20 bands named after films

4 October 2023, 19:00

Looking for a name for your new band? Then head down to the local multiplex for some inspiration, like these bands did...

1. Siouxsie And The Banshees

   Punk scenesters Siouxsie Sioux and Steve Severin wangled their way onto the bill at the 100 Club's Punk Festival in September 1976, but didn't have a band and didn't have a name. Luckily, Thames TV in London broadcast the 1970 Vincent Price horror film Cry Of The Banshee on the evening of 31st August and Sioux and Severin were taking notes. In Irish folklore, the "banshee" heralds the death of a family member, as referenced in the 2022 film, The Banshees Of Inisherin.

   

2. Black Sabbath

   The Birmingham pioneers of heavy rock noticed that the cinema opposite their rehearsal room was showing the 1963 Boris Karloff movie Black Sabbath and were inspired to write a doom-laden song with that title, which prompted the group to change their name. The film is an anthology of scary tales featuring the veteran horror star and directed by the great Italian cinematographer Mario Bava.

   

3. Mudhoney

   The Seattle-based grunge act took their name from trash movie legend Russ Meyer's 1965 epic.

   

4. They Might Be Giants

   The quirky New York duo of John Flansburgh and John Linnell are best known in the UK for their 1990 hit Birdhouse In Your Soul. They Might Be Giants is also the name of a play and its 1971 adaptation starring George C. Scott and Joanne Woodward, which takes its own name from a reference to the Spanish epic novel Don Quixote.

   

5. Fine Young Cannibals

   The Birmingham trio of ex-Beat members Andy Cox and David Steele, plus singer Roland Gift, took their name from the 1960 film All The Fine Young Cannibals, starring Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood.

   

6. The Misfits

   Are we referring to the New Jersey-based horror punks, or the final film of Marilyn Monroe, released in 1961? Both!

   

7. Dirty Pretty Things

   Carl Barât named his post-Libertines band after a 2002 British film directed by Stephen Frears. Unfortunately, there was also another band called that, but they sorted it all out in the end.

   

8. Them

   The Belfast r'n'b band that featured Van Morrison took their name from the 1954 giant-ants-in-the-desert horror.

   

9. The Searchers

   The Merseybeat act best known for their hits Needles And Pins and When You Walk In The Room, took their name from the 1958 John Ford western.

   

10. The Knack

    The Los Angeles band, best known for their 1979 hit My Sharona, share their name with the 1965 British comedy The Knack... And How to Get It, starring Ray Brooks and Rita Tushingham. Coincidence? Possibly.

    

11. 3 Colours Red

    The Brit rockers chose their name by randomly picking an advert in the London listings magazine Time Out, one of which was plugging a showing of the final instalment of Krzysztof Kieślowski's "Three Colours" trilogy.

    

12. Godspeed You! Black Emperor

    The Canadian post-rockers named themselves after an obscure Japanese documentary about biker gangs from 1976.

    

    Godspeed You! Black Emperor trailer (1976)

13. Goldfinger

    The LA punks take their name, of course, from the 1964 James Bond classic, starring Sean Connery.

    

    Goldfinger Official Trailer #1 - Sean Connery Movie (1964) HD

14. All About Eve

    The 1980s gothic rock act named themselves after a 1950 drama starring Bette Davis.

    

15. Babes In Toyland

    The Minneapolis alt rock band fronted by Kat Bjelland are named after the 1934 Laurel & Hardy musical (or its 1961 remake!), itself named after a 1903 operetta.

    

16. BMX Bandits

    The Scottish indie rockers were formed in 1985 and named after a 1983 Australian comedy starring a young Nicole Kidman.

    

17. Gojira

    The French metal band were originally called "Godzilla" but had to change the name for legal reasons, so they reverted to the original Japanese name of the titular prehistoric lizard, which is a portmanteau of the Japanese words for "gorilla" and "whale".

    

18. Suspiria

    The 90s darkwave duo of Matthew Lucian and Mark Tansley took their name from Dario Argento's 1977 gothic horror, later remade in 2018 with a Thom Yorke soundtrack. Argento himself took the name from Thomas De Quincey's book Suspiria de Profundis, which is Latin for "Sighs From The Depths".

    

19. My Bloody Valentine

    They've never confirmed where exactly they took the name from, but the Irish noise rock band has the same title as a 1981 Canadian slasher film, which is set in a mine. It was remade in 3D in 2009. The name is a pun on the 1930s show tune My Funny Valentine.

    

20. Teeth Of The Sea

    The best band-named-after-a-film of all: as well as being the name of a London group, "Teeth Of The Sea" is the English translation of the title the classic thriller Jaws went under in France, ie "Les Dents De La Mer".