Why did so many '80s band names consist of the same word twice?

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What was the deal with this naming protocol, and why was it so popular? OK, we know Duran Duran comes from Barbarella, but what about Liquid Liquid, Medium Medium, Guru Guru, Quando Quango (one letter off, but same effect), etc.?

― mike a, Monday, 23 August 2004 16:00 (twenty-two years ago)

The The, Talk Talk.

Yeah, people in the 80s were dumb.

― Alba (Alba), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:03 (twenty-two years ago)

Well, Talk Talk was probably named after the Music Machine song. I'm talking about band names that consist of one random word listed twice.

― mike a, Monday, 23 August 2004 16:05 (twenty-two years ago)

(one letter off, but same effect)

I believe Oingo Boingo would also fit this category.

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:10 (twenty-two years ago)

People of the 80s did not take themselves as seriously as we do now.

― willie strunk, Monday, 23 August 2004 16:12 (twenty-two years ago)

I think they took themselves more seriously.

― Alba (Alba), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:12 (twenty-two years ago)

I always had the sense that the creators of these names thought repetition cast an arty light on the word.

― Alba (Alba), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:14 (twenty-two years ago)

Tirez Tirez

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:15 (twenty-two years ago)

Does Soul II Soul count?

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:17 (twenty-two years ago)

00s TS: Tok Tok vs. Bolz Bolz!

― nabiscothingy, Monday, 23 August 2004 16:18 (twenty-two years ago)

"(one letter off, but same effect)

I believe Oingo Boingo would also fit this category. "

You beat me to it!

― Tantrum The Cat (Tantrum The Cat), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:20 (twenty-two years ago)

Mr. Mister

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:20 (twenty-two years ago)

Toto

(OK, maybe not.)

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:21 (twenty-two years ago)

Bourgie Bourgie. Which is an unutterably shite name.

― ailsa (ailsa), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:29 (twenty-two years ago)

Bernie Bernie

(headflap)

― nabisco (nabisco), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:33 (twenty-two years ago)

Perhaps it was all the cocaine cocaine.

― frankE (frankE), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:36 (twenty-two years ago)

i dunno, all it takes is a certain band who does this and gets famous and cool, and others follow suit for no other good reason. hedonistic trend in 80s pop culture probably has something to do w/it. there is an echo of selconscious primitivism in doubled up names. but i don't think the trend has particularly profound implications.

― amateur!!st, Monday, 23 August 2004 16:38 (twenty-two years ago)

er, the go go's to thread.

and what is it with 80's bands with double same word names reforming? duran duran, liquid liquid and now medium medium

― stirmonster, Monday, 23 August 2004 16:44 (twenty-two years ago)

it's deja vu all over again

― amateur!!st, Monday, 23 August 2004 16:45 (twenty-two years ago)

didn't know Bourgie Bourgie was a band, but it's an incredibly great song.

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:50 (twenty-two years ago)

There was a time in my single-digits youth where I thought Duran Duran was a man named Duran, surname Duran.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:50 (twenty-two years ago)

cocaine

― kyle (akmonday), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:51 (twenty-two years ago)

you don't want to, but you know you're going to do it again

― sexyDancer, Monday, 23 August 2004 16:52 (twenty-two years ago)

(Nick, isn't there now a comedy-band or something called Duran Sirhan?)

― nabisco (nabisco), Monday, 23 August 2004 16:53 (twenty-two years ago)

1983 might have been some sort of zero year in the cosmic time wheel and the collective unconscious reflects this in mirror forms, (or cocaine.)

― sexyDancer, Monday, 23 August 2004 16:57 (twenty-two years ago)

Excepter Excepter

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:05 (twenty-two years ago)

bad drugs

― kephm (kephm), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:06 (twenty-two years ago)

there was a boyband in the mid 90s called Orange Orange

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:07 (twenty-two years ago)

Selzer Selzer!

― sexyDancer, Monday, 23 August 2004 17:08 (twenty-two years ago)

There's a Chicago band now called Chin-Up Chin-Up. I saw them open up for Broken Social Scene, and they had a nice jazzy indie-pop thing going for them until the horrible singer came in.

― jaymc (jaymc), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:11 (twenty-two years ago)

selzer selzer rocked! it's high time acute put out a retropsective cd.

― stirmonster, Monday, 23 August 2004 17:14 (twenty-two years ago)

Guru Guru weren't from the '80s though

― Mike Ouderkirk (Mike Ouderkirk), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:21 (twenty-two years ago)

...and who could forget Cava Cava?

― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:22 (twenty-two years ago)

For wat its wort,

"Talk Talk" were named after the song "Talk talk talk talk" which appeared on a "independant labels" compilation on Beggars Banquet I forget the title something to do with "Streets" but it was the first beggars banquet LP anyhow.

But anyway, the band who did the song was Mark Hollis' first group. So, I guess they junked the old 'new wavey' name and picked one that was in-vogue thanks to Duran.

― mark grout (mark grout), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:25 (twenty-two years ago)

I seem to remember reading somewhere that Elfman originally intended to shorten Oingo Boingo's name each time they put out a new record by removing one letter from each end (i.e. their 2nd album should have been by Ingo Boing), but the record company poo-pooed the idea.

― Johnny Fever (johnny fever), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:30 (twenty-two years ago)

These days it's all about saying the same thing three times: Yeah Yeah Yeahs, !!!.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:33 (twenty-two years ago)

see also
rema rema

― rentboy (rentboy), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:36 (twenty-two years ago)

Push Push

― Jazzbo (jmcgaw), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:40 (twenty-two years ago)

y'alls forgot Tora Tora

― Joseph McCombs, Monday, 23 August 2004 17:41 (twenty-two years ago)

I have a cava cava record. easy to forget.

I heard Rema Rema for the first time yesterday. Damn that's cool stuff. Any band that gave us the Wolfgang Press and Renegade Soundwave has to be good...

Selzer Selzer will be performing Talk Talk by the Music Machine this CMJ.

my social life's a dud, my name is really mud. I'm up to here in lies, guess I'm down to size, TO SIZE!

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Monday, 23 August 2004 17:41 (twenty-two years ago)

I've heard this. It's great. It's "Talk Talk" (the song; as in "All you do to me is...") done punk rock.

The full title of the album is Streets: Select Highlights from Independent British Labels.

― Mr. Snrub, Monday, 23 August 2004 17:42 (twenty-two years ago)

Sigue Sigue Sputnik

― Leeeter van den Hoogenband (Leee), Monday, 23 August 2004 18:33 (twenty-two years ago)

No one has mentioned Mr. Mister yet!!!!!

― VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 23 August 2004 18:34 (twenty-two years ago)

no one except jay!

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Monday, 23 August 2004 18:37 (twenty-two years ago)

tom tom club (sort of?)

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Monday, 23 August 2004 18:38 (twenty-two years ago)

Lisa Lisa

― sexyDancer, Monday, 23 August 2004 18:39 (twenty-two years ago)

tora tora

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Monday, 23 August 2004 18:41 (twenty-two years ago)

(shit, someone beat me to them.)

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Monday, 23 August 2004 18:42 (twenty-two years ago)

and, anticipating the modern triple-word-score trend, there was tony! toni! tone!

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Monday, 23 August 2004 18:44 (twenty-two years ago)

grab grab the haddock

― zappi (joni), Monday, 23 August 2004 18:44 (twenty-two years ago)

Skipping 15 messages at this point... Click here if you want to load them all.

ah ha. missed the first answer. text browsers are hard work for text searches. move along ..

― mark e (mark e), Monday, 23 August 2004 20:26 (twenty-two years ago)

Duran Duran Duran!

and Cava Cava is one word, no?

― superultramega (superultramarinated), Monday, 23 August 2004 20:49 (twenty-two years ago)

Haha

― Rockist_Scientist (rockist_scientist), Monday, 23 August 2004 20:49 (twenty-two years ago)

Duran Duran was a baddie in a James Bond thrillah, forget which one. That's where Simon Le Bon Bon copped the name. Don't forget Lisa Lisa. In Frank Kogan's old zine, "Why Music Sucks," amusic witer named Lisa McElroy threatened to round up Lisa Robinson, Lisa Goldstein (more writers!) and Lisa Lisa, and form Lisa Lisa Lisa Lisa. And I countered with Don Ho, Don Howland (writer and punkabilly),Don Knotts, Don Diego, Don Costa (Nikki's dad, Sinatra's bandleader) etc etc as Don Don Don Don Don Don Don Don Theme From "Bonanza," but we was young then (and fair)

― Don Allred, Monday, 23 August 2004 21:02 (twenty-two years ago)

Also...

Allez Allez (Weren't they Belgian?)

Mercy Mercy ("What Are We Gonna Do About It" - sublime, flawless 80s boogie classic)

Fun Fun ("Happy Station", "Colour My Love" - Italo-disco boshers)

Somo Somo (Congolese soukous)

Womack & Womack - entered the spirit, at least...

Was (Not Was) - it's like they had a re-think halfway through naming the band...

And from around 1991:

Father Father ("Love, Life and Life Loving"... rock/soul thingy, style mag flavour of the month)

Temper Temper ("Like We Used To"... big rip-roaring soul ballad thingy)

― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Monday, 23 August 2004 21:24 (twenty-two years ago)

Don Was explained to CREEM that either his kid or David's discovered duality:"Good. Not Good! Water. Not Water! Was. Not Was!" I don't remember a parenthesis being in there early on. (Rec company made em add it I suspect.)

― Don Ho, Monday, 23 August 2004 21:36 (twenty-two years ago)

Duran Duran was a baddie in a James Bond thrillah, forget which one.

Er, no. As mentioned in the first post of the thread.

If Lisa Lisa counts then so does Tracie Tracie (sp.?)

― ailsa (ailsa), Monday, 23 August 2004 21:41 (twenty-two years ago)

Don, Durand Durand was a bad guy in Barbarella, not a James Bond film, as previously mentioned.

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Monday, 23 August 2004 21:47 (twenty-two years ago)

panthers
junior panthers
japanther
wolves
wolf eyes
wolf parade
frog eyes
frogs
unicorns

sorry, wrong thread...

― ddd, Monday, 23 August 2004 22:11 (twenty-two years ago)

(xpost)

And Duran Duran were already a well-established group in the Birmingham club scene by the time Simon Le Bon showed up at the Rum Runner in his infamous purple leopard spotted trousers for his audition. In fact, the two people responsible for the band's name were the two band founders, Nick Rhodes and John Taylor. And, as I mentioned on one of the Duran-specific threads, Simon was actually the band's FOURTH lead singer, after Steven "Tin Tin" Duffy, Andy Wickett, and Jeff Thomas (formerly of Roger Taylor's old band, the Scent Organs).

p.s.: Duran Duran cannot be said to have "reformed". A band must reformed if it completely broke up in the first place. Since 1980, there's always been at least Simon and Nick right there, and since 1986 (when Roger and Andy left and most "fans" dropped Duran like a bad habit), Duran have released seven studio albums, three best-ofs (including one just concentrating on the first two years), two remix compilations, and underwent at least eight major tours throughout North America and elsewhere. Just wanted to clear that up with you.

― Many Coloured Halo (Dee the Lurker), Monday, 23 August 2004 22:15 (twenty-two years ago)

And I could've sworn the Hollis brothers TOGETHER wrote the "Talk Talk" song that ended up being Mark's band's name. I didn't think they dropped any words just to be "in vogue"; in fact, I thought the band name was established before the record company moved in and decided the band "should" have Colin Thurston produce their debut album and that the band "should" be the opening act for then-labelmates DD. I don't know if Mark Hollis & co. would've stuck with the Talk Talk moniker when they were at the peak of their artistic integrity, back in the late '80s, if it were just something they had gotten stuck with. Eh. Pure supposition there.

― Many Coloured Halo (Dee the Lurker), Monday, 23 August 2004 22:20 (twenty-two years ago)

I heard Rema Rema for the first time yesterday. Damn that's cool stuff.

You bet it is, I mean: so classic it hurts.

― Bimble (bimble), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 01:29 (twenty-two years ago)

Today's kids, of course, have their own redundancy fetish:

Hot Hot Heat
Flaming Fire
Fiery Furnaces

Damn, that's a hat trick, and I've still got three elements to go. And what about Jean Grey's "Attack of the Attacking Things" EP? The Magic Magicians? C'mon, there's got to be at least another dozen of these floating around out there in Indierockville as we speak...

― Jesse Fuchs (Jesse Fuchs), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 01:58 (twenty-two years ago)

I thought the '80s was notable for inconsequential bands with names that were complete sentences:

Boys Don't Cry
Curiosity Killed The Cat
Cats Can Fly
Johnny Hates Jazz
Grab Grab The Haddock (a personal favourite!)
Frankie Goes To Hollywood
Look Blue Go Purple (a complete sentence, however incomprehensible)
Sigue Sigue Sputnik ("Burn Burn Satellite" in Russian)
We've Got A Fuzzbox And We're Gonna Use It
...and I suppose Talk Talk qualifies too! (Likewise Push Push, whoever they were.)

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 03:21 (twenty-two years ago)

Transistor Transister = bad emo hardcore band

― Ian c=====8 (orion), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 03:29 (twenty-two years ago)

Sylvain Sylvain

― weather1ngda1eson (Brian), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 03:42 (twenty-two years ago)

Nitsuh, I love you for remembering Bernie Bernie Headflap! I have some of their tapes stowed away in my archive somewhere!

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 04:18 (twenty-two years ago)

kon kan

― purple patch (electricsound), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 04:21 (twenty-two years ago)

...and then there was Mary Mary of Gaye Bikers On Acid (no relation to the 00s Mary Mary of "Shackles (Praise You)")

― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 06:42 (twenty-two years ago)

also tracy tracy from the primitives

― purple patch (electricsound), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 07:31 (twenty-two years ago)

Is !!! the logical, arsehole conclusion of this shite tred?

― Jimmybommy JimmyK'KANG (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 07:39 (twenty-two years ago)

Don't think anyone's mentioned Grong Grong, an Aussie noise band from the late eighties.

Songwise, how about 'Doot Doot' by Freur?

― NickB (NickB), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 07:55 (twenty-two years ago)

grong grong get away with it because they're named after an australian country town..

― purple patch (electricsound), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 07:58 (twenty-two years ago)

(i'm glad they didn't call themselves wagga wagga)

― purple patch (electricsound), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 07:58 (twenty-two years ago)

How fine it would be if that were also how Lubed Goat got their name.

― NickB (NickB), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 07:59 (twenty-two years ago)

The name Bam Bam and the Calling has just popped into my head for no apparent reason. I barely remember who they were. Irish perhaps?

― NickB (NickB), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 08:04 (twenty-two years ago)

bourgie bourgie were fucking rubbish.

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 08:11 (twenty-two years ago)

b-b-b-but paul quinn!!

― purple patch (electricsound), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 08:11 (twenty-two years ago)

NEVERTHELESS.....

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 08:12 (twenty-two years ago)

Chin Chin, of Switzerland.

― OleM (OleM), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 09:08 (twenty-two years ago)

xpost: Bam Bam was/were a Chicago house act. ("Give It To Me" was the Big one.)

― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 09:22 (twenty-two years ago)

Lulu started it in the '60s.

― Jez (Jez), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 12:06 (twenty-two years ago)

The Adjective Nouns was a great phase from about 86-90.

― Chris Ott (Chris Ott), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 12:29 (twenty-two years ago)

Guru Guru? 80s 80s?

― Dadaismus (Dada), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 12:31 (twenty-two years ago)

Humpe Humpe.

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 12:32 (twenty-two years ago)

Marky Mark?

― o. nate (onate), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 13:11 (twenty-two years ago)

Xiu Xiu is a contemporary example of this 2X name phenomenon.

― o. nate (onate), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 13:19 (twenty-two years ago)

Yeah Yeah Noh

― Stephen Boyle (SBoyle), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 16:49 (twenty-two years ago)

-- Johnny Fever (johnny.feve...), August 23rd, 2004.

wow, that's brilliant, especially because that means by their 4th album they would have been Go Boi!!!!!!

― Al (sitcom), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 16:54 (twenty-two years ago)

Didn't they change their name to Boingo on their last couple of (disappointing) albums?

― o. nate (onate), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 18:30 (twenty-two years ago)

The best thing about Oingo Boingo was they were in this movie:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082676/

A movie about foosball starring Leif Garrett!

― wetmink (wetmink), Tuesday, 24 August 2004 18:40 (twenty-two years ago)

six years pass...

Chin Chin, of Switzerland.
― OleM (OleM), Tuesday, August 24, 2004 10:08 AM (6 years ago)

Thought I was going to get to be the first one to mention these guys. Coming up next on my working-music stereo. Probably followed by the new Zun Zun Egui, in fact.

― emil.y, Saturday, 5 March 2011 16:01 (fifteen years ago)

I think there is something intentionally childish about it. One of my siblings had an imaginary childhood friend named "Chair Chair." I think it's going for liberating primitive childish absurdity. It makes me think of "dada" too. What about the general importance of repetition in the 80s (especially thinking of minimalism and electronic dance, and perhaps disco)?

― _Rudipherous_, Saturday, 5 March 2011 16:36 (fifteen years ago)

I'm not sure why then however.

― _Rudipherous_, Saturday, 5 March 2011 16:38 (fifteen years ago)

Because to say the same word twice in a row tends to be to babble and not add content (give or take countless exceptions--like, doesn't repeating the same word in Chinese, for instance, sort of act as an intensifier? at least some of the time?).

― _Rudipherous_, Saturday, 5 March 2011 16:41 (fifteen years ago)

kinda surprised there wasn't an art-damaged 80s band named Foot Foot

― herbal bert (herb albert), Saturday, 5 March 2011 16:46 (fifteen years ago)

Well, it can act as an intensifier in other languages too - "very very good" is better than "very good" and "sehr sehr gut" is the same.

I'm not convinced about the childish thing, unless it's done with specifically childlike words - in fact, usually I'd say that more childlike would be similar and rhyming words (can't think of band names other than Oingo Boingo, but stuff like that and 'Mellow Yellow' etc). Repetition in band names does tend to be poeticism without meaning, though, which, to be honest, is pretty much what lyrics are.

― emil.y, Saturday, 5 March 2011 16:48 (fifteen years ago)

xpost

Would totally be in a band called Foot Foot.

― emil.y, Saturday, 5 March 2011 16:49 (fifteen years ago)

dada doesn't refer to the word/sound children tend to use...

xpost

― got electrolytes (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Saturday, 5 March 2011 16:56 (fifteen years ago)

Yeah, but it evokes that same primal/childish or child-like association. As for the "real" origin of "dada," there are contradictory accounts of how the word was adopted (surprise, surprise), but the Dadaists seemed to relish the potentially childish meanings (e.g., rocking horse).

Well, it can act as an intensifier in other languages too - "very very good" is better than "very good"

Good point.

― _Rudipherous_, Saturday, 5 March 2011 17:08 (fifteen years ago)

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