This week, Phoenix metal act Okilly Dokilly were thrust into the spotlight after the revelation that they may be the world’s first and only ‘Nedal’ band. Nedal, of course, refers to the rare crossover genre of metal and Ned Flanders references.
From the green sweaters pulled over pink shirts, to the lyrics that are almost all direct quotes from the man himself, the band honours everyone’s favourite neighbourino from The Simpsons.
Howdy ho, neighbourinos. \m/
While Nedal may be the first heavy rockers to let their love for Flanders be known, they’re not the only band that can lay claim to the ‘Best Simpsons-Themed Metal Act’ throne. Australia has its own contender in the form of Dr. Colossus, a doom band named after the (briefly appearing) supervillain Dr. Hector Von Colossus.
But for every band that goes all out with its Simpsons fandom, there are hundreds more that just take a few hints from the show. We’ve put together five of the best bands to have taken influence from television’s finest yellow family.
Probably the most famous example of a band that nicked its name from The Simpsons, US pop-punkers Fall Out Boy rose to prominence in the mid-2000s. Their name was inspired by Fallout Boy, the young sidekick to the one and only Radioactive Man. They also had the honour of recording a version of The Simpsons theme song, which played during the end credits of the episode ‘Lisa The Drama Queen’.
Jebediah
Jebediah win the Australian category for most famous Simpsons name, having just finished a tour celebrating their 20th year as a band (read our review of their show at The Metro Theatre here) Jebediah Springfield himself was a cromulent leader, most famous for his mantra “A noble spirit embiggins the smallest man”. Some naysayers suggest his past is linked to the vicious pirate Hans Sprungfeld, but that’s just nonsense.
Milhouse
From right here in Sydney we have the short-lived and criminally underated band Milhouse, who took their name from Bart Simpson’s trustly and nerdy sidekick Milhouse Van Houten. Only operating for a few years, the band released two EPs, entitled Everything’s Coming Up and Thrillhouse and covered a series of intense topics such as breakfast foods, laundry and Mondays. It’s a little bit silly, but it’s also some of the most entertaining, catchy pop-punk you’ll hear this week.
I Voted For Kodos
This band went a little more obscure with the Simpsons references. In ‘Treehouse Of Horror VII’, when Kang conqors the world and enslaves the entire human race, Homer proudly states, “Don’t blame me, I voted for Kodos.” And thus, the name of this early-2000s ska band was born.
I Voted For Kodos were about as ska as a ska band could get. The story goes that the singer (slash trombonist) met the guitarist at a Reel Big Fish concert, and thus the band was born. They would start their shows by teaching the audience the fine art of skanking, and wrote such heartbreaking hits as ‘She Hates Ska’. Last year I Voted For Kodos reformed, using a Kickstarer to fund their new EP.
Itch-E & Scratch-E
We’d be amiss not to mention the seminal Aussie electro group Itch-E & Scratch-E. Named after the ultra-violent cartoon cat and mouse that appear on the Krusty The Clown Show, the band made waves in the underground Australian EDM scene in the ’90s, and in 2010 doubled down on the Simpsons references by releasing an album called Hooray For Everything!!!
Itch-E & Scratch-E reached peak fame with the release of their song ‘Sweetness And Light’, which placed at number 21 in the triple j Hottest 100 of 1994, and also won the award for Best Dance Single at the 1995 ARIA awards, in which the members famously thanked “the ecstasy dealers of Sydney” in their speech.
We’re not sure The Be Sharps would go in for that kind of action.
