That 'Rollercoaster' album cover was very prophetic in its own way. My career has been a rollercoaster of highs and lows.
Every artist has different priorities. Some artists I know don't make as much music as they used to, because social media has taken over their lives. I work at what I feel is a very normal pace, and things keep clicking. It's rewarding.
Even on tour, I spend two hours a night singing songs and the rest of the time staring at the back of people's heads on airplanes, some fat guy coughing on me.
A gimmick would be something you'd do to attract attention or to bring fame and fortune.
I'm homesick everywhere I go, but England has a negative effect on my spirit to a profound degree. That trip from Heathrow into London is worse than the flight over there. It's just so grey, and I'm not a pub person, and the traffic in London gives me a heart attack. It's not a comforting place, on any level, to me.
My most successful album happened back in the mid-'90s, pre-Internet times, with 'Songs For A Blue Guitar.' We were supported by Island Records; we toured a lot. Songs were licensed to TV commercials and movies.
I don't have anything to prove as a writer anymore. I write about Panera Bread or Red Lobster or Satan or Richard Ramirez or whatever comes to mind. I just write.
A band requires so much rehearsal and travel logistics. I didn't mind it when I was younger, but there's not much motivation for me to do it now.
'NME' and 'Melody Maker' were saying I was the next Lou Reed or Van Morrison. So, everyone has their own version as to when the height of my career was.
When someone important to you, someone that's played a big role in your life, when they're gone... When you write about them or pay tribute to them, you want to do it in a way that's thoughtful.
When I was young, a gatefold album by 'Pink Floyd' or 'Led Zeppelin' was something to get excited about, something you longed for.
Most Americans I play for are clueless as to who Richard Ramirez was, so you can imagine how audiences in Portugal react. I'm not saying they don't enjoy the music; I'm just saying they're a little lost on some references.
When you're a touring musician, you're always turning over new rocks, and there's always a certain level of tension in your life. The music business, and the travel that comes with it, is stressful, challenging, redundant, exhausting, exciting, and often very depressing.
Red House Painters were doing cover songs before our first record deal. I remember live shows where we did an AC/DC song; I think we did 'Send In The Clowns' by Judy Collins. We did 'The Star Spangled Banner,' which came out on our third record.
If you're 25, I could see how you could be tricked into thinking 'Benji' is my most successful record, but I've been doing this long before online magazines existed.
'Writer's block' sounds so dramatic and worrisome, and I don't worry about it. I know deep down that I'm a writer, and it's just a matter of time until it comes back, and when it does, it'll be good like it's always been.
