With the words, a lot of things start with questions. Some word kind of piques my interest, and I love the way it sounds, but I really don't know what it means. And I honestly don't care for a while.

I still play solo shows. And some of those shows are still some of the best, most gratifying shows.

Songwriting requires some sort of ceremony to even get the process started, and it can be somewhat arbitrary.

I don't write poetry and then strum some chords and then fit the words on top of the chords.

Music as a social conduit has always been important to me.

I'm not a home-studio guy. I spend a lot of time working by myself developing songs, but I really need some other counterpart to help me pull it all together, because you go nuts working if I had to finish an entire project all within my own head.

If something gets under my own skin, and keeps reoccurring, it starts to take on a certain weight and value, and I think, "I have to put this in the song. I have no choice but to mention Greek Cypriots in this song." It's a little internal challenge to myself. Like creating little imaginary rituals in yourself to help the song go from nonexisting to existing.