I think listening to a lot of Lou Reed when I was a teenager is what encouraged me to just sing however felt good to me.
John DarnielleIt's impossible to be content all the time - you have to learn to be content in places where you're unhappy and owning your emotions, whatever they are.
John DarnielleI grew up in Southern California, so the whole concept of a local music history is still kinda novel to me.
John DarnielleI just started writing stuff to kill time on summer evenings. This is why I'm always telling people who ask me what they need to do to succeed to give up, do something else.
John DarnielleI always worry that I'm a dilettante: I know something about lots of things but don't have exhaustive knowledge of much.
John DarnielleIn wrestling, people just throw each other around, possibly actually bleed, and are still friends in the locker room afterwards. But there's a real glee - a feeling goes up in the arena, especially on non-TV days. If it's just people in a room and somebody starts to bleed, that's very exciting.
John Darnielle