Are anonymous bands too gimmicky?

Subscribe for new episodes every Thursday: http://bit.ly/19jUASK

Anonymity can be a powerful tool.

Keep us alive on Patreon:   / thisexists  

SOCIAL MEDIA:
Twitter:   / samsthrlnd  
Facebook:   / whoathisexists  
Reddit:   / whoathisexists  
Instagram:   / samsthrlnd  
Snapchat: samsthrlnd
Goodreads: http://bit.ly/1vEDRJf

----------

Links:

Rob Ford drops a beat @ The Rivoli
   • Rob Ford drops a beat @ The Rivoli  

Young Buckethead is God
   • Видео  

Anonymous - Message to the American People
   • Anonymous - Message to the American People  

The Departed (4/5) Movie CLIP - Officer Down (2006) HD
   • The Departed (4/5) Movie CLIP - Officer Do...  

CNN: Scientology vs. Anonymous : Tommy Davis Responds
   • CNN: Scientology vs. Anonymous  : Tommy Da...  

Celebrities Read Mean Tweets #5
   • Celebrities Read Mean Tweets #5  

KILL CHEERLEADER - DEATHBOY
   • KILL CHEERLEADER - DEATHBOY  

‪Zolar X‪ - Rocket Roll‬
   • Zolar X - Rocket Roll  

‪Zolar X‪ Recitation/Timeless Video‬
   • Zolar X Recitation/Timeless Video (Video 2...  

‪Klaatu‪ 1976 Calling Occupants Of Interplanetary Craft‬
   • Klaatu 1976 Calling Occupants Of Interplan...  

Klaatu - All Good Things
   • Klaatu - All Good Things  

‪Lordi‪ - Hard Rock Hallelujah (Finland) 2006 Eurovision Song Contest Winner‬
   • Lordi - Hard Rock Hallelujah (LIVE) | Finl...  

Prozzak -- Sucks to be You (Full)
   • Видео  

The Philosopher Kings - Hurts to Love You (1997) ►STEREO◄
   • Видео  

‪JJ DOOM‪ - GUV'NOR‬
   • JJ DOOM - GUV'NOR (Official Video)  

Fake MF Doom Booed Off Stage 08.09.08 Rock The Bells
   • Fake MF Doom Booed Off Stage 08.09.08 Rock...  

DESTROID in San Francisco, first ever show ft. Excision, Downlink, KJ Sawka
   • DESTROID in San Francisco, first ever show...  

b
   • iamamiwhoami; b  

----------

SCRIPT

The colourful mayor of our beautiful hometown was recently caught on tape manning the decks at a local fundraiser -- and the video prompted the Guardian to joke that maybe Rob Ford is secretly Burial, the famously anonymous electronic artist. Which is stupid. Rob Ford is Buckethead, the famously anonymous guitar virtuoso.

Anonymity can be a powerful tool.

Concealing your identity can help you report crime without fear of retribution or protest the worldwide wrongdoings of a notoriously litigious church or call someone something awful on the internet.

And so in an era of constant over-sharing, it's become just as trendy to release music mysteriously, hiding your face in press photos and "leaking" singles and videos.

Artists like Ms Mr, the Knife, and Crystal Castles have all benefited from early speculation over just who in the hell they actually were. Sometimes this seemed engineered to create buzz, and sometimes it was because the truth was corny


This is a tough fact to source properly, but I'm going to go ahead and say that this all started with Zolar X.

Zolar X landed on earth in 1973. Insisting they were aliens and speaking their own language, the band never connected with a commercial audience -- even with cool-ass names like Qazar Quantor.

They found modern-day earthling champions in Jello Biafra and Nardwaur, who respectively re-issued and promoted their long-lost LP, but they are still not as famous as Klaatu.

Okay Klaatu are super fun. They're from Toronto, point, and in 1976, everyone thought they were the Beatles.

The origins of this rumour are murky, but it all stems from Klaatu's decision to credit their music and production under just their band name, no real names. And the same people who thought Paul McCartney died after making Revolver were convinced that this was the remaining members' secret way of honouring their dead friend. It was not.

Anonymity as a creative device seemed to fall off through the '80s and '90s. But it came back in a big way, especially in metal.

Lordi won Eurovision and no one knew any of their real names until their drummer died in 2012 -- and he was the replacement for a guy who was kicked out for attempting to reveal his identity.

I'm genuinely curious if Prozzak ever broke outside of Canada, but for a time, they seemed like the most popular mysterious fake-British band in the world. Everyone wondered who they could possibly be! And it ended up being two dudes from the Philosopher Kings!

Doom might be the best at anonymity. Everyone knows his real name is Daniel Dumile, it's pretty easy to figure out what he actually looks like, and yet he still sends out ringers in his trademark mask to perform for him sometimes. Literally you never know if you're going to see the real Doom. It's hilarious?

My notes for this episode were long as hell so I'll just play one more video from my favourite previously anonymous band, supposedly featuring secret superstar DJs