Can you tell us about the inspiration behind your latest album, and what themes or stories you aimed to convey through your music?

My latest album is called Dark and Dirty World, it was released in January of this year. It is is a collection of songs meant to tell a complete story of a character searching for happiness, acceptance and a secure place in the world, as well as coping with grief and hardship in a sometimes humorous or satirical way, in the vein of Bob Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks/Slow Train Coming, Tom Petty’s Full Moon Fever/Wildflowers, or Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run/Ghost of Tom Joad. There are two overall recurring themes. First, is the displacement of the working class and the corruption and greed that has spawned the current climate of popular unrest. Second is the emotional struggle that accompanies a failed relationship and a longing for love, companionship, and a sense of belonging that is seemingly out of reach. Some of the songs were written at various times and were used because they fit the storyline of the album. Dark and Dirty World, Some Things Are Never the Same, Lilly Likes Leanin’ on the Piano, and Runnin’ into the Fire, were written specifically for the album. Lover of Unreason ended up on the album because the producer of Dark and Dirty World suggested it, I had one of my own songs of a similar style/subject matter that I was going to use but Norma was so excited about it, I went with it and it was the better choice, it book-ends the album perfectly. From end to end the content of the album goes from the macro, a global context of turmoil and struggle, to the micro, an individual context of an internal turmoil and struggle.

Music often has the power to transport people to different places and times. Can you describe a moment in your life when a particular song or album had a profound impact on you?

This happens to me all the time recently with a Van Morrison song called Hungry for Your Love, every time I hear it, I am immediately transported back to my home town as a child and in my mind I am in the public pool. I can picture the brown tile, the smell of the chlorine, everything. The weird part is, if I think about it consciously, I can’t get to the same level of presence, so weird.

Many artists have rituals or routines they follow before performing or recording. Do you have any unique or quirky pre-show or pre-recording rituals that you find help you get in the zone?

I play in a lot of bars so after I get everything set up, I generally like to mingle with the audience and have a beer, talk to the bartender for a bit, if I am there early enough, I like to have something to eat. You have to imagine that I have been doing this a long time, so I am not really worried about what is about to happen, it’s pretty mechanical at this point. Even if it’s a bigger show, like in a theatre or outdoor festival, I like to keep it light, basically not over think things. Regardless of where I am playing, when I go on stage, I don’t start right away, I literally just stand there for a while, looking out at the audience, for some reason that seems to get their attention more than if I started playing, or asking them how they are doing. These are just things that have evolved over the years.

Your lyrics often tell a story or convey a message. Can you share the story behind one of your songs and the inspiration that led to its creation?

For sure, the song I always like to talk about is Some Things Are Never the Same, from my new album. I wrote it all in one night. I had been working on a chord progression and I decided to take break and walk down the road for a beer to get out of my head a bit. The place was empty except for the bartender and one other person, a girl named Miranda. So, I sat at the bar and talked with the bar tender and Miranda and then went home, sat at the piano, and the words just came out “I sat at a bar talkin’ to Miranda all night, but something was missing something wasn’t right” (I later changed it to “sat on a train” because I talk about bars too much). Then I wrote the whole thing straight through. After I had the first line the idea came that it would be about two people who are unable to be together, in this case it is more of an acceptance of the situation, we can’t make it work but sometimes that is just how it goes.

If you could curate a music festival with a lineup of your dream artists, who would be the headliners, and what would the theme of the festival be?

This could get out of control, so I will keep it to five. In no particular order, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Pieta Brown, Norah Jones, and Steve Earle. The theme would be “getting to know each other”, the intent would be to break down the invisible wall that exists between the performer and the audience, so try and create an atmosphere where everybody is just hanging out listening to music, as of it is someone’s living room.

Music can be a powerful tool for advocacy and change. Are there any social or political causes that you’re passionate about, and how does your music play a role in promoting these issues?

There are many, I actually believe in this ideal very strongly, so a lot of my music lyrically is very sociopolitical driven. You don’t have to look any further than the title track from my new album, Dark and Dirty World. It is intended to be an unapologetic commentary on the destruction of the planet due to corporate greed and political corruption.

The music industry has evolved significantly with technology. How do you see artificial intelligence and emerging technologies impacting the creation and distribution of music in the future?

I hope not a whole lot. I think the more automation and digitization of music becomes mainstream, quite frankly the less interesting it is. Would you rather have an instant cheesburger or one that someone took some time to make? I find that technology can’t replicate magic, and there is a special kind of magic that makes a song great.

Many recording artists evolve over time. How do you see your musical journey changing and growing in the next decade?

I have been thinking about this a lot lately. For my next project, and probably from now on, I want it to be more fun. I am conciously moving away from the more angsty kind of music that have predominately made in the past and embracing the more light hearted, quirky, humorous side of things, that up to know has been in the minority of my body of work. Also, I just want to make some music that is just groovy. That is not to say that there can’t be a message in their some where, just less demure.