Local Band Name Breakdown: Where we ask Bay Area bands the story behind their names. Don't pretend you never wondered.

The whip-smart boys in Nodzzz are an irreverent trio who bang out awesomely hilarious, lo-fi rock songs, in the nerd-tastic vein of New Wave Brit Nick Lowe and the late great Warren Zevon. We've been tapping our feet and laughing out loud constantly to tunes from their new disc Innings (Woodsist), coming later this year. Check out "Time (What's It Going to Do) here. Mesmerized by the plethora of z's that populate the band's name, we asked singer Anthony Atlas to explain:

What inspired the name Nodzzz? Who thought it up?
Pete, our first (and now infrequent) drummer, thought it up. For me it seemed to be a reference to Twizzlers, with the Rolling Stones mouth-logo, and all the Z's. It looked cool written too. But I never liked it, and five years later, I'm still incredulous it's our band name.

Your favorite names of bands from the Bay Area?
Grass Widow is good, an interesting term meaning someone's who's temporarily widowed, their partner gone temporarily. The Mantles is good because it's subtle and unpretentious. Thee Oh Sees' name evolved from OCS, to Oh Sees, and now, Thee Oh Sees. I like those bandnames a lot.

Were you named anything before "Nodzzz"? What were some rejected names?
Well we do have an alias, sub-titled band-name, the New Jersey Dads. All of our dads were from the New Jersey area, and it's where me and Pete grew up. Other rejected names were the Busybodies, and White Tissues.

"Nodzzz" especially with the three Zs, is one of the weirder Bay Area band names. What's the strangest question you've ever been asked about it?
In Germany, an interviewer asked if it was pronounced "Nazis."

Nodzzz plays with Art Museums at Bottom of the Hill tonight. 1233 17th Street. The show is $10 and starts at 10 pm.