Cool Band Names

Today, I'm looking at cool band names. There are some great ones out there, some bad ones, weird ones, and boring ones. Think about it: many of the bands with the greatest music of all time have dull names: The Doors, The Beatles, The Who, The Eagles, Queen, and The Band.

And I'm not thinking of the just plain ridiculous or funny, like The Butthole Surfers, Alabama Thunderpussy, W.A.S.P. (We Are Sexual Perverts), or Bunch of Fucking Goofs. A band name that you'd be proud of, one you'd like to be associated with. 

There's the truly weird, like Throbbing Gristle and the Meat Puppets. No. Or the vaguely odd, like Dead Can Dance, Mott the Hoople, or Echo And The Bunnymen... or definitely odd like Dead Kennedys, Suicidal Tendencies, and Sex Pistols. Some of those are darkly evocative, conjuring up unpleasant imagery, which I'm sure was intentional. But simply "controversial" names aren't what I'm aiming for in this case. Especially the shocking yet ludicrous ones, like Dayglo Abortions. And if a name is too goofy, forget it... like Insane Clown Posse, Goo Goo Dolls, and Barenaked Ladies. Even the Red Hot Chili Peppers fall into that category for me.

I'm on the fence with The Talking Heads. Hey, I love 'em, love their music... and the name is certainly unique and memorable, but it's not fun, sexy, or even remotely cool. In fact, the name says it all... boring, just like talking heads on TV. Blah blah blah. 

These are in no particular order, though I've arranged a bunch of my favourites near the top of the list. Mind you, I love an awful lot of these equally. Enjoy!

Van Halen (yes, it's a proper name... courtesy of Eddie and Alex, but it is perfection)
Tokyo Police Club (right?)
Screamin Cheetah Wheelies (who can't love this one?)
Death Cab For Cutie (cool in a cryptic way, but go look up the origin of the name - even cooler!)
Blue Öyster Cult (one of the best band names of all time)
Led Zeppelin (duh!)
Iron Maiden (again... duh, even if you don't know the origin of the term)
Tygers of Pan Tang (strange but oh, so perfect for a metal band)
They Might Be Giants (I've always liked this one)
Dillinger Escape Plan (one of the most imaginative names I've ever heard)
Parliament Funkadelic
Marillion
Dream Theater
Black Sabbath
Judas Priest
Motörhead
Stone Temple Pilots

Some more:

Black Flag
Killer Dwarfs
Steppenwolf (a given... and go read up on the origin of the word to make it even cooler)
The Velvet Underground
Public Enemy
Propellerheads
Apollo 440
A Tribe Called Quest
Godspeed You! Black Emperor (poor punctuation aside, it's strange, dark and evocative)
Darkthrone
Mercyful Fate
Queens of the Stone Age
Thin Lizzy
Pink Floyd
Soundgarden
Aerosmith
Def Leppard 
Massive Attack
The Art of Noise
Earth, Wind & Fire
Manowar
Angel Witch
Mastodon
Opeth (strangely evocative, enigmatic, and ominous... just like their music)
Fear Factory


Honourable Mentions: 

Strapping Young Lad (I acknowledge it sounds pretty nifty, if not a winner)
Supertramp (I can't decide if this deserves full honours or a complete dismissal)
Type O Negative
Bad Religion
Blind Guardian
Smashing Pumpkins
Monster Magnet

Fugazi

Cheap Trick

Cowboy Junkies

Avenged Sevenfold

Rage Against the Machine

Five Finger Death Punch (I might knock this up to the main list)

Nine Inch Nails

Slipknot

Spooky Tooth

The Strawberry Alarm Clock

Pearl Jam

The Grateful Dead

Depeche Mode

Corrosion of Conformity

Slayer
Metallica