I grew up going to punk shows, that kind of thing - I don't wanna make pop punk! - but I like the idea of people going totally crazy and it being really intimate, loud and super-aggressive, but combining that with pop music.

I don't own anything designer.

I find it really hard to throw myself into something artistically where I'm making up a whole character and finding something for that character to do.

Just because something might not have a deep philosophical meaning doesn't mean it's not important or relevant.

Success, for me, is a song that can deliver shivers.

There aren't many other labels who I can say are that successful, and can give me as much as 4AD gives me, and still have such a great roster.

I definitely see the voice as an instrument: It makes great drums, great synth pads, great everything. Vocals can be so many things, like, "Hey, I'm Michael Jackson, and this is my iconic voice," or a choir of people sounding like Mozart's Requiem. Mariah Carey is my favorite singer because her voice sounds utterly groundless. It's not even a human voice; it almost sounds mechanical.