| 100% | ROMANCE | 7 | My Chemical ___, "Helena" band whose name is inspired by a collection of novellas by Irvine Welsh |
| 56% | MEN | 3 | Of Mice and ___, "Restoring Force" band whose name is inspired by a John Steinbeck novel |
| 50% | RADIOHEAD | 9 | "Paranoid Android" band whose name was inspired by a Talking Heads song |
| 49% | DEEP | 4 | ___ Purple, "Smoke on the Water" band whose name was inspired by a Peter DeRose song |
| 49% | SUNBIRD | 7 | A feathered creature whose name is inspired by the centre of the solar system |
| 48% | ROLLING | 7 | The ___ Stones, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" band whose name was inspired by a Muddy Waters song |
| 46% | RADLEYS | 7 | The Boo ___, "Wake Up Boo!" band whose name is inspired by Harper Lee's novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" |
| 43% | NEONTREES | 9 | Band whose name was inspired by In-N-Out Burger signage |
| 43% | CARDIB | 6 | Rapper whose name was inspired by a rum brand |
| 43% | PANDORA | 7 | Music-streaming service whose name is inspired by a Greek myth |
| 42% | LADY | 4 | ___ Gaga, "Poker Face" singer whose name was inspired by a Queen song |
| 41% | IPOD | 4 | Gadget whose name was inspired by "2001: A Space Odyssey" |
| 41% | STEELY | 6 | ___ Dan, "Do It Again" band whose name is inspired by William S. Burroughs' novel "Naked Lunch" |
| 40% | ZZTOP | 5 | Rock band whose name is suggested by the first row of this puzzle |
| 40% | MODEST | 6 | ___ Mouse, "Float On" band whose name is inspired by Virginia Woolf's novel "The Mark on the Wall" |
| 40% | ASIA | 4 | "Heat of the Moment" band whose name is a continent |
| 39% | PAM | 3 | "Polythene ___," 1969 song by The Beatles whose title was inspired by the nickname of a fan |
| 39% | ALLTIME | 7 | ___ Low, "Monsters" band whose name was inspired by lyrics from the song "Head On Collision" by New Found Glory: 2 wds. |
| 39% | STARBUCKS | 9 | Coffeehouse chain with a siren logo, whose name was inspired by Melville's best friend in "Moby Dick" |
| 38% | ALBUM | 5 | Collection of songs by the band Paradise Lost that is named "Gothic" |
| 38% | TOP | 3 | ZZ ___, band with the song "Gimme All Your Lovin'" whose name was inspired by ZZ King and BB Hill |
| 38% | CREE | 4 | Northern tribe whose name is one letter short of a rock band |
| 36% | NAVY | 4 | Old ___, American clothing company owned by the clothing giant at 34a, and whose name is reminiscent of a military force |
| 36% | FRAISIER | 8 | French cake whose name is inspired by strawberries |
| 36% | ABBA | 4 | Band whose name is a palindrome |
| 36% | TALKINGHEADS | 12 | Band whose name was taken from a term in TV Guide |
| 36% | ABA | 3 | Band whose name is a rhyme scheme |
| 36% | RIVERPHOENIX | 12 | "Stand by Me" actor whose first name is a medium-sized body of water: 2 wds. |
| 35% | JAMESBDONOVAN | 13 | Actor Tom Hanks's character in 2005 historical drama "Bridge of Spies" which was inspired by a real-life lawyer named ___: 3 wds. |
| 35% | DREAM | 5 | WNBA team whose name was inspired by an MLK speech |