Ricky Nelson... I couldn't believe it when he died. He was a great rock star.

Progression is important. I'm always going to play music in the general vein of rock'n'roll, but when I started I was very much associated with the West Coast lo-fi thing and I didn't want to get anchored in with anything that was just in vogue for the time being.

All of my favorite records have vocals high in the mix, even if it's music that wasn't necessarily mainstream.

It was sad when Sid Vicious died... I was freaked out when Phil Lynott died from Thin Lizzy. I cried. It was too crazy.

I get starstruck really easily. I love music so much - it sounds so silly to say that - so if I'm playing a festival and somebody I love, like [Primal Scream's] Bobby Gillespie, is there in the backstage area, I'm like, "Wow this is amazing! There they are!"

When I met Ronnie Spector, she walked in and said, 'You look like me.'

I just being able to write songs I'm proud of and finding some women to play with is exciting.