I've heard the Negative FX story a few times. It's too dull a story to be made up, surely?

yeah i heard the other story a few times too. maybe their name means both and they can't make up their minds. any story involoving nofx is dull though.

NOFX sucks.

hahhahahha! TRUE!

so much postin' about a caca band!

BAUHAUS: a german design school/movement started in 1919
MUDHONEY: a Russ Meyers film
LOVE BATTERY: a Buzzcocks song
THE SEA & CAKE: a gastr del sol song
PRETTY GIRL MAKES GRAVES: a smith's song
ERIC'S TRIP: a neon boys demo outtake
BEASTIE BOYS: supposedly because "BB" were the initials of Bad Brains (so they say)
SPOON: a can song
THE FAT BOYS: they were fat

Yes, but it was ALSO the name of the cheesy 50's hair style (which the female band members wore) which fit well with their style.

from wikipedia: "The band's name comes from a particular beehive hairdo resembling the nose cone of the airplane of the same name."

Swans-according to an interview with Gira, they came up with the name because swans, despite being beautiful, "are hateful creatures", which fit.

U2-several different stories. One is that it reflects audience participation in their music.

the Meat Puppets-the story according to the band members is that they took the name from one of their early songs.

the Gun Club-Jeffrey Pierce got the name from Kieth Morris while they were hanging out one day. Apparently Morris got the name for the Circle Jerks from Pierce this same day.

Sisters of Mercy-Leonard Cohen song (but there is another story)

On May 10, 1964, the Soul Giants, now featuring guitarist frank zappa after the departure of Ray Hunt, played a gig as "the Mothers" as it was Mother's Day, and also they felt it most appropriate since mothers was slang for motherfuckers. In 65, the label knows the slang and says to be classy and cover their bases and change it, remarking that 'necessity is the mother of invention'. The band took it literally and we all know they meant Motherfuckerz of Invention, which in the long run, made it that much better then just plain motherfuckers you know?

A cultural note about Einstürzende Neubauten: "Neubauten" are buildings built in Germany after WWII, notorious for their faulty nature. Hence, "Collapsing Neubauten" is, in a way, pretty funny.

Current 93: The current of Thelema in the works of Aleister Crowley.

Can: Stands, oddly enough, for "communism, anarchism, nihilism". Nihilism, in this case, I believe refers to the political philosophy (that of violent revolution and total anarchy).

Amon Düül II: The Egyptian god of the sun with the Turkish god of the moon. The "II" differentiates the band from the lesser-known performance art commune that spawned it.

Neutral Milk Hotel: Made up by a fellow musician, either Bill Doss or William Cullen Hart; Otherwise inexplicable, almost certainly an in-joke.

To Live and Shave in L.A.: Porn film, starring Ron Jeremy.

Coil: A reference to the idea that circles and spirals appear in everything; Mystical stuff.

Zos Kia: Reference to Austin Osman Spare, painter and occultist.

Psychic TV: Combination of guitarist Alex Fergusson's previous band, Alternative TV, and the more mystical/avant-garde inclinations of vocalist Genesis P-Orridge.

Legendary Pink Dots: The previous owner of the band's keyboard had painted pink nail polish dots on the keys to indicate chords.

The Birthday Party: A misremembered scene in a novel.

Bohren and the Club of Gore: "Bohren" means "to drill", an homage to the gruesome drilling scenes in Italian horror films; The latter bit was added on, when the band was drunk, in reference/reverence to a Dutch instrumental band called Gore.

i have the idea they came with the name because they, like neu!, were very influenced by pop art. also because it was ambiguous and easy to remember.

no, he got the name of one of their early songs, group sex (which turned out to be the name of their first abum too), from him the same day.

Also Patton was in Bungle long before FNM.

if they wanted to scare everyone even more they shouldve named it big black cock

it's kinda implied, pervert!

Sex Pistols-a term for penis
Naked Raygun-apparently random, but also said to be a reference to the Pistols
D.R.I-stands fro Dirty Rotten Imbeciles, a term used by the lead singer's father towards the band, as he objected to their rehearsals
the Replacements- fit the band's "loser" mentality (more or less)
Public Image Ltd- after a novel, but the Ltd was added to give off the feeling that the band was a company (which they actually planned to be)
Devo-from devolution
Franz Ferdinand-after the man whose death started WW1

kinda; it was also because they were a band that promoted the "sex" clothing shop and the idea of them as terrorists or a paramilitar group rather than a regular band.

now, throbbing gristle: regional slang for erect penis.

Or...legend has it that they were given a gig after another band failed to show up one night. When asked who they were, Paul Westerberg quipped "We're the Replacements".