History Main / AnonymousBand

* Music/ClariS don't perform live, go by the aliases "Clara" and "Alice", and are represented through anime-type characters styled after them. They do this because both girls are in high school, and don't want to get swept into the chaotic celebrity life.

** Even more glaring when someone (such as the aforementioned Kyo) has distinctive features beyond makeup (e.g. very tall or very short, difficult-to-conceal tattoos, visible piercings, or even just extremely long hair) that should make them recognizable even out of makeup. Especially when they make ''absolutely no effort'' to conceal their first names

* The Swedish band {{Music/Ghost}} is completely anonymous. The lead singer, Papa Emeritus, wears heavy makeup and prosthetics covering his face, whereas the other members of the bands are known only as the "Nameless Ghouls" and wear robes and masks covering their bodies and faces. [[spoiler: Multiple former members' names were revealed in a lawsuit which also revealed Papa Emeritus' name; Tobias Forge]]

* The Japanese band Kamisama, I have Noticed performs in masks and costumes for all of their performances, and the members go by nicknames officially. While many fans think the vocalist is the ''utaite'' and musician Mafumafu, the other members of the band are a mystery.

** Even more glaring when someone (such as the aforementioned Kyo) has distinctive features beyond makeup (e.g. very tall or very short, difficult-to-conceal tattoos, visible piercings, or even just extremely long hair) that should make them recognizable even out of makeup.

* ''Ubiquitous'' in VisualKei. Real names, even for the best-known bands, are rarely ever public knowledge, and the makeup and personas tend to be elaborate enough as to make the person unrecognizable. Occasionally, first names are used as stage names (or minimally modified) or slip during interviews or band banter, but anything beyond that is speculation—even for someone as genre-famous as Music//{{Kyo}}. Pretty much the only famous VK musicians to have their names revealed are founding fathers of the genres like Music//{{Buck Tick}} or Music//{X Japan}}, as well as Music//{{Gackt}} (who achieved some level of mainstream respectability with his solo career).

* BlackMetal band Music/DeathspellOmega have never publicised the identities of their members. Their first vocalist is known to be a man who goes by the pseudonym of Shaxul, while the second is commonly believed to be Mikko Aspa (also of Clandestine Blaze, Fleshpress, Stabat Mater and a number of other bands). Beyond that, nothing is known for certain, only rumours. Metal Archives lists the bassist as Khaos, formerly a live member of Barbatos, and the guitarist as "Hasjarl", formerly of Hirilorn, but it's not clear what the source on that is. Not even rumours about the drummer's identity are known.

* H.E.R. was initially an anonymous solo performer - promotional photos and the first album cover consisted of a silhouette of a woman, there were no live performances, interviews were only held over the phone, and her real name was never mentioned in conjunction with the project. Fans pretty quickly figured out she was Gabi Wilson, in part because her first EP featured a CoverVersion of {{Music/Drake}}'s "Jungle" that she previously uploaded to soundcloud under her own name.

* H.E.R. was initially an anonymous solo performer - promotional photos and the first album cover consisted of a silhouette of a woman, there were no live performances, interviews were only held over the phone, and her real name was never mentioned in conjunction with the project. Fans pretty quickly figured out she was Gabi Wilson, in part because her first EP featured a CoverVersio

* Up until the mid-1980s, Music/{{Chicago}} deliberately downplayed the personalities behind the music, as shown by its album cover art. This changed, however, with the advent of {{Creator/MTV}}.
** Same with Music/PinkFloyd, as they were one of the most famous bands that the average rock fan couldn't name or identify the members in a picture if they tried. This was aided by their show-stealing lighting and stage effects. Legendarily, the band would go into the lobby of the arena they were playing at for a drink during intermission and no one ever recognised one of them. Like Chicago, this changed in the 80's with MTV and the news talking about the lawsuit going on with RogerWaters at the time. It also changed with the fact that ''AMomentaryLapseOfReason'' was the first album to feature a picture of the band in the album booklet since 1971's ''Music/{{Meddle}}''

* For the longest time, the Doobie Brothers were an Anonymous Band, based on the fact that they were essentially a group of session musicians who got together to occasionally release an album or go on tour. At first they had a regularly rotating circle of about twenty musicians who each took turns, but eventually settled down into a solid lineup. Even to this day, the only Doobie Brother who anyone's ever heard of is Michael [=McDonald=]. Hell, the only reason anybody knew that they had a rotating lineup is because '''''all''''' the surviving members showed up to jam together when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

* Neon Horse: Supposedly a group of anonymous musicians fronted by Norman Horse (who at one point was stated to be Moe, the fictional founder of the Moe's Southwest Grill restaurant chain). Norman was also the only musician to show up in their music videos--he wore wigs and heavy makeup. Actual identities: [[spoiler:Norman is Mark Salomon of The Crucified and Stavesacre; the other members are Jason Martin of {{Starflyer 59}} and Stephen Dail of Project 86.]]

* Music/MrBungle used aliases on their first album and their earliest concerts were performed in masks. Eventually they dropped the anonymity (possibly because everybody could tell the singer was MikePatton anyway).

* Black Moth Super Rainbow are on the milder end of this. Not a lot of autobiographical information is known about the band. Though they don't hide their faces in promotional photos or live performances, they're always TheInvisibleBand in their music videos. Though some (but not all) of their real names are public knowledge, they're consistently credited under obvious {{stage name}}s. They've done print interviews, but their [[http://youtu.be/XZDMw1ePPwk only video interview]] is one where they had someone pretend to be a band member [[note]] The person being interviewed is an unnamed mascot/"hype man" the band was using for a 2009 tour (or at least someone dressed in the same costume) - while Tobacco was doing the real singing in front of a laptop, the masked man would stand up front and mime, engaging the audience in a way the actual singer wasn't in a position to[[/note]].

* The Swedish band {{Music/Ghost}} is completely anonymous. The lead singer, Papa Emeritus, wears heavy makeup and prosthetics covering his face, whereas the other members of the bands are known only as the "Nameless Ghouls" and wear robes and masks covering their bodies and faces.

* Up until the mid-1980s, Music/{{Chicago}} deliberately downplayed the personalities behind the music, as shown by its album cover art. This changed, however, with the advent of {{MTV}}.

* All the members of Music/ManWithAMission are always wearing wolf masks. It's part of their image.

* Marshmello is an EDM DJ who's entire shtick is that no one knows who he is, because he wears a marshmallow mask at all times and has never concealed or even hinted at his identity.

* The Traveling Wilburys would be a "not fooling anyone" example. The liner notes list all the musicians as members of the extended Wilbury family, but due to the album photos and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8s9dmuAKvU music videos]], they're better known as "that {{Supergroup}} with Music/{{George|Harrison}} [[Music/TheBeatles Harrison]], Music/TomPetty, Music/BobDylan, Music/RoyOrbison, and [[Music/ElectricLightOrchestra Jeff Lynne]].

* The Dukes of Stratosphear, a psychedelic band comprising The Red Curtain, Lord Cornelius Plum, Sir John Johns and E.I.E.I. Owen. Actual identity: [[spoiler: {{XTC}}]].