I got a publishing deal with BMG, they were supportive, and some money to record demos

I actually think sadness and darkness can be very beautiful and healing.

Lately I've been a workaholic. I'm in the studio all the time and I've helped to produce a couple of artists

My second record was all about big ideas - I was trying to make big statements about the culture, about life. I think in a certain way, I was a 27 year old kid with a guitar

I try to make sure that the Buddhism is more or less implicit in the music rather than explicit

Things come to me pretty regularly. There is never a shortage or a backlog

But I can't really say there is too much modern music that I'm blown away by at this moment

I certainly wouldn't say that my life is a disaster, but there have been moments where I've felt like that

My first two records were more energetic; Phantom Moon is subtle, quiet; so these various reactions are just something I expected

But really important, perhaps most important is the craft; how you make your record, the creation of these sonic worlds you want your listener to hear.

So I started chanting when I was nineteen, which was about twelve years ago, and it really had a huge impact on my outlook, happiness, and general creativity.

Go on your way, use you brain, be innovative, achieve your dreams and don’t turn back, because you left so many envious people behind you !! …

Connection with yourself only comes in moments of silence.

The real war will never get in the books.

I would expect another Scars album before another System album.

The Democrats seem to be basically nicer people, but they have demonstrated time and again that they have the management skills of celery.

Go to where the ducks are. Forget the duck calls. If you go where the ducks are coming, you're going to shoot more ducks.

On the whole, anything that gets you writing and keeps you writing is a good thing. Anything that stops you writing is a bad thing.

Find your horse. Discover the direction the horse is going. Ride the horse in that direction.

I had only two girlfriends. I didn't have many friends because I was staying at home and dreaming - drawing and dreaming.

Sir, there is no settling the point of precedency between a louse and a flea.