The Scaramanga Six - Sound, Influences and Lyrical Themes

Sound, Influences and Lyrical Themes

"A lot of the lyrical content is designed to draw the listener in and empathise with the characters mentioned, or sung from the point of view of – whether they be real, exaggerated or fictional (sometimes it’s hard to distinguish). For that reason we might come across (as) misogynistic, cruel or self-obsessed, which of course is all rubbish. Inspiration for lyrics can often come from people we see milling about trying to live their lives amongst severe futility and obstacles (usually self-made). There’s a lot of our frustrations in there too. People like Scott Walker, Elvis Costello, Andy Partridge etc were all good at this approach – and also managed to get enough pop hooks in too."

Steven Morricone on the Scaramanga Six lyrical approach

The Scaramanga Six play a tuneful and carefully arranged mixture of heavy rock, vocal pop, rockabilly, garage and crooner songs described as “intense-yet-aloof rock operas” (Drowned In Sound), “B-movie chic combined with real musical muscle” (Kerrang) and which has seen them compared to “a British Queens Of The Stone Age." Influences cited by the band themselves include The Stranglers, Cardiacs, The Cramps and Tony Bennett. Their song lyrics are characterised by themes of dark humour, desperation, tongue-in-cheek self-aggrandisement, criminality, “the drudgery of everyday life, work and office politics”, and human/animal behaviourism. The band has a strong visual sense reflected in their use of video and their onstage presentation (they perform in a Mafia-style “confrontational family” manner wearing suits and ties and have a tendency to stare out audiences).