searching for a band name

[rightonthemark]

i recently decided to jump back into the gigging band arena again after more than a decade out of the business. we’re all right around 50 years old and are primarily a 70s and 80s cover band. everything from the cars to judas priest; from billy joel to boston; from prince to autograph.
we’ve all suggested names but none of us have taken a hard stance for or against anything. here’s a list of some names we’ve kicked around. just wondering if one really stands out for you? would any of these names make you go i really gotta check these guys out? thoughts…???…

Radio-Active
Overdrive
Midlife Crisis
Flashback
Reckless
Rock Brigade
Vinyl Remains
Vinyl Revolution
Rocka Rolla

rock and roll ain't pretty; that's why they picked us to play it.

[Igglepud]

Midlife Crisis is already a band.

I’m seeing a theme among your names. Try combining aspects of them and see if you like them:

Vinyl Flashback

Reckless Overdrive

Reckless Rock Brigade

Radio Crisis

 

 

 

MY ROCK IS FIERCE!!!

[Sean]

I vote for Rock Brigade. It doesn’t date your band. Gives a chance at a younger crowd also

Tell me and I will forget ,show me and I'll remember, involve me and I'll understand

[superblonde]

Sounds like a lot of your covers are danceable. So something in the name that references dancing or groove is maybe good? Get more girls on the floor? Or since it’s 70s/80s then maybe something like a catch phrase from MTV, will clue everyone into what the band will play. Personally I would stay away from a name that makes you sound like old dudes unless that is what you really want (like Midlife Flashback etc). The guys I sing with always throw out names for the group like The Grays, The Pacemakers, etc, I keep saying, what are you smoking, no one wants to go see someone named like that .. simply not cool.. they get chuckles out of the audience saying that stuff and I can’t help but wonder, is the audience laughing with them or laughing at them.

Some great cover band names that I have seen locally, seem to start with neat phrases of classic lyrics from a song that really symbolizes the setlist, or combination of that somehow. Like lets say you play Jenny. And you play Autograph. So combining those iconic lyrics somehow would be like, Homecoming Jenny or Jenny’s Blue Jeans, you know, something like that. Altho maybe you dont like those in particular because your ideas sound like you want something edgier (I like edgier for sure), those are just my examples from those 2 songs. Pick 2 hard rock songs and do the same thing. Prince and Breaking the Law would be like.. uhh.. Hell Bent Corvette. I dunno. Rocka Rolla has tons of these crazy phrases to make into band names 😀 https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/judaspriest/rockarolla.html

I'm an intermediate student of Metal Method. I play seitannic heavy metal. All Kale Seitan! ♯ ♮ ♭ ø ° Δ ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬
And on the Seventh Day, Mustaine said: ∇ ⨯ E = - ∂B / ∂t ; and there was Thrash; and it had a ♭3; and it was good.

[rightonthemark]

maybe Vinyl Groove

rock and roll ain't pretty; that's why they picked us to play it.

[superblonde]

The word vinyl to me is more like 1950s 1960s image. 80s was CD’s. Well maybe 1970s was 8-track 😀

I'm an intermediate student of Metal Method. I play seitannic heavy metal. All Kale Seitan! ♯ ♮ ♭ ø ° Δ ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬
And on the Seventh Day, Mustaine said: ∇ ⨯ E = - ∂B / ∂t ; and there was Thrash; and it had a ♭3; and it was good.

[rightonthemark]

i guess when i thinks 50s and 60s i think singles, 45s, etc.
while they were vinyl i don’t think LP full length albums that i bought and listened to in the 70s and 80s.
and CD popularity really didn’t hit until the 90s.
and yeah 70s did have the 8-tracks.
i guess the 80s would have been cassettes – i had a lot of cassettes.
but pretty much all the music we’re doing was initially released on vinyl. album art was huge in the 80s.

rock and roll ain't pretty; that's why they picked us to play it.

[Igglepud]

There is an 80’s cover band called “Members Only”, which I guess was a really popular jacket back then.

MY ROCK IS FIERCE!!!

[rightonthemark]

yeah. it was.
that’s a thought…using some sort of pop culture references in the name.
hhhmmm…???…

rock and roll ain't pretty; that's why they picked us to play it.

[rightonthemark]

we decided on Vinyl Groove.
i don’t think any of our first choices but one we all agreed on.

rock and roll ain't pretty; that's why they picked us to play it.

[rightonthemark]

the logo we’ve decided on.

rock and roll ain't pretty; that's why they picked us to play it.

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[vinay]

Cool! Vinyl never went out of style (at least I’ve been buying records straight through the ’90s and ’00s) and all rock and metal albums came out in vinyl. So it doesn’t necessarily date you. It makes you maybe look more serious like “hey they don’t just get you digital downloads, they get you a proper tangible work of art” even though at this stage you maybe only focus on doing covers. Also, that logo looks quite modern so I think it is fitting. It makes me expect kind of a funky/jazzy act though. Maybe you would like to implement it in your set. Stuff like “Hard to Handle”, goes well on the dancefloor.

[Sean]

Great logo!

Its awesome that your getting back out there. Hope to see some of the bands performances on YouTube soon.

Tell me and I will forget ,show me and I'll remember, involve me and I'll understand

[superblonde]

I like the name, if I saw that band listed at a regular rock n roll cover band bar, I would go check them out. I like the logo, tho I agree with Vinay a bit, maybe it could be mistaken for a DJ vinyl spinner type act – but if it’s at a bar on a nite that always plays rock n roll, that would resolve the ambiguity for me, I’d know they’re playing classic great rock tunes and I’d go.

The benefit of a logo is using it though, I’m always so surprised that bands dont do more banners or stickers or nowadays, LED light projection. Pico projectors are cheap and could easily project the logo with a few photo slideshow pics onto a dance floor. Or probably other simple light show things with the band name can be made. Backlight a banner or something etc. I know if I were playing the local dive bar, I’d find a way to project my band name onto the parking lot asphalt or side street or the side of the building itself somehow.. what’s the use of a rock fan doing a slow drive by a bar to check out who’s playing and who’s in there, if there’s no way to read or remember the name of the band that’s playing? I guess musicians must feel really bad about doing this somehow, like they think it’s taboo to promote themselves or promote their name, but I don’t see why (unless they’re really bad players, like my band was 😀 .. I wanted to be anonymous, hah).

One of the opening bands I saw at Whisky a go go in LA, the band is a frequent opener, and I think I’ve seen them 3 times now, I’ve never dug their songs or their tone, but, the lead guitarist did go back out on stage after their set and hand out stickers to the headbangers in the front couple rows, I got a sticker too, just simple promotional stuff – explains that while their songs might not be great, their promotion is good, that’s why they’re playing there and other, maybe better, bands are not playing there. I’ve got it on my list to order some custom logo/name picks, that’s gotta be the cheapest advertising gimmick out there for a rock band or a guitarist. In a way it seems super cheesy to give out guitar picks. On the other hand I like getting them myself as a fan, it’s fun, and from the band perspective, it’s simple good business for name recognition.

I'm an intermediate student of Metal Method. I play seitannic heavy metal. All Kale Seitan! ♯ ♮ ♭ ø ° Δ ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬
And on the Seventh Day, Mustaine said: ∇ ⨯ E = - ∂B / ∂t ; and there was Thrash; and it had a ♭3; and it was good.

[rightonthemark]

in one of my past bands – nemesis – we did the t-shirt and hats and sold them at gigs.
pretty sure all the bands i played in had a banner we hung behind us as a backdrop.

here’s one of the early banners back in the day.

i’m sure the new band will do a banner as well.

but i like the projection idea.
i might have to look into that.

rock and roll ain't pretty; that's why they picked us to play it.

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[superblonde]

I just wanna throw out there, one of the small local 60s-70-80s scover bands is named Nude BBQ. -shrug-

I'm an intermediate student of Metal Method. I play seitannic heavy metal. All Kale Seitan! ♯ ♮ ♭ ø ° Δ ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬
And on the Seventh Day, Mustaine said: ∇ ⨯ E = - ∂B / ∂t ; and there was Thrash; and it had a ♭3; and it was good.

[MotleyCrue81]

Not the worst I’ve seen haha. Ever heard of the band name Neutral Milk Hotel? I mean honestly, neutral. Milk. Hotel. Lamest thing I’ve ever heard.

Bring hair metal back!

[Anonymous]

Neutral Milk Hotel is one of my favorite bands!  It was April’s favorite band on Parks and Rec too.  Odd name though….

[Author]

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