Q: Where did you grow up?
A: I was born and raised in the Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco. My mom is from Kauai so I spent a lot of time visiting relatives on the islands when I was younger. I left the Haight when I was 18 and have lived in Seattle for the past 10 years.
Q: What is your musical background?
A: I learned basic theory and composition in various choirs when I was a kid. I also took piano lessons for a while, but it didn't stick. I taught myself guitar at 14 and I've been writing my own music and lyrics since then. I studied classical guitar in college and got a B.A. in Music as a Performance Major.
Q: Who are some of the people who have influenced your music?
A: Cobain, Dylan, Hendrix, Lucinda Williams, Neil Young, Janis Joplin, Steve Earle, Nick Drake & John Lennon. I love almost everything that's happened on the Seattle scene from the 90's to right now. There are so many great bands up here. I grew up listening to Van Halen, Aerosmith, Zeppelin, the Stones and all of the other usual suspects. In high school my favorite bands were Def Leppard, The Police, The Cars, and Prince.
Q: What CD is in your CD player right now?
A: Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter, Oh my Girl. She's in Seattle too. Her music is absolutely haunting and beautiful.
Q: What is your writing background?
A: I got my B.A. in English at the same time I was studying music. I had started writing in High School, but it wasn't until I studied under renowned poet Ed Kleinschmidt that I began to take my writing seriously. Poetry was my first passion, but I soon turned to journalism in the hopes of actually making some money from writing. Journalism didn't play out so I decided to write a book. My first novel The Prodigal Ones was published in 2001.
Q: Who are your writing influences?
A: Twain, Vonnegut, Kerouac, Hunter S., and the likes for fiction. Langston Hughes, Wislawa Symborska, Sherman Alexie, Mary Oliver, Dylan Thomas, Cummings, Gwen Brooks, & Bukowski for poetry.
Q: Are you reading anything right now?
A: Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Love in the Time of Cholera.
Q: What did you do before your music career?
A: I worked as the assistant preparator in a museum for four years & also worked about year as a free-lance journalist. This was between my acrimonious sojourns in corporate America. I got a degree in Culinary Arts to escape my job at the bank and have worked in kitchens ever since. It's a different kind of crazy. I'm writing a book on it.
Q: What other projects are you working on?
A: My focus right now is promoting Gram of Love with The Revolvers, my new band. I have a couple more novels I'm working on, but they’re pretty much on the back burner for the time being. I'm writing songs for my next record and will keep my focus on music in the upcoming year.
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