Best fictional movie band

[celedhring]

It's been a while since I made one of those! This actually came up yesterday in conversation with a friend.

Essentially, the best fictional band to appear in a movie (let's leave TV shows out to keep the field manageable). You choose the criteria - because the music is great, or the charisma, or whatever. The only requirement is that the band's music has to be featured in the film, it doesn't need to be original music, but they have to perform.


My pick is Spinal Tap - one of my favorite films about rock bands in general, and absurdly hilarious at that, and actually features some pretty decent tunes (which the actors play and sing themselves)

Sex Bob-Omb - despite being canonically a terrible band, they have some pretty damn good garage rock.

Stillwater - They're essentially Led Zeppelin, plus "Fever dog" is awesome.

Honorary mention to The Angry Inch, since I adore that movie, and the music is also great.

[Syt]

No love for Maxwell Demon and The Venus in Furs or Curt Wild and the Wylde Ratts, both from Velvet Goldmine?

EDIT: Fucked up the movie title

[celedhring]

No love for Maxwell Demon and The Venus in Furs or Curt Wild and the Wylde Ratts from Velvet Underground?

Fuck, it's even one of my favorite movies about rock music

I'm always going to forget some obvious ones when making these lists.

[mongers]

Blues Brothers, as they're the ones who most successfully transcended their movie big-break to become a 'real band'.

That's not to say they're the most musical or successful of the one's you've listed, just that they've grown most?

I also have the Spinal Tap albums, but haven't played those for many a year.

[Josquius]

Sex Bobomb.
Actual good songs I sometimes listen to.

Also Detroit Metal City. Fantastic fantastic Japanese film about a band. Gene Simmons shows up to challenge them.

[grumbler]

Buckaroo Bonzai's Hong Kong Cavaliers were amusing.

[Tonitrus]

Marty McFly and The Pinheads. 

[Savonarola]

The Louisiana Gator Boys from Blues Brothers 2000 are undoubtably the most talented fictional band ever to appear in a movie.

 

Of the ones listed, I think The Blues Brothers Band is the best; even though they don't play every song, the soundtrack is a classic.

[Barrister]

My pick is Spinal Tap - one of my favorite films about rock bands in general, and absurdly hilarious at that, and actually features some pretty decent tunes (which the actors play and sing themselves)

Sex Bob-Omb - despite being canonically a terrible band, they have some pretty damn good garage rock.

I mean I think Spinal Tap is the obvious answer really.

Was Sex Bob-omb "canonically terrible"?  They did pretty good at the battle of the bands thing.  I rather like mid-2000s rock (think White Stripes, Franz Ferdinand) so their music is right up my alley.

Now - a "canonically terrible" band was Wyld Stallyns, even though I love those movies, we never really heard them play anything.

[Admiral Yi]

Spinal Tap and the Oneders.

I love one hit oneders.  That Thing You Do is a legitimately good song.

[celedhring]

Now - a "canonically terrible" band was Wyld Stallyns, even though I love those movies, we never really heard them play anything.

They do play a track at the end of Bogus Journey.

Also, canonically their music brings universal harmony. Can't get much better than that!

[Sheilbh]

Other (and it had to be a Todd Haynes film ) - the Venus in Furs in Velvet Goldmine. Bowie wouldn't let his music be used so lots of covers of Lou Reed, Roxy Music, Brian Eno, New York Dolls and Iggy Pop instead.

And the band itself was Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood from Radiohead, Bernard Butler from Suede, Andy Mackay from Roxy Music - and I think for one song, Jarvis Cocker.

[Darth Wagtaros]

Cold Slither

[Neil]

I'm going to vote for the Hong Kong Cavaliers.

[Darth Wagtaros]

I'm going to vote for the Hong Kong Cavaliers.

That is awesome too.