I want to surround myself with the people I care about and that has a lot to do with what love is. It's surrounding yourself with the people you do love and trust, and that kind of thing.
I find that a lot of times when family members get bronchitis or the flu or something like that, I'll kind of skate through and be really lucky and not get that sick.
I don't think we'll really know what's going on until we enter the next dimension and all that.
I like to write pop songs and the stuff I write is fairly poppy, so I thought maybe my lot in life was to write pop songs for people. It never felt right writing songs for other people to sing, though.
I ran away for a couple years just to prove I've hever been free.
I'm my own worst critic and harshest critic and I just want to put honest music out there.
I really love music and I want to make it better the best I can.
There's a lot of different things, but I think love gives us peace one way or another, and a calming effect on our soul, so I don't know exactly what love is to me, but I know I try my best to surround myself with that. Whenever I can. It's hard sometimes.
When I cruise around, I can't help but study people's faces and emotions and wonder why they're feeling the way they are.
I've had the same core group of friends that I've always had. We're surfing, so that definitely keeps you grounded.
I can tell when something's real, or when something's put together. I can just feel it.
I just find that with music I've always felt a sort of comfort.
Trying to put music out there in the world is a pretty exciting, yet terrifying, thing and I've just been through the ringer.
I have a lot of questions and I don't have that many answers. So what better place to exercise those thoughts than the lyrics, I guess.
Since I was a kid, when I pick up my guitar it's been hard for me to write some sort of bubblegum lyrics. It's not really ever been my route.
Coming from heavy music too, it's really hard to have heavy music not sound too butthead-ish or jock-ish, and there's a fine line between Limp Bizkit and Nirvana - there's a fine line there, and it's terrifying.
I've been through a lot of ups and downs. I've been on both sides of it all, I guess. So there's not one specific event or thought that I'm dealing with or drawing from necessarily.
I've had the same friends I've always had. I mean, I've lost a few over the years.
I can always be reminded how small I am when I try to surf a wave that's a little bit out of my league, and I just get pummeled. And, when your life flashes before your eyes kind of stuff, deep down under the water where you don't know what's up or down, and that kind of thing, or just Mother Nature reminding you how small you are compared to it. That's kind of the main thing for me.
In fact, on a side note, after the success of the first record, I got asked to write for some pop artists, as everybody does, and I did a couple songs for some of these massive stars and the review that I got back was, "This artist likes the song but it's too POP-y for them." I was like, "What do you mean, I thought I was writing for a pop star."
More than anything, I’m excited to have the artistic freedom and opportunity to make a sophomore record. Everybody dreads the sophomore slump, whereas I am embracing it and can’t wait to either go down in flames, or take it to another level. It’s not going to be in the middle – it’ll be one way or the other. That’s how it has to be.
I just find that I enjoy the music that feels like there's a journey to the top of this mountain, then you're at the top of the mountain finally with this magical feeling, and you're stoked because you made it, and you're up there, but there's a little bit of sadness to think of all that you lost along the way to get there. I guess I relate and enjoy the path and the struggle very much.
I never wanted to do music to get girls, right, to get popular, or anything like that. I really love music and I want to make it better the best I can. I can tell when something's real, or when something's put together. I can just feel it. So I'm my own worst critic and harshest critic and I just want to put honest music out there.
My first attempt at real music was when I was 13. My first signed band was when I was 21; that failed. I got another deal at 26; that failed, and then I was broke. I imagine trying to handle this head-trip of an experience when I was younger - it would have just turned into too much, probably.We all go through ups and downs with drinking, and In think it would have probably been a lot worse had I experienced that before.
I don't know that I can say what exactly love means to me because it would be hard to put that into perspective. But the older I get, the more I realize that you don't have to be around people you don't want to be around, and you don't have to be in a situation you don't want to be in.
