1) What was the first album you bought with your own money?I actually don't remember which I bought first, but it was either Blink 182's "Enema of the State", or John Mayer's "Room for Squares" .... However, I did buy those with money that my parents gave me, so maybe that doesn't count? The first album I bought with money I earned was Gotye's "Making Mirrors" (fantastic album).
2) What comes first – music or lyrics? Then what happens?
For me, it varies from song to song. Frankly, I wish I had a more predictable system, but I don't. Sometimes a melody or a rhythm will just pop into my head, so I'll sit down and try to build something musically. Other times, a line or two of something I've read, thought or heard recently will make an impression on me, and I feel inclined to sit down and write lyrics. From there on out, it's kind of like putting together a puzzle, piece by piece - but I usually don't know what it's supposed to look like at the end. Sometimes I get lucky and it all fits together properly, the rest of the time, not so much.. Of course, once in a very long while, there will be a song that practically puts itself together. And, of course, those are usually my most popular songs: The ones I didn't put too much work into. C'est la vie..
3) What’s the one thing that listeners would never guess about you?
Just one thing? Well, (at least, I hope
listeners would never guess this), I've never had a guitar lesson. When
I first started learning I'd ask my dad to show me a few chords here
and there, but that's about it. I pretty much learned to play by jamming
along to whatever CDs were around. I didn't really know what I was
doing at first, but I knew if I could emulate some established musicians
it'd be a step in the right direction.
4) If your fans had to write a sentence or two to describe your music, what would they write?
That's a good question.. One thing I hear often is that my music has a lot of feeling. Most of what I write is guitar driven, mid-tempo, and I like to incorporate a lot of unorthodox percussion elements. As
a whole, my music is very eclectic - I have a hard time describing or
categorizing it because I'm always trying to do something new. For
example, if I wrote an indie folk sounding tune with my acoustic guitar
today, then odds are, tomorrow I'll want to break out the electric
guitar and synthesizers and try to make some electro-blues or
something.. I guess what I'm saying here is: you'll have to listen and decide for yourself!
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