So, what do you like, the new Furby or the pocket sized My Little Pony, I don’t ask Delaware sextet The Spinto Band. I sure feel like it though.
Today, chilling in Whelan's quainter attic accommodations, this rightly acclaimed outfit look more like a travelling jamboree than budding rock gods. Tenderly aged between 18 and 21, they’re a precocious bunch, but happily, they’re the coolest of kids. We cover all the pressing issues of the day. Like Beast Wars – who would win in space, a bear or a shark? And Trapped In The Closet – funny ha, ha or funny peculiar?
“That’s been the biggest talking point since the tour started,” explains bassist Thomas Hughes.
After a mildly heated exchange, we’re all agreed that R. Kelly’s breathtaking magnum opus is hilarious on purpose. Sort of.
“Okay, so we’re going with deliberately funny,” nods Nick Krill. “But R. Kelly’s idea of funny involves a fucking midget. So there’s a lot of levels to it.”
Formed back in 1996 when some of the line-up had yet to hit their teens, The Spinto Band famously sparked into being following a rummage through the attic. Stumbling on some song lyrics scribbled by his late grandfather Roy Spinto onto crackerjack boxes, young Nick would bring them back to his school friends in Wilmington (the Delaware stop-off noted as the birthplace of Television’s Tom Verlaine) and start improvising suitable musical accompaniment.
A decade on and the band’s superb debut effort Nice And Nicely Done has seasoned rock watchers citing the likes of Pavement, Yo La Tengo and The Flaming Lips. The Spintos themselves, however, are content to describe their compositions as lollipop music, though listening to the hypnotic bubblegum of ‘Spy Vs. Spy’ and ‘Direct To Helmet’ and the eerie beauty of ‘Oh Mandy’, there’s much more going on than pop confectionary.
“We like the lollipop label mainly because it’s an easy way to answer questions,” explains Thomas. “What kind of music do you play? Lollipop. Nice and simple.”
They admit to being a little taken aback by the current Spinto buzz.
“We didn’t know there was any anticipation at all,” admits guitarist Jon Eaton. “Most of us were still in school when we played London for the first time last year. We were shocked when record company people showed up, but then we were shocked that any people showed up.”
Spinto fever looks set to become a much deadlier contagion when the boys tour the US with some English crew called Arctic Monkeys next month.
“We get mentioned with them a lot,” admits keyboardist Sam Hughes. “And we’re glad of the company, but there’s this whole thing about us and Clap Your Hands and Arctic Monkeys being internet bands. I don’t think we’ve manipulated the internet all that successfully. Unless having a website is a stroke of genius.”
Well, better that than get lumped in with Pitchfork bands, I suppose.
“Oh that happens too”, laughs Nick. “And the worst part is that Pitchfork have never given us any attention. We got one asterisk beside the Arctic Monkeys. That’s it. Pitchfork band, I wish."
Meanwhile, the legend of Roy Spinto continues to grow.
“We’ve had this competition on our website because the tickets for the Arctic Monkeys sold out so fast,” says drummer Jeff Hobson. “You had to print out the Roy Spinto mask on our website and take a picture of yourself wearing it. We’ve had guys showing up with Easter Island head sized versions ever since.”
So I guess they’ve really made it then?
“Oh yeah”, nods Sam. “Tom’s going all rock now. He even asked for no mayo and no onions on his sandwich earlier today.”
Watch out Barbara Streisand.