Guitar Pop For Now People—Part 15
10 Recent Tracks + Music Reviewers/Publications
There’s something magical about band names.
In college, I knew a talented local musician who kept a glorious list of punny band names. Rather than stick with a single moniker for his artsy trio, he would choose a different one for each show—and do a custom painting with that band name on it.
Around the same time, I saw Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra perform his infamous “Names for Bands” spoken word piece: “How many times have you heard the same old cliché band names over and over and over again? ‘Something new? Oh no. That’s too hard, that’s too difficult. Our friends might not like us, we might not get on a major label or college radio or MTV.’ No. Pick a formula—any formula.”
And years later I read Ian Svenonius’ incredible manifesto/how to guide, Supernatural Strategies for Making a Rock ‘n’ Roll Group, in which he suggests that band names should “appear in a dream or revelation.”
I’ve been thinking about this recently because of the great band names featured in April’s installment of Guitar Pop For Now People.
One that really pops out is Ethan Beck & The Charlie Browns, which has a specific kind of ‘50s rock and roll innocence about it. Same is true of Johnnie Carwash. I’m also a sucker for “The” band names like The Trafalgars and The Armoires, but there’s something punchy and immediate about Motorists, Overlord, Lolas, Cola Cubes and Bad Nerves too. James Sullivan performs under his own name these days, but he used to be in More Kicks—a perfect guitar pop band name if there ever was one.
Of course, beyond all these great names is some incredible music. William Shakespeare’s famous “A rose by any other name…” line from Romeo & Juliet comes to mind here. Or was it William & The Shakespeares? Jomeo & Ruliet?
As always, we have included a quote from a recent review and link for you to check it out. These are some of my go-to publications and reviewers out their curating for us, so be sure to give them a click, follow and share.
⚡️💥 What Are Some Of Your Favorite Band Names?!
10 Recent Tracks and Music Reviewers/Publications
“The Canadian power trio found themselves weaving between tactile post-punk and power pop on their last album, but the first single from the upcoming Touched By The Stuff is squarely in the latter camp, finding the band as big and bold as ever. Motorists lean heavy in to the ‘90s niche of power pop and alt-rock ribaldry that was a staple of both college and commercial radio.”—Andy, Raven Sings The Blues
“Well here's another release that will have most of you going nuts! Cola Cubes are a trio from Liverpool, and their debut single sounds like an unearthed treasure from 1980. ‘Bold Street Beach’ lives at the intersection of power pop, punk, and surf, and it's a stone cold smash.”—Lord Rutledge, Faster and Louder
“The Boy Who Cried Goodbye’ ponders whether the boy in question is really suffering or just a drama queen, played out over a music bed that vibes Magnetic Fields or They Might Be Giants.” —Dennis Pilon, Poprock Record
“‘Company Time’ mines this best, catchy melody with a solid jangling rhythm guitar. They have a seamless blend of nostalgic guitar riffs, echoing the spirit of 1960s London while infusing it with infectious energy.”—Aaron Kupferberg, Powerpopaholic
“Bad Nerves are best known for power-pop blasts in punk clothing, typically lasting under two minutes. With that in mind ‘You Should Know By Now’ is practically prog by their standards, in that it clocks in at three and a half minutes, finds them on dreamier, moodier sonic ground with some tasty tempo shifts, and doesn’t break quite such a sweat, pace-wise.”—Polly Glass, Louder Sound
“‘Fear and Loathing in Gramercy,’ the new late-night wander-the-streets tune from Ethan Beck & The Charlie Browns (great band name) hits instantly, with an anxious energy that seeps through every guitar line and drum fill.”—Aaron Eisenreich, The Alternative
“Are Californian power pop band The Armoires dead serious or indulging into a bit of wishful thinking when they sing that ‘this is where we go big’ on their new single? Either way the song is a bold statement, wrapped in strings and guitars, with a classic slowed down middle-eight thrown in for good measure.”—Hans Werksman, Here Comes The Flood
“In its first half in particular, No Friends No Pain is brief but impactful garage-pop hit after hit—the “woo-oohs” in opening track “Sunshine”, the foot-on-gas rave-up found in “I’m a Mess”, the garage-y pop punk “Stuck in My Head”, and “What a Life,” which basically puts together a bit of the best of every song that came before it—are all single-ready.”—Rosy Overdrive
“‘Work is the Blackmail of Survival’ is a terrific song and I hope Boykin and crew have more up their sleeves.”—Tim Hinely, Daggerzine
“Now that More Kicks is a thing of the past, James Sullivan, with Vital Signs, has delivered an exceptional record. It’s sophisticated, melodic, narrative-driven, and utterly intriguing! Here is a restless writer at the top of the songwriting game.”—Patrick Donders, Sweet Sweet Music Blog
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Great set of tunes - really think I need to check out the James Sullivan album!
Most of my favorite band names are simply because they are the names of my favorite bands: Against Me! is not a great name, but I love the band so much I don't care. Same goes for Rocket From The Crypt, which is such a rip-off of Rocket From The Tombs that it's odd. But John Reis's project Drive Like Jehu is a great name. And Wet Leg, Modest Mouse, Ghostface Killah, Method Man, and Old Dirty Bastard, Destroy Boys, Bad Astronaut, Fugazi, Avail, Bright Eyes, Dinosaur Jr., and many others. Then there are the "dirty" names, which still strike my adolescent sense of humor: Pissed Jeans, Fucked Up, and The Butthole Surfers. But even more elemental in concept if not scatology are the celebrity/gag names that I can't erase from my mind: Andrew Jackson Jihad, Sandy Duncan's Eye, Jodie Foster's Army, and REO Speedealer. But I don't know that anyone can do better than a handful of artists who used a version of their own names but entered the pantheon with it: Little Richard, Stevie Wonder, and by luck of a great name matched with fantastic presence, Johnny Cash.