# 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:** 6
**Author:** ![Drummond\_Bays](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8edcca/32.png) [@Drummond\_Bays](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drummond_Bays)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/101 "2014-07-01T00:15:36Z")
> [@P-man](#): > > First one that comes to mind for me is Incubus. A demon that has sex with women as they sleep; has to be an extreme metal band, right? What, you say it’s a poppy modern rock band? Wouldn’t have expected that. > **[Opprobrium (band)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opprobrium_%28band%29)** > > Opprobrium (formerly known as Incubus) is an American death metal band from Metairie, Louisiana, United States. The band was founded in 1986 by brothers Francis and Moyses Howard under the name Incubus. The Howards are natives of Rio de Janeiro who emigrated to New Orleans to found the band. The original incarnation featured bassist/lead vocalist Scot Latour, and the trio's 1987 demo Supernatural Death landed them a deal with the small Brutal Records imprint. Their official debut, Serpent Temptat... It was a running joke back in my metal days… “Incubus? Incubus is AWESOME.” Back to the topic, Bedouin Soundclash. There is nothing either Bedouin, nor Soundclash that I have yet to hear from them whatsoever. ETA: A better name would have been “Waitingroom Sleepaids.” ---
**Author:** ![Drummond\_Bays](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8edcca/32.png) [@Drummond\_Bays](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drummond_Bays)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/102 "2014-07-01T00:26:02Z")
Sorry for double post… AND w/o reading the whole thread! (Oh! The Humanity… {gotta leave in literally 2 mins.}) The Tony Danza TapDance Extravaganza, and Sleepytime Gorilla Museum both have names that are UNDERSTATEMENTS, to say the very least. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/103 "2014-07-01T01:47:07Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > So, what are they? I’ve always assumed, based on the name, that they were one of those faux-Satanism metal bands. You might be thinking of King Diamond. They are one of those (kickass) Satanistic heavy metal bands. ---
**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:** [July 1, 2014, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/104 "2014-07-01T03:29:57Z")
Oh, Big Country. From Scotland. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Nema98](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d2c977/32.png) [@Nema98](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nema98)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/105 "2014-07-01T06:28:00Z")
> [@Infovore](#): > > I don’t know exactly _what_ kind of band **Toad the Wet Sprocket** sounds like they should be, but whatever it is, I don’t think they’re it. > > **Jethro Tull** sounds like a country artist. > > **Trans-Siberian Orchestra** sounds like a Russian classical group. I guess the ‘classical’ part is right, but heavy-metal classical and no Russians as far as I know. So many of you guys are mentioning names of bands I like and listened to in the past week or so. ---
**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:** [July 1, 2014, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/106 "2014-07-01T06:30:01Z")
Pop in a [Manchester Orchestra](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manchester_Orchestra) CD, and you might expect some sort of British classical group. But you’ll get an indie rock band from Georgia. ---
**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:** [July 1, 2014, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/107 "2014-07-01T09:49:02Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > You might be thinking of King Diamond. They are one of those (kickass) Satanistic heavy metal bands. Or King Missile. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/108 "2014-07-01T10:37:55Z")
**Morphine** - I can’t tell you how many conversations I’ve had that have included, “I’m really not into metal,” when I’ve recommended Morphine. They were a three piece (bass, sax, drums) alt rock band with some jazzy hooks. ---
**Author:** ![franz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@franz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/franz)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/109 "2014-07-01T11:17:20Z")
heavy metal band ufo ---
**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:** [July 1, 2014, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/110 "2014-07-01T14:12:34Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > **Morphine** - I can’t tell you how many conversations I’ve had that have included, “I’m really not into metal,” when I’ve recommended Morphine. > > They were a three piece (bass, sax, drums) alt rock band with some jazzy hooks. When I first heard the name Morphine I assumed they were a punk band. Then I realized I had heard “Buena” on the college radio station but I didn’t know it was by Morphine. One of my favorite bands. Mark Sandman is on the list of artists that sadly died much too early. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/111 "2014-07-01T15:42:00Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Oh, Big Country. > > From Scotland. 🙂 The band “Texas” was also Scottish. ---
**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:** [July 1, 2014, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/112 "2014-07-01T16:19:29Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > The band “Texas” was also Scottish. Boards of Canada is also Scottish. Alabama 3 is from England. ---
**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:** [July 1, 2014, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/113 "2014-07-01T17:17:30Z")
> [@Accidental\_Martyr](#): > > Boards of Canada is also Scottish. > Alabama 3 is from England. Their name doesn’t reference a specific place, but “Rednex” is from Sweden. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/114 "2014-07-01T18:16:05Z")
**…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of The Dead** Sounds like a death metal band, but they are actually alt-rock. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/115 "2014-07-01T19:29:13Z")
> [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](#): > > Their name doesn’t reference a specific place, but “Rednex” is from Sweden. Well, I find that several current Swedish pop artists sound more genuinely “country” than most of the acts coming out of Nashvile. ---
**Author:** ![Sr\_Siete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6de8d8/32.png) [@Sr\_Siete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sr_Siete)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/116 "2014-07-01T19:36:57Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > **…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of The Dead** > > Sounds like a death metal band, but they are actually alt-rock. Which reminds me, the music from Aussie band _ **Dead Can Dance** _ is neither death metal nor all that easy to dance to. ---
**Author:** ![FlyingRat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/59ef9b/32.png) [@FlyingRat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingRat)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/117 "2014-07-01T19:37:49Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Oh, Big Country. > > From Scotland. 🙂 That’s a perfect example! To give an instance of a group that is \*exactly \*what it says on the tin: **Afro Celt Sound System**. ---
**Author:** ![FlyingRat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/59ef9b/32.png) [@FlyingRat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingRat)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/118 "2014-07-01T19:41:23Z")
> [@Infovore](#): > > I don’t know exactly _what_ kind of band **Toad the Wet Sprocket** sounds like they should be, but whatever it is, I don’t think they’re it. The name came from the Monty Python “Rock Notes” sketch: > [@](#): > > Rex Stardust, lead electric triangle with Toad the Wet Sprocket, has had to have an elbow removed following their recent successful worldwide tour of Finland. Flamboyant ambidextrous Rex apparently fell off the back of a motorcycle. “Fell off the back of a motorcyclist, most likely,” quipped ace drummer Jumbo McClooney upon hearing of the accident. Plans are now afoot for a major tour of Iceland. It seems to have been one of those names that they decided on for a laugh, later thought better of, and discovered it was too late to change. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2014, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/119 "2014-07-01T20:27:50Z")
> [@Accidental\_Martyr](#): > > Alabama 3 is from England. As is Asia. (Asia’s singer/bassist John Wetton was previously in the more truthfully named U.K.) ---
**Author:** ![Slade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@Slade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slade)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2014, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576/120 "2014-07-03T18:48:03Z")
**The Birthday Party** were named after the dark & menacing Harold Pinter play of that name, not a child’s celebration. Which makes a lot more sense. **Commander Cody & The Lost Planet Airmen** played Western Swing, which is indeed a sub-category of Country & Western. In fact, I think I’m right in saying that’s where the “Western” comes from. My own addition would be **Rocket From The Crypt**. That’s a straight-up rockabilly band’s name to me, but that’s not what they play. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/band-names-that-dont-fit-their-style/691576.md?page=7)