedia how they did com up with that: > [@](#): > > “Wilbury” was a slang term first used by Harrison during the recording of Cloud Nine with Jeff Lynne. Referring to recording errors created by some faulty equipment, Harrison jokingly remarked to Lynne, “We’ll bury 'em in the mix”.[2][3] Thereafter, they used the term for any small error in performance and the term was used again when the group were together. Harrison suggested “The Trembling Wilburys” as the group’s name; instead, Lynne suggested “Traveling”, with which the group agreed. ---
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/98 "2014-06-30T18:11:44Z")
The 1970s band **Death** \* was not a metal band, but one of the first groups to play a punk rock style. They basically shattered any expectations you might have for any band. Variants of this band (3 black brothers from Detroit) have also played funk, gospel and reggae. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death\_(protopunk\_band)](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_(protopunk_band)) \*There’s another band named Death, but they play the metal style you’d expect. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/99 "2014-06-30T19:49:46Z")
> [@GargoyleWB](#): > > …and the winner goes to…_tears envelope_… **Joy Division**. It still might not evoke images of moody proto-goths, but you do at least get a slightly better idea of why they were so dark and gloomy if you know [where they got the name](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Dolls). ---
**Author:** ![Wolf333](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf333/32/3460_2.png) [@Wolf333](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolf333)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2014, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/100 "2014-06-30T23:41:56Z")
Today Is The Day sounds like the band might be sort of hopeful. Instead, they are dark, bleak, heavy and noisy. [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziwfD5thl0g) Young And In The Way sounds like a pop-punk band. Nope, it crusty, blackened thrash. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/7HhuCyd3nqA/maxresdefault.jpg "Young And In The Way "Be My Blood"") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HhuCyd3nqA) For some reason, Weekend Nachos play grindcore… (NSFW) [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WubJ7U0Bxks) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576.md?page=6)