You’ve been a lot of musical projects over the years.
What are the projects you currently consider to be ‘active’.

It is true. Currently active are Braid – we have several shows lined up for 2012 and Chris Broach and I have started working on what we hope will be a full album of new material. And Jack & Ace – a project that I started with Lauren LoPiccolo – we’re also working on an album of new material at the moment. A band i was in for awhile called Certan People I Know will release an album this year too, but we’re inactive. It’s just all of our unreleased stuff.

Is guitar your primary instrument?

Yessir.

Do you play any other instruments?

I read your interview with Mike Kinsella and we seemed to have traveled very parallel paths. Took piano lessons at a young age but didn’t stick with it, really got into the scene playing drums, and then ended up on guitar..

How long have you been playing guitar?

I started messing around on guitar in 1992-ish. An ex-girlfriend’s dad gave me his old clunker and I just started learning it..

Did you take any lessons growing up? (guitar or other)

Piano, as mentioned above, and around 1999 i took about 6 months of voice lessons. I was sick of blowing it out every show. I’d actually love to take a guitar lesson. Chris Broach & I are seriously considering signing up for a class in jazz guitar or latin or something far out..

What impact did that have on you as a musician?

I think a lot. My parents realized I loved music at an early early age so that’s why they had me on the piano. Even though i hated the routine and the practice, that knowledge has stuck with me and was super helpful when learning the guitar.

Do you have an understand of scales and music theory?
— How does that impact your songwriting?

Rudimentary at best. It’s more about “knowing where to put your fingers” during certain songs.

Do you still practice instruments, beyond when you’re writing for your bands?

Not as much as i’d like. I have a bunch of instructional dvd’s i’ve burned onto my hard drive that are just waiting.

Do you still attempt to push forward by learning new instruments or applications?

New instruments not so much. There’s still a LOT that i could learn about the guitar.

Do you have have a method for songwriting? How does it usually happen?
- Prefer bringing a skeleton to practice, or build as a collaboration?

I definitely prefer writing alone and then bringing the skeleton in. Or at least be prepared with something. Too many practices go nowhere or end up in noodly jams for me to stand ALWAYS building in collaboration. I despise noodly jams.

What is your electric guitar rig these days?

It’s a black SG from oh, 1997. I used to have a 74 SG that i used and sounded great but I destroyed it touring. This is why I can’t have nice things. I use an AC30 now too. But I’m thinking of throwing it off of my balcony.

How’s about acoustics?

I have a Guild that I like. It’s roadworthy. That’s important.

Does gear impact your songwriting / performing?

Sadly no, and i think it should. I’m very plug-and-play and rely on others to help fine tune the sound. I hate that I don’t know more about the actual sounds. The only pedals I use consistently are a looper and a tuner.

Any advice for students who are trying to find success in the music industry?

Play a lot of shows and record a lot. Write a lot of stuff down and take pictures. Don’t get discouraged but do ask for help and do ask for advice. And don’t worry about “success.” Just write and play music if it makes you happy. If it makes you happy, you’ll practice more, get better, write better songs, and the other stuff will come.

Any Advice for life on the road?

Enjoy your alone time whenever you are lucky enough to get any. And don’t go out for too long at a time. Maintain some sanity, a base, a place for yourself.

What are your thoughts on the state of the music industry, and what the future holds?

I’m very optimistic about the music industry because I almost think there is becoming less of one. Startups and indies are having a lot of success lately because they are choosing to adapt to technology as opposed to only seeing how it can hurt a business. Whatever happens, there will always be innovative musicians. I believe it.

Anything else you’d like to add?

Thanks for the interview! Hope I helped.

His new record Ghost Town is out now, and it’s fantastic. Go buy it.

How long have you been playing guitar?

i picked up my brother’s guitar in 7th grade and taught myself how to play some (rudimentary versions of) metallica songs.

Do you play any other instruments?

i play drums and bass and can pick out simple melodies on the piano.

Is guitar your primary instrument?

yeah i guess so. i think i could’ve been a better drummer than guitar player if i ever actually practiced or pushed myself. and i think i could’ve been better at both if i ever learned how to properly play either…

You’re an accomplished guitarist. 
  Did you take any lessons growing up? (guitar or other)

i took three months of piano lessons in third grade and couldn’t figure out how to get my hands to do two different things at the same time so i got frustrated and quit. 

What impact did that have on you as a musician?

um…prepared me for a lifetime of frustration?

Do you have an understanding of scales and music theory?
 — How does that impact your songwriting?

just a little bit. i wish i knew more, although i also feel like maybe i can enjoy making music more the more ignorant i am. like i can’t get too wrapped up in stuff if i don’t even know it exists, so i just have to write stuff that “sounds good” to me. 

A lot of your music uses alternate tunings.
  How did you start this approach? 

i think i just wanted to play a note that i couldn’t reach in standard tuning so i dropped it down and it’s been a slippery slope ever since. 

  Is there a method for when/why you use certain tunings?
  Any personal favorites?

there’s no real method. usually i’ll just be fooling around on a guitar and come up with a riff i like and then have to figure out what tuning the guitar was in after the fact. i’m a sucker for DADGAD, DGCGAC, FACGCE…

 
  Do you still practice instruments, beyond when you’re writing for your band?

nope. 

  Do you still attempt to push forward by learning new instruments or applications?

um…not really. don’t really have the time or mental space anymore. i mean, i’d like to think i’m always evolving (albeit slowly) into a better musician but i’m not necessarily actively pushing myself. 

 Do you have have a method for songwriting?   How does it usually happen?
 Start with a riff, vocal melody, beat?

i’ve usually got a bunch of riffs lying around and a bunch of one-liners lying around and eventually i get motivated to cycle through them all and put some pairs together that seem to fit. once i got something i like i figure out how to make an entire “song” out of it (extrapolate on the words, come up with a bridge for the music, etc.) 

 On record, Owen is mostly acoustic.  
   What is your go-to acoustic guitar?

i’ve got a ‘67 martin that sounds pretty perfect. i’m too afraid to travel with it but it’s fun to pull it out for recording.
 

 Do you have an electric rig at all? 
 If so, what do you have there?

i’ve had the same fender telesonic and twin reverb since college. i don’t play enough electric guitars to warrant any new/fancy purchases.
 

 Does gear impact your songwriting / performing?

not really. i pretty much only play acoustic guitars that are lying around my house. 
 

 I recall reading that you tracked a lot of the Owen material yourself. 
  Do you have a home studio? 

i used to have a DIGI001 set up and some ok monitors and mics but now i’ve just got an mbox and a couple general use mics that i demo with. i usually end up recording everything with an audio technica 4033…
 

Any advice for students who are trying to find success in the music industry? 

um…do what you like doing and don’t do what you don’t. 

Any advice for those balancing being an active musician as well as maintain a good family life? 

um…don’t do what you like doing and do what you don’t. 

What are your thoughts on the state of the music industry, and what the future holds? 

  i don’t know much about it. i’ve never had a manager and i’ve only been on (truly) indie labels my whole life. i know record labels are probably screwed unless they figure out some other service to offer. but i think people who are making music for the sake of music (i.e. not to get rich or famous) are going to be fine…

At this point, I would say it is.

Do you play any other instruments?

I also play drums and a bit of keys.

How long have you been playing guitar?

It’s been about 11 years now.

Did you take any lessons growing up? (guitar or other)

I took maybe 10 drum lessons total in the first few years that I played.

What impact did that have on you as a musician?

I don’t think I learned too much from the lessons I took. I wanted to move on much faster than either of my teachers wanted me to so I stopped going.

Do you have an understand of scales and music theory?

My understanding is very basic. I understand intervals and know the notes of the fretboard, but that’s about it. I know what sounds I like to hear and how to achieve those sounds, but I don’t know any official names of things.

How does that impact your songwriting?

I guess I could say that my songwriting is really based around whatever I’m feeling at the time. I don’t really concern myself with if something is “proper” or not. I wouldn’t really know the difference anyway.

Do you still practice instruments, beyond when you’re writing for your band(s)?

I play guitar for a few hours a day when I’m home from tour. I’m constantly writing and noodling. I also try to play drums as much as possible when I’m home. That usually only ends up being a few hours a week due to people being home and annoyed and all that. I really do wish I could play more because my chops have definitely fallen off.

Do you still attempt to push forward by learning new instruments or applications?

I’ve been toying with the idea of trying to learn a wind instrument of sorts for a couple years, but I’m not sure I have the patience to do that at this point in my life. If I come across a cheap trumpet or sax, I may have to pick it up.

Do you have have a method for songwriting?

For my own stuff, I usually don’t try to push a song out unless I’m vibing on whatever riff I’m working with.

How does it usually happen?

When I do play by myself, I’ll usually noodle around for a while and stumble on a chord change or voicing that I’m digging and work from there.

Prefer bringing a skeleton to practice, or build as a collaboration

In my band, we definitely write as a team. Someone may come with a riff, but that’s the extent of it being a solitary adventure. We often try a few different keys to see what works best for the vocals and try different arrangements and feels until we’re happy with it. Then we’ll come back the next day and rework a bunch of things. In old bands, I would bring basically an entire song and go from there, but I definitely prefer the collaboration aspect even if there are more arguments.

What is your guitar rig these days?

Partcaster thinline tele or ‘86 MIJ 52 RI tele > Boss CS2 > Dunlop Volume > Emma Reezafratzitz > Digitech Digiverb > Boss DD20 > Sonic Research Turbo Tuner > Carvin X100B on the lead channel with a little bit of grit > Avatar Premier Vintage open-back 2×12 with Celestion Vintage 30s. When playing solo stuff, I also add in a Line 6 DL4 and a Boss PS3..

Does gear impact your songwriting / performing?

For the one solo project I have, the songs are primarily based around a 2-looper set up. If I don’t have those, I can’t really do as much as I’d like to in the weird department. If my part is written around a certain effect, then I definitely prefer to have those effects available to play. It’s definitely much easier to play when my rig sounds like I want it to as well.

You’ve worked at a studio, and mixed some cool records. How’d you get into recording bands?

I originally got into it because I recorded with a friend when I was 14 and the process seemed enjoyable. I originally starting writing music in a program called “TabIt” and recording just seemed like the next logical step.

Do you have an education in audio/acoustics?

Only what I’ve read on messageboards and in magazines.

What are you running in the studio?

My current setup is pretty tiny because I’ve lent things out while on tour and not gotten them back or had things disappear from a friend’s studio. I have a small assortment of mics including some 57s, 58s, a D112, Nady ribbon, Karma electret condensers, and a pair of MXL991s. I used to have a couple other mics, but they seem to be long gone. From there, I use a Behringer DDX3216 for preamps with the ADAT out going into an EMU1212m PCI card. I run that into a PC with Cubase 5 on it. My monitors are KRK RP8s.

I feel like I’ve learned to make the best of my setup, but I could certainly use some improvements all over. I’m just not home enough to make the proper investment into things yet.

Any advice for students who are trying to find success in the music industry?

If you want to make a living as a musician, be prepared to work your butt off. It seems to have everything to do with timing and luck with a heavy serving of persistence. It blows my mind that my band has been lucky enough to make a career out of music a reality, but we also put in a lot of work. If you want things to happen, you really just have to start doing stuff for yourself. Book your own tours if no one else will. Release your own records if no one else will. Be yourself, work hard, and don’t buy into gimmicks.

If you just want to make a living while being on tour, I would suggest becoming a crew member. Guitar tech/drum tech/front of house/tour manager/stage hand/merch/etc. You have a WAY higher chance of sustaining yourself in a position like that than you do playing music. You’ll get to meet tons of bands who may need a tech/tour manager/even a musician later down the road.

Any Advice for life on the road?

Just some random thoughts:
-In a world where you rarely shower, baby wipes and gold bond are lifesavers.
-Being a real person and being respectful goes a LONG way. Free places to stay, free food, better shows, better friends, etc.
-Try to clean up after yourself as it will keep your band happier and healthier in the van.
-Be prepared to see a different side of all of your bandmates.
-Walk away before blowing up on a bandmate over something small. You’ll absolutely get into stupid arguments, but you’d be better off trying to avoid them.

What are your thoughts on the state of the music industry, and what the future holds?

It seems like everyone is looking for new ways to sell records and bring in revenue. It’s obvious that record sales are down. Bands who sold 70,000 records with an earlier album are only selling 50,000 on a BIGGER label only a year and a half later. A lot of larger labels have started implementing deals where they receive a percentage of the money you make from merch sales and other things on tour. Not sure how I feel about that, but I definitely understand the need to bring in money. I do believe that digital and vinyl are going to be leading the way in the very near future. CDs really only have maybe 10 years left. As far as music is concerned, it seems like people just want to hear honest music.

Any other things to add?

My band just put out a new record a little over a month ago: http://www.thewonderyearsband.com
I also have a solo project with everything online for free: http://scheduleofnoplan.bandcamp.com

If you sell shirts that say “Let’s F@#*” or “I <3 Dirty Boys" to young girls on Warped tour, I don't like you. Also, backing tracks and bass drops are for the weak.

Is guitar your primary instrument?

Not in the sense that it was my first, but in the sense that it is my most used, yes. I played Clarinet, Trumpet, Trombone, and Bass Guitar, (in order of appearance) before I played guitar. I do most of my writing on guitar now… with keys as a close second.

How long have you been playing guitar?

Let’s see, I was 16 then and I’m 39 now… that’s a million years. Way to long to have the limited chops that I do.

Did you take any lessons growing up? (guitar or other)

Pretty much every other instrument besides guitar, I had lessons for. Guitar, for me, was and has been a tool for writing music. If someone asked me, “Chris are you a guitarist?” I feel like to answer “Yes” I would have to throw in a bunch of qualifiers and excuses. My chops are just not that good. Certainly not for having played the thing for 23 years. I’m a song writer and guitar is my favorite tool for writing. By the time I picked up guitar, I had played a few different instruments and it became a clarifier. Chording instruments do that, because all of the sudden you can see the relationship of the notes in a scale to each other. It kind gives music a geometrical form. That was when theory began to make sense for me.

What impact did that have on you as a musician?

Once I had a grasp of theory it made writing songs that much easier. It was the old you have to know the rules before you can break them thing.

Do you still practice instruments, beyond when you’re writing for your bands?

Unfortunately, no. I keep my plate pretty full with other projects, and work, and family. When I’m on the road, that is primarily when I have the time to play around with instruments and experiment. I wish I could tell you that I have a great discipline to go over scales and chops, but I don’t. When I do that, it just makes me realize that I should have applied myself to it more when I was starting off.

Do you still attempt to push forward by learning new instruments or applications?

All the time. I can’t see an in instrument and not want to play it. That’s also one of the revelations that comes with theory… you can figure out any instrument pretty easily. Half of them are various forms of piano, and the other half are various forms of guitar (to oversimplify)… Then there’s the third half I guess, the wind instruments… and the fourth half… percussion… so yeah, not halves. Catergories.

Do you have have a method for songwriting? How does it usually happen?

I always bring a skeleton, if not a completely written song. Normally if I bring the central 2 or 3 parts to a song, we will complete it in a collaborative way, with everyone writing their accompaniment to the central idea. There have been a handful of songs that has started as jam sessions , and developed into songs, but that is pretty rare for us. On Middle States, our most recent release, we have a song, Three Rivers, which is 100% improvised. I had heard of bands recording 30 minutes of improvisation, and then editing it down to 7 minutes or whatever, and I wanted to give that technique a try. We got 14 minutes out of it, and though there’s some slop to it, I think it came out really well. We’ll definitely be employing that technique some more.

What is your guitar rig these days?

I’m playing through a 5150, which is definitely not my favorite amplifier, but I have a lot of respect for it. I’ve gone through 2 Fender Twin amps, in the last 6 years. The Peavy has been in the band, and on the road with us for about 12 years, and has held up great. It’s very loud, and I can dial up the tone that I want. If I had my pick of amps, I would get a vintage point to point wired Fender Twin. For effects, I has an EH Memory Man, a Line 6 DL4 Delay, a DD5 Delay, a Full Tech Dual Distortion, A Boss Tremolo, and an EQ pedal, which I use mainly as a boost. My guitar is one that I built. It’s basically a Jazzmaster with Gibson Classic 57 pickups.

Do you You build some pretty awesome custom guitars.
How much focus do you have on gear?

To be honest, guitar building aside, I have a very pragmatic view on guitar gear. If I can dial up a tone I like, I don’t think about it any more than that. I don’t worry too much about brands or anything like that. I get much more excited about pro audio and recording gear.

Does gear impact your songwriting / performing?

Only in as much as I have to be comfortable with my guitar sound to sing with any kind of confidence. As for song writing, absolutely it does. New gear will always bring about new ideas. Different attributes want to be played in different ways.

How did you get into building guitars?

It came with the realization that I have the tools and resources to build whatever I want. That realization came from building my son’s crib when he was born. My wife likes modern furniture, and had a crib picked out that she liked. I saw a picture of it and said, I can build that. I bought some tools and built it. After that I had an appetite to build more stuff, and a guitar seemed sensible to me. I wasn’t entirely happy with my Jaguar, it was a little too bright, so I wanted to build a cross between a Jaguar/Jazzmaster and a Les Paul. After that, people enquired about it and I’ve built about 5 more.

Any advice for someone wanting to start their own project instrument?

Practice shaping on cheap wood. I shaped 3 guitars in fir before I attempted to build my guitar. Read a lot a bout it. There’s some great books and lots of articles online that can guide you through building a guitar. Also, get used to using a router. That’s going to be your main tool.

A pair of sweet Crisci Custom Guitars.

You’ve got a pretty solid recording setup now. How’d you get into recording bands?
Do you have an education in audio/acoustics?

I’ve been recording almost as long as I have been playing guitar. It’s something I had interest in from the very beginning, and over the years, I’ve been fortunate to learn from great engineers and producers. I just kind of picked it up as part of the process of being in a band.

What are you running in the studio?

My home set up is pretty modest, and is comprised of a Pro Tools and some decent mics, but I also use stuff from work. (I work at a large venue in Kansas City) We have a plethora of awesome mics, a couple LA4A compressors, a couple distressors, various other comps and outboard gear, great mics, U87’s, C414’s, KM184’s, MD421’s. We probably have 70 or so mics to pick from, and it’s very rarely that they are not available for the techs to use on their home projects. We also have access to a Midas board with Firewire outs on each channel, which can function as a Pro Tools interface as soon as we get 9. And finally, at the moment, we’re borrowing a 16 track 1” tape machine.

Any advice for students of the instrument on being in a long-term band?

It takes a lot of sacrifice, and there’s no guarantee that there will be any kind of payoff. I have plenty of friends that are in great bands, that no one has heard of, and probably won’t. We made a name for ourselves at the beginning by literally living in a van for 9 months. Touring is definitely one of the things that does still help, but I have this feeling that the quickest way to get big these days is to pay a ton of money to PR firms and create hype through blogs. A well connected manager can do wonders for a band. That said, I have always thought that music should be about music. If you write really great songs, and put yourself out there, there’s a good chance someone with money will want to invest in you.

What are your thoughts on the state of the music industry, and what the future holds?

It feels like it’s collapsing, but there’s tons of opportunity to use in new media outlets. There are bands out there using them to great advantage. There are some really great services out there for bands to help bring in revenue. If you take advantage of them, and sacrifice on the road for a couple of years, you might be able to make music work for you… you have to have songs first though, which is what I prefer to focus on.

The Appleseed Cast released Middle States on Graveface in 2011.

So, to give a better understanding of what that job entails, I asked the tech for The Get Up Kids, and The Hold Steady for a view into that world.

What is your ‘job title’?

with the band i am working for now, The Get Up Kids, my titles are stage manager, guitar tech, backline tech.

What bands have you worked for / with over the years?

i have worked directly for Polecat Boogie Revival, The Flaming Lips, Drive-By Truckers, Booker T, The Hold Steady and The Get Up Kids.

before i went to working on the road i worked for promoters and venues for a few years and worked with many, many bands doing that during their shows that i was working. working like that on local shows you are generally there for the grunt work. pushing cases, carrying/moving heavy stuff, etc. you also get to learn plenty of other things while being a local hand so it’s not like it is just pure shit work.

What duties do you tend to have while on the road? iI understand that this may be a LOT of things.

what duties don’t i have? haha. i’ve done many different things, it’s all just what the band hires me to do for them. the thing to remember is that there are plenty of things to do that may not be “your job title” that you still end up doing. over the course of my “career’ i have held the titles of tour manager, asst. tour manager, stage manager, backline tech, guitar tech, animal wrangler, merch guy, lighting guy and probably a few others i may be forgetting.

during the course of my day i have to coordinate loading equipment into the venue, set up equipment, get the guitars ready, make sure the stage is ready and cleaned up for the band to sound check, get with opening bands and go over set times and what i need them to do after their set, handle guitar changes and just basically watch the stage for mics slipping/falling and any other problem that can occur during a set, packing the equipment up after the set and then getting the trailer loaded up afterwards. there is plenty of other stuff that happens but thats a basic overview.

How did you get into teching/touring as a career?

i used to be in a band and loved touring. after i quit doing that i started working local shows in the Lawrence/Kansas City area and learned more and more. at some point i ended realizing that i just wanted to go on the road working for touring bands. some friends, Polecat Boogie Revival, were going to do a tour and needed someone to help them on it so i used my vacation time from work to do that. i was hooked! i started telling people i knew in the biz that i was looking to start going out full time and at some point people started actually believing me. my old drummer/roommate was playing with The Flaming Lips and he dropped my name with them when a position was going to be opening up and eventually i got hired by them and their traveling circus of strange. i started with them in 2005 and the rest is history i guess.

What instruments do you play?

i play bass. i could say i play theremin but i suspect other people would say i just like to make noise with it.

How does that help you with your job?

i suppose it helps out just simply knowing how to set up amps and troubleshoot any problems i may be having with them on a particular day.

How has the ’state of the industry’ effected your job?

the music biz is changing in every facet. in my branch of it, the touring budgets have been getting smaller. i have been noticing that less crew are being hired and when they do they are doing multiple jobs on the tour. i am among them. i am not bitching, i don’t mind working, i am just saying that it is happening all over from the top acts down. everybody is trying to make their dollar count. people like to say that entertainment is recession-proof but i am starting to see signs saying otherwise. people just don’t have as much money to spend to go see a band with a $20 ticket like they did a few years ago.

There are a lot of kids who dream of being out on the road. what recommendations do you have for them in terms of the reality of the job?

the reality of the job, first and foremost, is that it’s a job. remember that always. i have been fortunate that with every band i have worked for i already knew either the band, crew members or someone on the bus before i got on it. that’s awesome but they aren’t just bringing people out to hang out and pay them, the bring me out to work.

if you are fortunate enough to get hired by an act that tours a lot be prepared to miss lots of things at home- holidays, birthdays, weddings, funerals, etc. if you cannot handle missing those things don’t plan on being on the road long. same thing goes for personal relationships, pets and plenty of other things.

if you have drug or drinking problems you may not be long for this kind of work.
the myth of touring being a non-stop party are just that- a myth. we wait around for hours bored out of our minds waiting to do a few hours of work, do a show and then tear it all down to do the same thing the next day.

What can young students do to prepare themselves for gigging and/or touring?

i would suggest trying to get work at local venues. it is often shit work as you are mostly doing just the heavy lifting and sweat work but the thing is if you pay attention you will learn plenty. it is like a paid education of sorts. you learn terminology and see many different ways of doing things. you learn what the difference between a 4×12 cabinet and an AC-30 is. you learn where upstage, downstage, stage left and stage right are. there is so much to learn and that is a good place to start it. i think the most important thing i learned working local shows was what kind of person i didn’t want to be on the road from watching other road guys.

Any other thoughts?

i am happy and proud to do the job i do. i know that there are plenty of people that would like to be doing my job but i am the one the band offered it to and i appreciate every job i’ve had or been offered. i have been places i had only seen on tv or read about in books and met lots of wonderful people along the way. i wouldn’t trade any of it for anything.

thanks for taking the time to talk to me.

Why did you get into music?

Kind of an odd question huh? I got into music because it’s awesome! I can say things now like “music is the only way I feel I’m truly able to communicate what I’m feeling” but I doubt I would have been able to articulate that when I was five years old, nodding my head quietly to some Bobby McFerrin.

What was your first instrument?

Guitar

What other instruments can you play?

I can play drums, but I’m not that good… yet.

Do you have an education on that instrument?

Not really. I was a music major for about two weeks in college until I realized that it was going to ruin music for me and quit.

Did you take any type of lessons growing up?

I took group lessons when I was 10, then solo lessons for a few months after that. In high school I took lessons for the better part of a year and learned all my pentatonic and diatonic scales and what not–which actually helped a lot.

What impact did that have you on you?

After that second set of lessons I definitely got a lot more “proper” in that I had a clue what I was doing from then on. From that point forth it was a lot easier for me to see patterns emerge and build on them, so I progressed exponentially afterword.

Do you know / use music theory when writing songs?

Not really, I basically just write what sounds good to me, I gave up trying to be all music theory tech a while ago.

Do you still practice things, other than the music your write?

Don’t really practice other things. Every once and a while if I hear a really bad ass riff or chord progression or something I’ll sit down and learn it but those times are few and far between.

Do you still attempt to push forward musically, by learning new instruments, songs, or applications?

The main way that I progress now is by forcing myself to learn crazy riffs that I write. Learning the little bit of drums that I know now has definitely helped me understand how to make drum parts, so I would also label that as progressing musically.

Do you have a method for songwriting? How does it usually happen?

80% of the time I come up with a guitar part first and create an atmosphere around it, but every once and a while I’ll come up with a cool sounding drum part at first. There are also the times where I make a guitar part that ends up sounding lame but then use the drum parts I made and make something cool. Those are cool and surprising.

How much focus do you have on gear? Do you feel that gear has an impact on your songwriting or performing?

Gear not so much, I mean, everyone should have a pretty good guitar if they can–no Mexican Strat knockoff is ever going to sound as good as a nice higher-end guitar. But beyond that it’s mostly just how you use it. A lot of people focus a whole hell of a lot of energy on their gear–and that’s cool I suppose–but does it really help their tone or whatever as much as they think it does? Look at Stevie Ray Vaughan–dude played with an old beat up Strat through a Fender amp and just DESTROYED… because he felt the crap out of it and played balls-to-the-wall every time.

How do you feel technology has impacted music over the last few years?

Well I mean without the advances in technology you wouldn’t give a shit about me or any of these guys who are some level of “internet famous”. I think technology is going to be the great equalizer when it comes to music. The lines are being blurred as to what can be done in a studio and what can be done in someone’s bedroom. Not to mention the whole p2p thing. Kinda sucks if you’re a record label but who gives a shit.

What applications do you use when writing?

Logic Express with mostly stock plugins like EQ, reverb, and various delays.

What kind of gear do you have in your studio?

Vox Tonelab, that green Line 6 delay box, Boss loop station, Boss Super Octave pedal. I use other stuff occasionally but I use the things I mentioned every day.

You’ve had great viral success so far. I feel like I see one new Facebook status each month telling to check out ‘Cloudkicker’. What’s the next step for the project?

Next step: New full length!

What have you been listening to?

Sufjan Stevens, Tool, Explosions in the Sky, Rage Against the Machine, The Books, Jimmy Eat World, Four Tet, etc. (whatever comes on shuffle).

Unlike other musicians who seem to ride one or two bands to rock stardom, you worked your way up by jumping from band to band. Can you list all of the bands you’ve been in?

Yikes.

Glazed Baby, Unsane, Season To Risk, Shiner, Reggie and the Full Effect, Fire of 1666, From Autumn To Ashes, Every Time I Die, & The Damned Things. I’m sure I’m forgetting one or two…

I know you’ve switched between guitar and bass a lot over the last few years, which do you consider to be your primary instrument?

Until ETID, I considered guitar to be my primary instrument.

What was your first instrument?

I tried drums initially, but after breaking all of my stuff, I got a guitar.

What other instruments can you play?

I tend to stick with bass & guitar.  I can make a noise or two with a bunch of other instruments, but I’d never claim to play them.

Did you take any type of lessons growing up?

I did. Sadly, the guy I took lessons from tended to spend our entire session soloing. It was rather discouraging.

What impact did that have on you?

I don’t really know a ton of theory, but my disappointment with my teacher made me really develop my ear.

Do you know / use music theory when writing songs?

I do more so for coming up with new tunings.

Do you still practice things, other than the music your write?

I learn most of the records I listen to.  You never know who’s gonna call…

Do you still attempt to push forward musically, by learning new instruments, songs, or applications?

Constantly. Be it learning other band’s songs, messing around with piano, or learning how to use recording applications, I’m always doing something music related. I also try to play with people other than my bandmates. I think this is key for looking at things a bit differently.

Do you have a method for songwriting?

I generally start with a beat or rhythm and then build on that.

You are a notorious gear nerd. How much focus do you have on gear? Are they just tools, or do they cross over into inspiration?

I am indeed obsessed with gear. All of the bells and whistles tend to really matter to the musician, not the listener. A good song is a good song. 95% of the audience could care less what year your Les Paul is.

Do you feel that gear has an impact on your songwriting or performing?

I think it has less of an impact on my writing. If my gear makes it through a show, I’m happy.

Any favorite pieces of gear lately?

My current setup is my favorite. Orange AD200’s, Aguilar cabinets, a Fulltone OCD, & Sandberg California P basses.

Lastly, you’re now in a band with Scott Ian from Anthrax. seriously, how sick is that?

It’s insane. The first time I walked into practice, he was playing his Jackson Soloist with “NOT” inlaid on the fretboard. I freaked inside. I bought his tapes when I was in middle school. Who’d a thunk it?