Some songs hint at struggles with heartbreak inside of up-beat melodies that remind you that even in the darkest of emotions, there is light. While others are just cheery stories. Though the lyrics are slightly quaint, there's something very canny happening beneath the surface. Whether drinking, laughing or having a bit of a meltdown, Spaghetti Anywhere has found a realm of versatility capable of glorifying basic human emotions in a very subtle way.
'Incredible Hulk' snagged me instantly. There's something particular about it's simplicity. The words are a bit whimsy, yet they're hidden beneath these beautiful simply crafted melancholic harmonies that assure you there is something slightly more tragic taking place. Francis Cullen, a genuinely nice guy, was kind enough to give a few full-bodied answers to a few questions I asked him.
Who are your influences?
“My major influence was Belle and Sebastian. When I [first] started writing songs, I had only been playing guitar for about two years so I wasn't very good. I found that most of Belle and Sebastian's songs were pretty easy to learn and followed an easy structure. In the end, I thought, “maybe I could do something like that”. [Maybe] not as good but, I could do something similar and as I had a Scottish accent, I could sing with a Scottish accent. Now, we take influence from a lot of different bands. Me and Valerio have pretty different tastes so we mix it together and different stuff comes out. Personally, over the years I've taken most influence from Jens Lekman, Daniel Johnston and BMX Bandits. Their songs are both quirky and fun but also sometimes really upsetting, which I guess I like."
Where does the inspiration for your songs come from? Are they autobiographical?
"Our inspiration, lyrics wise, I suppose [are] about relationships going wrong and trying to get over it. I think I get embarrassed writing about my feelings too much, so I try and add a bit of humor to make it less awkward. Like in Gregory's Girl where the lyrics are pretty mad and unrealistic about a guy going to Hawaii and then trying to kill himself with cyanide because he got dumped. Sometimes I don't [add humor] and they turn out a bit too serious, but I guess some things that happen to you can't really be funny. They are all autobiographical [though] they're not all completely accurate. [In the song 'Drugs'], I didn't take LSD and take off all my clothes, even though I know someone who did. I can't really write about stuff that hasn't happened to me. I also can't write clever poetic lyrics so they're all pretty simple and everyone can understand what I’m on about."
Is the band serious or just a pastime?
"I want it to be, and it is sometimes. We've struggled a bit with people coming and going, but at the moment, our drummer(s) Dave Rowlands and Rob Ranger have been amazing. They are always up for playing gigs and are adding a lot to the songs. Plus, our live sound has never sounded better. I guess we just need some interest from a label or just something to give us a good kick up the arse in order to really push it. If I could make a living out of music, then that would be perfect! But, I have to pay my rent, so other things get in the way. We have a new EP on the way and have just done a cool video for a new song called 'Sleep Around', so at the moment, things are looking good."
Do you plan on releasing a full-length album? If so, when?
"I don't know about that. We have a lot of songs which could easily fill an album up, I'd like to do an album one day! At the moment, EP's seem like a sensible idea, people can always take the EP's and stick them together to an album if they want. Or, maybe a Spaghetti Anywhere's greatest hits [haha]. We have a lot of songs that no one's heard before. We haven't got around to finishing them but they're on standby just in case, by some miracle, some big shot record exec asks us to pop out an album in a week. I'd really to record in a proper studio, we record in Valerio's bedroom and it doesn't really have the same vibe. Plus, there's always too many distractions."
Do you plan on any US tours?
That seems like it probably would never happen, even though it'd be like an amazing dream. If someone gave me a lot of money for no reason, I’d probably spend it on doing that, considering I’d have to get our drummer sacked from his job probably, I wonder how I could go about doing that...
Check out Spaghetti Anywhere on Bandcamp
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