Band of A Hunnerd Names Once upon a time, back in 2000, there was a band with lofty and poetic aspirations, who named itself 100 Love Sonnets after a Pablo Neruda poetry book. This was all fine and dandy until people started showing up at concerts expecting Barry Manilow / mellow folk ballads / soppy romantic pap by the bucketful. And you have to understand that the 100 Love Sonnets men (and woman) were anything but LITE. At its most tender moments, their music still had a considerable bite. So after much deliberation and caffeine, in December 2002, on the cusp of a new year, 100 Love Sonnets became violet i. Same lofty and poetic aspirations without the wimpy name. A sophomore CD was completed, flattering new photos were taken, enticing new logos and a web site were created. violet i even got a nice write-up in a local newspaper (flattering photo and all). Then came the trademark search, which shot the band∂s wonderful new name ALL TO HECK! The lengthy version of the story involves a crazed and litigation happy Japanese man and a host of other bands with the word "violet" in their names. You can imagine the black despair that this sent our heroes (and heroine) spiraling into. "But we have a spankin' CD already mixed, mastered, and ready to go!" the band members moaned. No matter, the search for the perfect, untaken name was on once again. (Side note: It's unbelievable how many 14-year-olds have bands and domain names with the same names that grownups want. Not that the creators of this site have anything against 14-year-olds, mind you.) For three painful and desolate weeks, the band formerly known as violet i, formerly known as 100 Love Sonnets, wracked its collective brain. Every street sign, newspaper headline, random thought, cereal box slogan, and odd tidbit of literature became a possibility. From a jumble of 600 prospective band names, countless hours of harrying research, telephone calls to the band's lawyer Trademark Bob, desperate prayers, and informal polls of friends, fans, strangers, pets, etc., a name emerged. It seemed to embody the band's passion and intensity and, best of all, no one else had it! So after MUCH ado, feeling like complete idiots, 100 Love Sonnets/ violet i has yet another name, ripe with possibilities. We are Meltdown Morning. The End (for this month) |