Legit phenomenon; a band has a really crazily dedicated fanbase, usually very tight-knit and obsessive, even if they’re not that well-known or have long since faded from the public spotlight. These fans have all the fervor of Deadheads, but the band they follow doesn’t seem to warrant such a level of adulation - what’s going on there?
What are some bands who have really crazily dedicated fans and obsessive fanbases that you just can’t make sense of? Even if you’re not a fan of a band like the Dead, for example, it’s easy to understand why the fans are what they are - but for this thread, we’re talking about the ones that you just can’t explain or understand.
Obviously, I’ll go first:
Over the Rhine - you’re probably scratching your head on this one, because most people haven’t even heard of this band. They’re a minor, quasi-Christian folk band that has the most rabid fanbase I’ve seen. Their fanbase is honestly unparalleled in its enthusiasm, with large groups of fans routinely flying across the U.S. to attend the band’s shows even though they tour pretty regularly. There’s nothing that out of the ordinary about the band - they’re a husband and wife duo that write good songs, but in all it’s a very typical “modern folk” group that doesn’t seem to do anything to explain the fans.
and then
Cowboy Mouth - I barely remember Cowboy Mouth as being one of the most extremely minor one-hit wonders of the mid-nineties; I mean, we’re talking about a band that made such an un-splash that most people remember forgettable bands like Sponge and Letters to Cleo before they remember Cowboy Mouth…or so I thought! The last time they came to town here in Chicago, they sold out something like three nights in a row at one of the largest clubs in the city. What?! What’s going on with this band and their fans!?
OtR have built their reputation just by being consistently good for a long time. Their cult following is dedicated, but not that large; they still play a 400-capacity club in Lexington, which is only 90 minutes from their home in Cincinnati. They are odd candidates for such devotion, though.
Cowboy Mouth’s live show is insane, and it’s easy to see why they would build a following. Their audience does a lot of those audience things that I hate–for instance, they throw red spoons and Tootsie Rolls at the band at various lyrical cues.
There seem to be lots of bands like this. I had never heard of a band called Jump, Little Children until I was in Charleston last year for NYE and they were doing their farewell shows, which were apparently a huge deal. I spend a lot of time listening to and reading about new music, so it always feels weird when a band I know nothing about has a huge scene around it.
I don’t know exactly how dedicated it is, but it counts as inexplicable since even the band members are surprised it even exists.
The president of my company was lead guitar in an early-80’s hair metal band called Rajas that released a couple of albums on an indie label, but never had anything major, only played around the Osaka-Kyoto area, and broke up after only a few years (pres. wanted to get married with the bass player, but her father forbade it unless he got a real job. He started working as a junior office assistant/designer at a tiny ad company in Tokyo, and 25 years later he runs the place and now can go back to playing music. He and the bass player are still married). Anyway, someone in the office decided to see if Rajas was mentioned anywhere on the Internet, and discovered that there are actually two or three fan sites dedicated to them.
Later on, my wife was taking a weekend class and some of the students started talking about their childhoods. One of them started talking about how as a teen she’d been an obsessively huge fan of this band that nobody’s ever heard of nowadays. Yep, Rajas.
Yeah, Cowboy Mouth (I’ve seen them many many times) is the best live band you’ve never heard of. It’s an amazing show and accounts, in toto, for their rabid fan base.
Yeah, they’re subhuman, but I totally understand why their fanbase exists and why it’s so big. There’s a lot of redneck morons out there that like rap music but hate black people, so the ICP gives them their favorite stuff (stupid humor, “offensive” lyrics) from “scary clowns.” Profit!
I saw Over the Rhine several times (we share a home town). They were consistently good, quirky, original, and interesting. They’re a pretty unique band. And they don’t wear their religion on their sleeves: I’m an atheist, and I had seen OtR live probably three times before someone had to point out to me that they have a Christian following. So to answer the OP, I don’t know why their fanbase is *rabid * (unless it’s because they’re about the only Xian band that doesn’t suck), but I certainly understand why they have a fanbase.
Hey, you shut up about my OtR!
(signed, serious and rabid fan-girl)
I have no explanation other than they are really that good. Just saw them last weekend and I realized that I have seen them way over 20 times and I don’t travel to see them much (only 4x to Cincy.) I’ve gone to every area show in the last 11 years though… and they just get better every time.
It’s like seeing family, they really acknowledge the role of their fans. Some of us lostee/Orchard folks have indeed done some pretty insane things (flown cross-country, sent the singer dozens of flowers, had giant weekend gatherings, done charity tributes, etc.)
All true, and stated with elegant succinctness. OK, enough with the moms and strollers and sidewalks. You’re obviously missing out on your true calling in SDMB life, which is denigrating ICP fans.
Now just watch out, or the Tilt-A-Whirl will take your soul. :rolleyes:
Quite a few jam bands, I think, would fall into this category, whether it’s the enormous traveling fanbases of Phish or the Dead, or the more under-the-radar, but no less dedicated, cults of SCI or WP.
I think you can leave all the jambands out of it (Phish, String Cheese, etc.), since they might have large and dedicated fanbases, but they’re not exactly inexplicable. The dedicated fans are a necessary part of that culture; bands of that sort who don’t cultivate that kind of scene just don’t make it.
On the other hand, there’s Sister Hazel, an unremarkable band that had a pretty good minor hit ten years ago (“All For You”), but which has seriously dedicated devotees nationwide that call themselves Hazelnuts.
Of course I can understand it when a band I think is great develops a cult following (Phish), and I can understand it when a truly horrible band does the same (Insane Clown Posse). It’s the totally forgettable bands with cult followings I don’t get.
