AP photo | From the Stone Temple Pilots, who initially wanted to be called STP, to Rascal Flatts, formerly Fiddle and Steele Guitar Club, San Antonio will be visited by a host of unconventionally named bands this summer. We at 210SA couldn’t help but think about the bands with truly peculiar names that have made it big.
Chumbawamba
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THE RUNDOWN WHO: Rascal Flatts with Taylor Swift
WHEN: 8 p.m. Sunday, June 22
WHERE: Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, 16765 Lookout Road, Selma
HOW MUCH: $27.95-$78.75 at Ticketmaster.com; (210) 224-9600
INFO: rascalflatts.com; taylorswift.com | MEMBERS: Lou Watts, Boff Whalley, Neil Ferguson, Jude Abbot
TOP HIT: “Tubthumping”
NAME: According to the band’s Web site, “Chumbawamba doesn’t mean anything. At the time we formed (in the early ’80s) there was a rush of bands with obvious names. It was the time of ‘peace punk,’ and you couldn’t get across a youth club dance floor without bumping into a Disorder, a Subhumans, a Decadent Youth or an Anthrax T-shirt. We liked the sound of Chumbawamba because it wasn’t nailing ourselves down.”
210 TAKE: Chumbawamba’s name makes as much sense as its songs. There is no logical rationale for naming a band after something that sounds like an African tribal chant and then singing about drinking and pissing the night away. Even so, there have been various explanations for how the band came up with its name. Our favorite of these stories is the one about the band member who wasn’t sure whether to enter the “Chumba”- or “Wamba”-labeled restroom.
Nickelback
MEMBERS: Chad Kroeger, Ryan Peake, Mike Kroeger and Daniel Adair
TOP HITS: “Rockstar,” “Far Away,” “Photograph,” “If Everyone Cared” and “Savin’ Me”
NAME: Nickelback supposedly got its name when member Mike Kroeger worked at Starbucks and coffee cost $1.95. People would pay for their coffee with two dollars and would receive a nickel back.
210 TAKE: Nickelback sounds more like a bad pun than a band name, but fortunately for its members, their songs have risen to the top of the charts and they can afford as many Half-Caf Mochaccinos they want.
*NSYNC
MEMBERS: Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Lance Bass, Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick
TOP HITS: “Bye Bye Bye,” “Tearin’ Up My Heart” and “Pop”
NAME: *NSYNC got its name by combining the last letters of its original members’ first names: JustiN, ChriS, JoeY, JasoN and JC. However, after Lance Bass took the place of Jason Galasso, the band’s “creative” play on letters no longer made sense.
210 TAKE: *NSYNC isn’t really a bad name for a teenie bopper boy band, but they should have considered naming themselves after a combination of the final letters in their last names, SEK-ZE.
Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch
MEMBERS: Mark Wahlberg (aka Marky Mark), Scott Ross (aka Scottie Gee), Hector Barros (aka Hector the Bootie Inspector), Terry Yancey (aka DJ-T) and Anthony Thomas (aka Ashey Ace).
TOP HIT: “Good Vibrations”
NAME: Marky Mark Wahlberg and his funky bunch of friends with bizarrely cocky nicknames were brought together by the manager of the also poorly named New Kids on the Block, who coincidentally are no longer “new” or “kids” on their 2008 reunion tour.
210 TAKE: Similar to the New Kids on the Block reunion, Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch will be reuniting without their beloved Marky Mark. What do you call Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch with out the Marky Mark? The Funky Bs of course! Even more upsetting than the absence of heartthrob Mark Wahlberg is the lack of creative nicknames in the new band. There will no longer be a bootie inspector among the band to get the “good vibrations” going.
Hootie and the Blowfish
MEMBERS: Darius Rucker, Mark Bryan, Dean Felber and Jim “Soni” Sonefeld
TOP HITS: “Only Wanna Be With You,” “Let Her Cry,” “Hold My Hand” and “Time”
NAME: Contrary to popular belief, there is not a Hootie or Blowfish in the band. It was named after two nonmember college friends of Rucker. One was called Hootie because his oversized glasses resembled a Hoot owl, and the other was called the Blowfish because his chubby cheeks made him look like an inflated puffer fish.
210 TAKE: Some would say that the band’s music sounds like a dying owl or is as poisonous as incorrectly prepared blowfish meat; however, we can only fault the group on its poor choice of moniker. In 1998 Rolling Stone said Rucker was “more or less fed-up” with being called Hootie. Rucker probably got what he deserved for making fun of his friends’ appearances. We have more sympathy for the other members of the band, who were known as “Hootie’s” blowfish. Rucker is now trying to make a name for himself in the world of country music. Maybe his new audience will actually remember his name.
Panic At the Disco
MEMBERS: Spencer Smith, Ryan Ross, Brendon Urie, Jon Walker Brent Wilson no longer a member
TOP HIT: “I Write Sins Not Tragedies,” “Nine in the Afternoon,” “Lying is the Most Fun a Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off” and “But It’s Better If You Do”
NAME: Panic At the Disco got its name by borrowing a line from Name Taken’s “Panic.”
210 TAKE: In its list of the 25 Most Ridiculous Band Names in Rock History, cracked.com perfectly describes the imagery that the band’s name conjures for its audience: “Panic! At the Disco makes us imagine a bunch of effeminate guys running around a dance floor freaking out because they ran out of eyeliner.” After giving it some deep thought, Panic at the Disco removed the “!” from their name. Apparently the disco isn’t as panicked as it used to be. Perhaps they found more eyeliner.
Honorable Mentions:
The The: Sadly, we were not able to include them in our top unfortunate band names because they are nearly impossible to google.
Hoobastank and Papa Roach: Names with a gag factor.
Def Leppard, Puddle of Mudd and Limp Bizkit: Bands that appear to have failed their spelling finals or are just too hardcore to understand the English language.
!!! and Prince’s symbol-for-a-name stunt: Names that are unpronounceable for most Earthlings.
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