There is something to be said for anonymity. It provides a sense of safety for those that perhaps feel a bit too thin-skinned to take on the responsibility of being more well-known than what they are famous for. In music, a band's name help create a feeling of teamwork and that everybody is relevant to the whole and helps to keep the lead singer's egos in check. For instance, Mick Jagger at one time tried to rebrand the Rolling Stones as "Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones" well after their rise to fame which nearly ended the band for good in the eighties. The market for new celebrity meat is quick and ever-changing. Last year's Justin Bieber is this year's Eminem. Bubble gum bands long ago conquered the true spirit of large radio stations to such a degree that although I have heard of One Direction, I have no idea of any songs that they sing. Plus, I have to acknowledge that for some reason a music director who at one time probably had great taste in music being played over a campus radio frequency has now joined the conspiracy to poop out bubble gum pop crap. I won't pretend I understand why One Direction has already sold more records than a hundred bands better than them like Dr. Teeth and The Electric Mayhem, a musically gifted bunch of guys that has been around for decades and sold very little records. But back to my main topic around fictional bands... Sometimes, the line blurs so much between fantasy and reality it is often considered normal and expected. In a medium such as film, people are encouraged to become actively involved in the role-playing. That's why they are 'actors' more than 'performers'. We don't necessarily expect the same with music; we expect the person singing to be the person singing, not 'acting' the role of a lead singer. For instance, Meat Loaf is primarily a singer and has taken on that persona. Nobody considers him to be Marvin Lee Aday playing a singer named Meat Loaf. This is a list of some bands that have entered musical folklore, not only for having some great music but also providing some great record sales in the decades before the millennium despite being comprised of people or bands that didn't actually exist in real life.
There's such a fine line between stupid and clever. - David St. Hubbins.