The Quest For A Band Name

Five years ago I was passengering in a van brainstorming for album titles.  I had had a few beer drinks and blurted out "Let's Get Out of This Terrible Sandwich Shop!"  The non-sequitur got a laugh from the van.  No album ever came out with that title, but I remembered it.

In October of 2004 I decided to name my new one-man-band side project Let's Get Out of This Terrible Sandwich Shop.  A fun name at the time, and perfect for the clash of live half-assed prop-dependent comedy and Farf & drum indie pop.  I would tell people the name of the band and when it was over they would laugh out loud.  I thought this a good thing.

And it was.  In 2005 Thea Lux and Joanna Buese joined the group while the name garnered some press.  Certainly more than if I had named us The Beachballs or whatever.  The Onion put us on a list of "Best Worst Band Names."  We put out records and played shows around and out of town.  When Tom Vale joined the group officially in 2006 we were a capable outfit that had outgrown the goofy comedy tag I had imprisoned us in.  Most of our press still focused on the stupid band name.  By 2008 the novelty had worn off completely, and Irony made sure that we would only be seen as a novelty act.  I would tell people the name of the band and when it was over they might nod.  Nod off.
In 2009 we decided to close Let's Get Out of This Terrible Sandwich Shop.  Ultimately it would have made a better album title.

Last week we had our first practice as a new band without a name.  Tom, Thea, myself and Nicole from Unicycle Loves You had some shy fun.  I like this band.  We all do.  So much so that we can't figure out a name for it.  Actually the word is agree.  We can't agree on a name for the band.  It's harder than naming a goddamn baby.

One of my early suggestions was The Wet Jeans.  A favorite image from my life is of a skinny kid at a graduation party playing volleyball in the rain.  His jeans were soaked and he seemed unhappy.  My friend Dan and I laughed continuously as the game and his struggle continued.  The double entendre also appealed to me: jeans moist from arousal.  I pitched The Wet Jeans hard only to remember the existence of The Pissed Jeans, who have had more than one practice.

Other suggestions that have been shot down for various reasons:
Bloood
Mashed Balloons
Jackpot of Bees
Babysitter Disaster
Prom Sniffles

There are 1,454 more.  But, like Let's Get Out of This Terrible Sandwich Shop would make a better album title, these rejects make decent song titles.  In the course of the last month I've made demos for each of these failed band names.  Here's "Prom Sniffles" from the upcoming 7" by The Beachballs:

Prom Sniffles