What’s in a name, anyway? Earlier in the week the official Bandcamp Twitter page sounded off, listing the ten most common band names on its website. It’s hard to believe, but the most popular of those names belongs to fifty-nine different acts on the site.
The top ten all have a lot in common – they’re all one-word nouns, and clearly, are the first words a budding band thinks of when it comes time to choosing a name.
Bandcamp is leading a bit of a revolution in independent music at the moment, and has been for the last few years. Its easy-to-use service allows bands and labels to easily upload and sell their music straight to the customers, with heaps of music on the site set advertising ‘pay what you want’ pricing. Labels such as Poison City Records and Fat Wreck Chords have jumped on board, as well as big-name artists such as Amanda Palmer and Sufjan Stevens.
With so many bands sharing the same names, the real question is which of these artists can stand tall above the rest? Which act deserves their name more than the rest? We’ve dug through the Bandcamp database and pulled out the best example from each of the top ten most common names on the internet. Enjoy.
10. Indigo
Indigo comes tenth on the list of most common Bandcamp band names, and one of them is an indie-folk band from New York – a cute little four-piece that have some great vocal harmonies and some nice little songs.
9. Ghost
Many people are already familiar with the Swedish metal act Ghost, but many others have taken on the moniker. Ghost is a name that seems to be used heavily by rappers and electronic artists – for example, there is Sydney’s own Ghost (or Ghost_, as they like to be called) who make some interesting dark electronica.
8. Zero
A name that either represents a nihilistic and misanthropic outlook on the world, or a really cool Smashing Pumpkins reference, either way it is the name that French ‘electronic grunge’ act Zero have picked. In late 2013 they released their album Sad Songs On Black Ground, which you can now pick up for a handful of Euros.
7. Haze
UK hip hop artist Haze is the haziest Haze of the bunch with a big album with a lot of guests:
6. Moon
It’s not every day that you get to listen to a German psychedelic garage krautrock band. But then again, despite the name, Moon are not your everyday band.
5. Paradox
Paradox is a name that is really dominated by hip hop artists. But the best we found was the Paradox who is coming straight outta Denver, with a handful of releases under his belt.
4. Nomad
Sludge/doom metal act Nomad stand atop the mountain with their EP The House Of The Dead: four tracks and a NSFW cover design that are sure to wake you up. Unfortunately their limited-edition cassette tape is sold out, but you can still name your price and get a digital copy.
3. Bloom
Bloom is a name that is shared by a lot of indie and acoustic artists. Its imagery of positivity and spring must have inspired a few people. Quitting comes from the Midwest emo edition of Bloom, and features some pop-influenced tracks that will have you singing and crying along with them.
2. Apollo
Apollo is the name of the Greek god of music (who unfortunately hasn’t dropped any hot tracks on Bandcamp recently), but it’s also the name of a queer baroque pop artist from Brighton, England. Apollo is channelling the work of David Bowie, Lady Gaga, and Empire Of The Sun here.
1. Atlas
Yes, a whopping 59 bands and artists have decided to call themselves Atlas on Bandcamp, and this doesn’t even include the bands who’ve chucked the word Atlas into their longer name (Atlas Volt, Atlas Shrugged, et cetera). We’ve scoured the globe to find the best Atlas band around, and it’s hard to pass on Atlas from Singapore.
The six-piece combines elements of math rock, post-rock and indie music to create something that’s not only technically proficient, but musically amazing too. And isn’t one of the brilliant concepts behind Bandcamp (and the internet) as a whole that I can sit in bed in Australia and digitally buy music from a Singapore math rock band? What a time to be alive.
Photo: Ashley Mar
