When I'm recording something (especially because I produce my own music) I might consider how hard it would be to replicate a song on stage.

When I began writing songs, there was a pretty direct line between what was happening in my life and what I wrote about. So my first album was really all about my failed attempts to make a particular relationship work.

I always write from rhythm first, so if I need a song fast, I have to start there. Then I just threw some electric guitar at it.

I didn't realize at the time that if I wrote about something, I was going to have to talk about something. A lot. Ad nauseum.

I started to understand what the song could be about. The ache of nostalgia even for things we don't like, the commitment to keep moving despite that ache. It made me think of how I relate to my privilege - as a white person, as someone who grew up upper middle class.

It's funny because my main awkwardness around writing the song had little to do with the method.

I like garage band for writing because you only have crayons and there are only five crayons in the box. Your choices are limited and I find that to be very good for me.