Naming a band is an act of concentrated creative expression. Square Pig in a Round Hole exists to reward five favorite band names each week. Winners are (usually) listed alphabetically.

Selection is wholly unscientific and subject to whim, with a bias toward wordplay, humor, and local flavor. In most cases, I won’t know anything about the bands at the time of selection. Thanks to the Seattle Times nightlife listings for abundant source material!

(Until live music returns, I am curating retrospective posts from past material. Dates indicate when the band was originally featured.)

SQUARE PIG IN A ROUND HOLE PANDEMIC EDITION #41

It’s the Second Day of Christmas, and the gift I have for you is better than turtledoves or partridges in pear trees. It’s a stocking full of festive holiday-themed band names, with a bonus sixth name because we all deserve a treat. As ever, wash your hands, wear your mask, and if you are able, please buy these bands’ music and merch while we wait for a better day.

Chris Mess
(November 17, 2012) Funny how you don’t see anyone starting a movement to put the mess back in Christmas.

Common Holly
(December 14, 2019) Pretty, Christmas-y, invasive, functionally immortal. (Not a seasonal act, either, but well timed.)

Deer Leader
(December 12, 2015) It looks like a cute play on what they call North Korea’s supreme leader. It’s actually about Rudolph.

The Donner Vixens
(December 24, 2011) Christmas-y, yet of questionable taste in so many ways! (Insert your own cannibal joke here.) I heard this week that if Santa’s reindeer are as usually portrayed, with full antlers in mid-winter, they’re all female. So I really hope this is a girl group.

Electric NoNo
(December 12, 2015) A warning to pet owners: be sure to keep your cats, dogs, hamsters, wombats, etc. from chewing on the tree lights!

Gentle Bender
(December 12, 2015) This one makes a neat turn from beloved animal star to a lonely Christmas Eve, listening to Darlene Love and drinking toasts to absent friends until you quietly pass out under the tree.

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