Band Name of the Week: Business Suit Guy

Looks like last week's recipient of the Band Name of the Week title, San Fran jam/funk/rock outfit Hippie Grenade, has proven me un-hip in the land of pot-smoker lingo. See for yourself in the following (and, I might add, quite diplomatic in the ways of fan-winning) band-name explanation, courtesy of Hippie Grenade bassist Theo Winston:

Our name has created a bit of confusion and intrigue. People either think that we blow up hippies or they think that we're a grenade made out of hippies that when detonated creates a mushroom cloud of pot smoke and patchouli-stank. We often use this ambiguity to our advantage. When we're talking to people that don't particularly like hippies, we tell them the former, and when we're talking to hippies (and their sympathizers) we tell them the latter.

However, the name did not originate with this catchy dichotomy or semi-brilliant PR move as it's intent. It's actually a silly pot-smoking reference. A "hippie grenade", at least in Saint Louis where our guitarist is from, is when you suck the embers through the pipe and it burns the back of your throat. In the beginning we tried brainstorming for other names, but we couldn't come up with anything better. The name just stuck.

Ouch. Though I clearly wasn't familiar with the term before receiving Theo's message, I'm guessing many of us have been there. Feel the burn--or, rather (and preferably), don't!

Now onto this week's lucky BNotW title-winner, Vancouver, Washington's Business Suit Guy. I've actually thought to myself on a few previous occasions that someone ought to at least write a song called "Business Suit Guy," but this metal-ish, self-described punk/comedy group went ahead and upped the ante by choosing the phrase as its moniker proper.

I kind of assumed that BSG would be the antithesis of an actual Business Suit Guy--and its ridiculous, juvenile riff-rock certainly is--but the trio appears to be made up of guys who may well be business suit guys by day (perhaps the irony lies therein). If not, they at least play the part by night: The band's three constant members don, you guessed it, suits as part of their act. But the suits--and silly songs like "Drunk Guy" (with a chorus of "drunk guy in the parking lot!") and "Yo' Mama Smokin' Crack"--are intentionally obnoxious and over-the-top. Hopefully we'll learn more about Business Suit Guy's band-name inspiration next week. Hang tight.

For your amusement, here's a photo from the band's MySpace entitled "Here I Am, Rock You With A Chucraphone..."




and the three Business Suit Guys in their bad office-wear:




Links:
BSG'Space

Business Suit Guy plays Friday, Oct. 19, with the Mello Outs and 3rd Grade Crush at the Bitter End. Images: top, courtesy of a Google image search; bottom two, from the band's MySpace.