The band-name quest continues April 2020

So I guess this is my calling?

During my dozen years at The A.V. Club, I was best known for my annual round-up of funny band names. The tradition started in 2005, when I included a small list of silly band names along with my picks for the best albums of the year. (Sleater-Kinney’s The Woods took my top spot, and rightly so.) The Year in Band Names became one of The A.V. Club’s most beloved annual traditions until I left in 2018.

People have often asked me about reviving it, but I demurred. To be honest, the thing took an insane amount of work to compile, especially at the end of year when we were already drowning in year-end content. Nevertheless, I loved doing it, because I love writing about bands.

So I’ve decided to go the newsletter route, because it would make the work more manageable, and it’s what people do these days. There are two options: free and a paid subscription for $5/month. Yes, $5/month seems a little much for such a thing, but it’s the minimum subscription fee Substack allows. The free edition arrives monthly and will feature new bands names—or new band names to me—à la the Year in Band Names. Subscribers get a bonus edition with updates on alumni from previous lists, short interviews, other surprises, and access to the archive.

Paying $5 for such frivolity may sound silly, so maybe leave a tip via Venmo or PayPal if nothing else?

Sign up now, and let’s do this. The first edition arrives April 1, 2020. (No, it’s not because of April Fool’s. That’s just how it turned out.)

In the meantime, tell your friends!