| artist's name |
named after... |
Bettie Serveert
 |
Bettie Serveert, Dutch for "Betty Serves," (the title of a tennis instruction book by one-time pro Betty Stove.) |
Blumfeld
 |
short story by Franz Kafka
text can be read online here (in German)
English translation |
Boo Radleys
 |
... the shady character in "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee |
Boss Hog
 |
...a motorcycle (Thunderbolt V8).
There is also a character of the same name in "Dukes Of Hazzard". |
Clem Snide
 |
... a character from "Naked Lunch" |
The Doors
 |
"The Doors Of Perception" - a novel by Aldous Huxley
In the book, at the beginning, there is also a quote by William Blake (which is in fact the source for the book's title): "If the doors of perception were to be cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is, infinite" which is said to have inspired Huxley to write the book.
Thanks to Alan! |
Depeche Mode
 |
The name is french for "fast fashion" and was chosen by Dave from the cover of a french fashion magazine. |
Emil Bulls
 |
... a book Stefan Julian Neuschäfer by the same name (1993) which was also turned into a movie |
The Fall
 |
... after the Albert Camus book of the same name.
Synopsis: Jean-Baptiste Clamence, a successful Parisian barrister, has come to recognize the deep-seated hypocrisy of his existence. His epigrammatic and, above all, discomforting monologue gradually saps, then undermines, the reader's own complacency.
Thank you to Darren |
Fantômas
 |
... a series of French novels and
films written by Pierre Souvestre and Marcel Allain, called Fantômas. Fantomas is an
anti-hero, a lord of terror [more info] |
Die Fantastischen Vier
 |
... a legendary Marvel Comic. On an intergalactic adventure, four renowned scientists are zapped by cosmic rays, mysteriously transforming them into the coolest comic book characters of all time -
Mr. Fantastic, The Invisible Woman, The Human Torch and The Thing! [more] |
Good Charlotte
 |
... after a book called "good charlotte" about a girl named charlotte who was always bullied and her grandma called her "good charlotte." the members were bullied (in school) as well.
(Thanks to Kate for this one!) |
Grateful Dead, The
 |
... an old British ballad which sings about spirits that are called Grateful Dead when they finally are freed from whatever binds them to remain on Earth |
Hefner
 |
...Hugh Hefner, founder of "Playboy" magazine in 1953.
A few facts:
Hugh Hefner has an IQ of 152.
He has a species of rabbit, the Sylvilagus palustris hefneri, named
after him.
He is currently dating three women. |
Idlewild
 |
... the quiet meeting place in the lead singer's (roddy woomble) favourite book, 'Anne of Green Gables', the name stuck with him
all the way through school before he named the band.
thanks to Joseph! |
Joy Division
 |
... a novel of sado-masochism in German concentration camps during 2 WW. The novel entitled
"The House Of Dolls" was written by Karol Cetinsky and it also contributes a verse to the song "No love lost".
Joy Divisions were lines of huts in
which deported women were forced to prostitute themselves. |
Level 42
 |
The 42 comes from the Douglas Adams book 'The Hitchiker's Guide
to the Galaxy'. It's the answer to he meaning of life, the Universe and
everything.
Thanks to Paul! |
Love And Rockets
 |
This Bauhaus side project was named after a comic book which, strangely enough, is about a band.
a big thank you to Burt! |
Marillion
 |
... Tolkien's novel "Silmarillion". The Silmarillion represents the source of Tolkien's later work and follows the events of the First Age of Middle Earth. For information, The Lord Of The Rings concerns the end of the Third Age. |
Moby
 |
"Given the legal name Richard Melville Hall. Given the nickname 'Moby' at
birth due to having Herman Melville as an ancestor." Guess it just stuck.
from moby.com, sent in by cassandra (thanks!) |
Mott The Hoople
 |
... the novel of the same name, written by Willard Manus.
It is about a misfit who ended up joining a circus of freaks.
|
Muff Potter
 |
... the tramp Muff Potter from Mark Twain's "Tom Sawyer".
|
Naked Lunch
|
... a book by William S. Burroughs
[download songs here] |
Our Lady Peace
 |
an old poem about the Civil War by the same name
[read it] |
Paradise Lost
 |
... the classic epic poem by John Milton. Paradise Lost is considered Milton's masterpiece and one of
the greatest poems in world literature. In its 12 cantos he tells
the story of the fall of Adam in a context of cosmic drama and
profound speculations. |
Pennywise
 |
... the clown in Stephen King's novel "It". |
Père Ubu
 |
... the main character in Alfred Jarry's play, Ubu Roi. |
Pixies
 |
... Pixi books
The band's guitar player was learning English and noticed the word in a dictionary. They thought it would be funny to have a big guy like Black Francis fronting a band called "The Pixies". |
Primal Scream
 |
... a psychological best seller by Arthur Janov (written in 1970)
The book is widely regarded as one of the classic explorations into the causes and cures of neuroses. Janov explains how Primal Therapy differs from more conventional therapeutic approaches, and explores the meaning of the word "normal." Learn how patients have freed themselves from constant emotional pain to become the people they were meant to be. |
Scritti Politti
 |
... political writings by Antonio Gramsci, an Italian Marxist |
Soft Machine
 |
.... a novel by William S. Burroughs
Plot:
The Soft Machine is a postmodern science fiction book by William S. Burroughs. It was published in 1961. It is first in a trilogy of science fiction novels: The Soft Machine, The Ticket That Exploded, and Nova Express.
The book is an absolutely devastating ridicule of all that is false, primitive, and vicious in current American life: the abuses of power, hero worship, aimless violence, materialistic obsession, intolerance, and every form of hypocrisy. |
Son Goku
 |
... a figure in the cartoon "Dragonball". The actual spelling would be Sangoku. |
Soul Coughing
 |
Originally, Soul Coughing was the title of a rather dire poem frontman M. Doughty wrote about Neil Young vomiting in
the back of a bus. Whilst everybody hated the poem, they
were quite intrigued with the name and thus Mr Doughty
adopted it for his band. |
Sneaker Pimps
 |
The Sneaker Pimps took their name from an article the Beastie Boys wrote
in Grand Royal magazine about a man that procured vintage athletic
footwear for them and who was called a "sneaker pimp". |
Steely Dan
|
... a sex toy in W.S. Burrough's "Naked Lunch":
Mary is strapping on a rubber penis: "Steely Dan III from Yokohama," she says, caressing the shaft. Milk spurts across the
room...[more] |
The Teardrop Explodes
 |
... after a quote from
Daredevil No 77 (Marvel Comics, June 1971). It was chosen because it sounded
cool, and also because it is the only band name they could think of that
contained a present participle.
a big thank you to Sam |
Thin Lizzy
 |
...the cartoon character 'Tin Lizzy'. They changed it to Thin Lizzy for copyright reasons. |
Tomte
 |
...."Tomte Tummetott", a children's book by the late Swedish author Astrid Lindgren. |
UB 40
 |
British Unemployment Form |
Uriah Heep
 |
... a character in Charles Dicken's "David Copperfield" [more] |
Ugly Duckling
 |
... a fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen [read] |
Velvet Underground
 |
...a book on s&m culture by Michael Leigh (released in 1963)
It is said that a band member found the book on the street.
Sure! |
Veruca Salt
 |
...a character in the book, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" by Roald Dahl
Book Summary
Five lucky people who find a Golden Ticket wrapped in one of Willy Wonka's wonderful candy bars win a visit to his mysterious chocolate factory. Charlie Bucket is too poor to buy more than one candy bar a year, so when he wins a ticket, his whole family celebrates.
The four other lucky children are not as nice as Charlie, and they're punished for their bad behavior. Greedy Augustus Gloop falls into the chocolate river he's trying to drink from and gets sucked up a pipe. Chewing-gum addict Violet Beauregarde grabs a stick of gum that blows her up into a giant blueberry. Spoiled Veruca Salt is deemed a "bad nut" by Wonka's trained squirrels and thrown in the garbage. And Mike Teavee demands to be "sent by television" and gets shrunk in the process. But there's a wonderful surprise waiting for Charlie at the end of the tour. |
Ween
 |
...an archaic synonym for the verb "to believe". dates back to the 12th century. |
