I became very aware of what I was used to relying on, almost tricks. It's funny because I could feel myself creating a formula and sticking with it and I just told myself, 'That's not me, that's not really how I am, god forbid I have developed a formula - it's music; songwriting.' It's heretic, honestly, in the church of music, so I had to unwind a few tricks in order to get past it.

It's a little cheeky; growing up in Santa Fe was kind of a weird experience, because it's such a touristy town. So sometimes it feels a little like you're in a town that's just on display. You walk around downtown and all the shops are galleries or high end boutiques, so it can feel like you don't belong there even though you are from there.

Raucous drunken trumpets and instrumentation tend to guide the way you think. They can give you a path to follow lyrically.

My thought with harmonies and melodies in general, is that if it doesn't come right away then it's never going to come at all.

It's just not an image I had ever put out about myself - the bedroom synth guy. The whole thing seemed ridiculous.

You always know when a real inspiration is behind the melody, arrangements, even lyrics. And I know that's really vague, but it's true.

I dropped out of high school and I tried to go to community college for a little while. I can't be a student. I always hated that lifestyle.