You're not supposed to totally know what's happening. The songs are supposed to give you clues so you can fill in the blanks.

We don’t need more ‘What if the mother is going to die’ debated, we need ‘I had an abortion because I was not ready to be a mother. It was my choice and my right. I own it. Back the f@#( up.

I don't know anybody who doesn't hate being called alt.country. It just sounds like a website. I don't mind being called Americana, I don't mind being called country noir, or independent country is fine, but the words alt.country make me insane.

Rich kids who write songs about food stamps always piss me off. I'm not going to write any songs about that, either.

It's like sometimes, you can just lay back and it takes the pressure off of you.

I have a real dog-like mentality, in that it's like, 'Where is my next meal coming from? Am I ever gonna eat again? Will I ever write another song again? Will anyone show up for tour?' I think it comes from being really poor as a kid.

Everyone has to kind of fend for themselves.