The music that I made in my band wasn't the expression of everything I was into. Bands are based on compromise.

Everything I've ever wanted to do, we've kinda done. Everything beyond this has been just the cherry on top. I've been so happy with the band, and we're so lucky and blessed to be able to do it.

Stray thought for the day: Putting boundaries on how punk should sound/look is the least punk rock thing one can do. Be yourself=Very punk.

Between Prince and my dad's fusion-jazz records, I didn't have a choice in being funky.

I moved to L.A. and really didn't dig living there until I found places like Koreatown and Little Tokyo. I really like hanging out in the grocery stores and restaurants.

Advice? Focus on the craft. Study the greats. Try and understand how and why they made the writing choices they did. Then, start by copying them...just as an exercise. See if you can do similar things. Learn how to write a song like so and so. Then, when you've done that, write a song like yourself. Learn to color within the lines before going outside them.

Kid problems are when you're bummed because girls don't like you or something silly, but then you get older and people start dying and going broke and whatever. People get sick. When you get older these things just happen.