Who is my Band? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Pearl Jam

American rock band formed in 1990 in Seattle, Washington. Genres: grunge, alternative rock, and hard rock. Apart from the band's drummers, all the original members of the band are still present at the time this quiz was written (2026).

Pearl Jam were known as Mookie Blaylock, after the professional basketball player, prior to recording their album at London Bridge Studios. They decided to honour the point guard by titling their debut album "Ten", which was his jersey number, to avoid any potential legal problems with utilising his name.

"Ten" became one of the best-selling rock albums ever and stayed on the US Billboard 200 chart for over five years. According to Nielsen SoundScan, the album sold over 13 million copies in just the United States alone.

Answer: Velvet Underground

"White Light/White Heat" was released on January 30, 1968, and was recorded at the Mayfair Sound, Manhattan studio. By this time, their previous manager, Andy Warhol, who had produced their debut album, "The Velvet Underground & Nico", was sacked by Lou Reed.

The band never really made the big time due to their style of music; however, it paved the way for other trends that later followed. The band had a nine-year span between 1967 and 1973, in which time they released five albums. None of the albums was a commercial success.

The band broke up in 1973, but some members collaborated on solo projects. Reed, Cale, Tucker, and Morrison reunited for a few concerts in 1993. Morrison passed away in 1995. Reed, Cale, and Tucker played together at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 1996, which was the final time the three performed as a group. Lou Reed died in 2013.

Answer: Rage Against the Machine

The American rock group Rage Against the Machine's second studio album, "Evil Empire", was released by Epic Records on April 16, 1996. Considering this was the band's second album after a four-year break, the album topped the charts on the U.S. Billboard 200 and reached number four on the UK Albums Chart. The term "Evil Empire", used by President Ronald Reagan and many conservative Americans to characterise the Soviet Union in the early 1980s, is referenced in the album's title.

Rage Against the Machine was formed in Los Angeles, California, U.S., in 1991. The band was active mainly between 1991 and 2000 and then decided to part ways. There have been a few occasions where they have reformed for short spells.

Answer: Sex Pistols

The Sex Pistols were formed in London in 1975. John Lydon was known as Johnny Rotten; Sid Vicious replaced Glen Matlock in the early part of 1977. Quite a short career for the Sex Pistols, which only had a time span between 1975 and 1978. The only album the band recorded was their debut album, "Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols", or simply "Never Mind the Bollocks". The album was released by Virgin Records on October 28, 1977. They were the bad boys who led the "punk scene" with Malcolm McLaren as their manager.

"Anarchy in the U.K." was their first debut single, released on 26 November 1976. The band's second single, "God Save the Queen", was released on May 27, 1977. The single reached number two on the UK Singles Chart despite being banned by the BBC and the Independent Broadcasting Authority. Even with top ten hits, they had problems playing live, as they were banned in many local areas. Vicious was hooked on hard drugs, and a tour of the US was at a complete loss. The writing was on the wall for the band.

The Sex Pistols did a mockumentary film called "The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle", released in 1980, maybe worth a look!

Answer: The Clash

The Clash was formed in London in 1976 and was active between 1976 and 1986. Starting off as a punk rock and new wave band, they developed their style that was a mixture of reggae, dub, funk, ska, and rockabilly. Their lead singer and rhythm guitarist was Joe Strummer.

"Give 'Em Enough Rope" was released in 1978 on the CBS and Epic labels. This album was the first to be released in the US, prior to the US release of the self-titled studio album, and only reached number 128 on the US Billboard 200; however, it reached number two on the UK Albums chart.

The band released six studio albums and 31 singles. "Rock the Casbah" is a single that was released in 1982 as the second single from their fifth album, "Combat Rock". It climbed to number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States, marking their only top ten hit in the US. One other track on the album was called "Should I Stay or Should I Go". It was a great song, but never lived up to their previous single.

Trouble between band members led to their break-up in 1986.

Answer: Radiohead

In 1985 in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, England, Radiohead were formed. All the members of the band met when they went to a private school at Abingdon. Due to university commitments, they didn't really kick off until 1991 when the band reformed. In 1991 they signed to EMI, which led to their first debut studio album "Pablo Honey" (1993). The song "Creep" which was on the album was the band's first single to be released.

Having taken professional viola lessons as a child, Jonny Greenwood is the only member with training in classical music. This multi-instrumentalist performs on the organ, piano, xylophone, glockenspiel, ondes martenot (a theremin-like instrument), banjo, harmonica, and guitar in addition to the viola.

After being rejected by a young lady he loved while attending Exeter University, Thom Yorke wrote the famous song "Creep." The girl who rejected Thom went to one of their gigs in Exeter, according to band member Jonny Greenwood. Yorke was profoundly upset and devastated by this incident.

Answer: Pink Floyd

The album "Animals" was released on 21 January 1977. The studio used was Britannia Row, London, which was built by Pink Floyd; they also produced the album. The cover of the album shows a pig in between the chimneys of Battersea Power Station. The idea of the album cover came from Roger Waters and was designed by the band's long-term associate Storm Thorgerson.

All the tracks on the album were written by Roger Waters, apart from the track "Dogs", which was a joint effort between Waters and Gilmour. On the album there are only five tracks: "Pigs on the Wing (Part One)", "Dogs", "Pigs (Three Different Ones)", "Sheep", and "Pigs on the Wing (Part Two)".

One fact that I never knew was that this album was inspired by George Orwell's political allegory "Animal Farm"; the album's lyrics portray different social classes as various animals: the aggressive dogs, the tyrannical and cruel pigs, and the "unthinking and obedient" flock of sheep.

The album was a top ten hit in several countries, reaching number two on the UK Album Chart and number three on the US Billboard 200.

Answer: Metallica

"Kill 'Em All" was released on July 25, 1983, in the US. Not one of the best albums by Metallica, by a long shot, but it did pave the way for future albums. To promote the album, Metallica took to the road on the two-month "Kill 'Em All for One" tour. The next album from the band was "Ride the Lightning", released in 1984. A good improvement from their debut album, reaching number ten on the US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) and number 48 on the US Billboard 200.

Metallica was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich. They have released 11 studio albums between 1983 and 2023 and eight live albums. The best released singles from the band, in my opinion, are "Enter Sandman" (1991) and "Nothing Else Matters" (1992).

Answer: Def Leppard

"Adrenalise" was released on 30 March 1992. The album was recorded at two studios, Wisseloord Studios, Hilversum Studio 150, Amsterdam, and Joe's Garage, Dublin. The track "White Lightning" is a tribute to Clark, who is credited as one of the writers on six out of the ten songs on the album. Steve Clark died on 8 January 1991, so the album is credited to his songwriting and demos only.

Since the recordings were written and partially demoed prior to Clark's death, this is technically the band's debut album with just four members. They later reworked or re-recorded solo work by Phil Collen. Tracks from the album "Let's Get Rocked", "Make Love Like a Man", "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad", and "Stand Up (Kick Love into Motion)" were all released as singles.

Def Leppard was formed in Sheffield in 1977. They are known for their drummer, Rick Allen, who had an arm amputated after he crashed into a brick wall. The doctors managed to sew his arm back on, but he got an infection and had to have it amputated. The band has released 12 studio albums and over 50 singles.

Answer: Arctic Monkeys

The Arctic Monkeys were formed in Sheffield in 2002. The band has a range of styles, including indie rock, garage rock, post-punk revival, psychedelic rock, alternative rock and lounge pop. Their first album, "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" (2006), was highly praised and reached number one on the UK Albums Chart, becoming the quickest-selling debut album in British chart history at that time. I think it was helped by "Blog Rock", which was in full swing.

Blog rock, sometimes called blog indie, is a loosely defined genre and period of indie rock that first appeared within the online music blog community during the mid to late 2000s. It is comparable to other early music scenes connected to blogs, like bloghouse and blog rap.

The Arctic Monkeys have released seven studio albums and 23 singles. Most of the albums have charted in the top ten in several countries.

Andy Nicholson, the original bassist who was also a co-founder of the band, left in 2006.