Influences

I listen to lots of different music. I can rock out to everything from Bad Acid Trip to Of Montreal's disco-pop to Zac Brown Band. Some nights I put on NPR and listen to classical, other nights I pop in Rust in Peace by Megadeth. Primus is one of the coolest things to ever happen to music, and as far as vapid pop music goes, Lady Gaga isn't too shabby.

I am a musical omnivore, but like any creature, I do have my favorites. Currently, I am in love with indie rock. Broken Social Scene, Arcade Fire, Band of Horses, Best Coast, Neutral Milk Hotel, Wolf Parade, My Bloody Valentine... The list goes on and on. If you've listened to the songs I've been writing for the past two years, you probably could have already guessed what I normally listen to.

As a quote attributed to Pablo Picasso goes, "Good artists borrow, great artists steal." I've borrowed a lot from all of the bands in the above paragraph, but the one I have stolen the most from is Guided by Voices. The first album I ever heard from Guided by Voices was Alien Lanes, and I was totally hooked. In Robert Pollard's words, his songwriting process follows the "four Ps of rock": Punk, progressive, psychedelic, and pop. In any case, his approach to music has had a profound effect upon the way that I write songs. I also owe quite a lot to The Weakerthans. John K. Sampson's introspective lyrics and excellent storytelling provided a perfect example for me to follow. It also didn't hurt that he taught me you didn't need a million-dollar voice to be a great vocalist. Throw in a smattering of Dinosaur Jr. and Modest Mouse, and you have the most readily apparent influences on my music.

Suddenly, I feel ridiculous for even starting this blog. It's like I'm so desperate to be interviewed that I'm just doing it myself, you know?