I was fortunate enough to sit down with Ben Kweller before his show at the House of Blues in Anaheim and ask him a couple of questions. Here's how the sit down session went.

Who and/or what has inspired you to write the way you did in "on My Way," and how does that differ from "Sha Sha?" Well, you know, I'm always like pretty autobiographical, and about my life, and about people that I meet. I'm always inspired by people and places. You, know, the songs on "Sha Sha," were written in different places, half were written in Texas and half were written in New York. It's all about change, and leaving a small town for a big city. It's kind of weird with the video camera haha ... But um, basically, fuck I don't know what to say ... Like my new album, "On My Way," is a lot different from "Sha Sha," 'cause all the songs were written in New York, and really inspired by this crazy city you know, and I think that I was a lot more focused lyrically. And two big events happened last year for me, I married my long time girlfriend Liz, of five years, and my grandfather passed away, and that was sort of the first time that I was hit with death, you know really close to me. And so, I think the songs that came out, were just really about friends and family, and just sort of keeping that as close to me as possible. You know, and just, it's a lot more sentimental this album, were "Sha Sha's" a lot more of the, "SHA SHA, WHAT THE FUCK," being all crazy ...
Touring can be pretty hectic, so on days when you're tired, what motivates you to go out there and give it all your best? Just, well um I'm always out for getting on stage and performing you know I don't know something. There are definitely nights when you're just like tired, or the show's late or you know. But the second you walk on stage, or at least for me um, I just get that excitement back. It's always there, it's been there since I was a kid you know and got my first guitar, or danced around the living room you know listening to Bob Dylan and shit ... just, I hope it never goes away.
Do you have any favorite opening bands, and also, bands that you've opened for? Um, well, favorite opening bands The Unicorns are definitely one of them, The Moldy Peaches, Adam green, um, who else?. Umm, my favorite, well actually, you know like I love touring with The Strokes so much. Just watching them every night is so inspiring um, and lets see ... oh my god, I don't know. There's tons you know like, I would say probably just The Moldy Peaches, I think that touring with Adam is always my favorite.
While we're on the subject of Adam, I saw this interview with him and he mention that you guys are probably going to tour Germany together. Yeah, he's huge in Germany. Like, I saw him a few weeks ago back home and he played me his new record, and he was like, "Man I'm huge in Germany," and he was like, "I'm on the cover of Rolling Stone." Hah, in Germany, they love Adam Green ... which is awesome. I'd love to go open for him over there.
So, are there any possibilities that you guys might tour the states together? Well, we've toured the US together twice you know, so um I'm sure we'll play again you know. I would say another person that I love touring with is Evan Dando, cause he really took me under his wing when I first moved to New York and had me open up for him. We were just touring around the East coast, in my gray Volvo, and two guitars in the back trunk, and you know just, roam around ... so all my first fans were Lemonheads fans, you know and ... that was really, good memories.
How do you get along with the other band members? Amazingly, you know. Me and John grew up together, um he's the first drummer I've ever played with. We met when I was 12 and he was 14. So, yeah, um Josh is just a great friend and Jason but, you know. Jason, we just met Jason about six months ago ... so.
If you were stranded on a desert island, who would you eat first? Which person?.. Umm, I bet Jason would taste the sweetest you know.
What do you like to do with your free time in Brooklyn? I just, I usually, these days whenever I'm home I usually just stay home and play with my cats, you know, or have friends over, or we have diner parties and play Scrabble, or Boggle, or Pictionary you know, just hang out with friends. And like the thing about New York is, there's always something going on, there's always a show or something, so. But lately I've just been staying in, having people over or going to friend houses.
While on the road, do you tend to listen to anything specific? Umm you know, I just listen to tons of different stuff. I listen to a lot of, you know a lot of kids give me CD's of their bands and so I always listen to those and so I'm always looking for young bands that don't, you know trying to get stuff going to take on the road. But lately I've been in a real Credence phase. Listen to tons of Creedence Clearwater Revival, love it.
What are some pet peeves you have? Well, um, I do, I mean, I ugh, you know. George Bush really pisses me off, and I hate you know, I hate big companies and the music industry's a big pet peeve of mine. The way it's run and the people that run it high up you know. In past interview I've read, you've mentioned that you're upset at bush and his foreign policies. Would you ever consider doing what other musicians have done such as, Death Cab for Cutie, Bruce Springsteen, and Conor Oberst and join an organization that's determined to get more young people involved in politics? Like "We Are the World" for voting or something ... umm, well, I haven't thought about really getting, you know taking political action through my music, you know cause I don't really want to force anything down anybody's throats. But, I would love for, people that are, young people to get out there and learn about the different parties, and the different people running, and just make a decision on what they believe in, and just get out there and vote you know. I've never voted in my life, but I'm going to definitely vote this time, you know. So, it's ... I'm excited for it cause we need a change, cause I never felt before, I never felt like it would even matter you know, so I was like, ahh, why vote, my voice won't get heard anyway. So I was all pessimistic about it, you know.
And the one you skipped was the biggest one. Yeah, I know! Exactly, right. Yeah I know. Um but see, I was going to vote for Bill Bradley, well I would of voted for Al Gore after Bill Bradley was gone. I was really digging' on Bill Bradley, yeah, he was cool. Actually, um, I did some like campaigning for his, you know for his whole thing. Like I would, during the primaries went up to New Hampshire and played church parking lots with Bill Bradley like spread the word, you know. But yeah, I mean, hopefully you know if I-I-I hope people do get out there and really learn about, cause so many kids have just been so apathetic to the whole thing, you know I mean I'll admit it too, you know, people in my generation just, we never felt like we really needed to really vote, it just seemed like such an "adult thing" to do, you know what I mean. You know like, and now I just hope that people, but we need to take back out country, and you know. Cause we are the world, we are the children, the one's who make a brighter day, for you and me.
I heard someone interview the other day, and they were talking about the elections. It was outside, it was like a narrow prospective of American elections, they were really interesting and they were saying, "well it's like you're really electing the president of the world." Yeah. You know someone was telling me when we were in Australia, and just a few weeks ago and someone was saying how they think that each country should get one vote, you know for the US president cause really it affects the whole world so much. Which is a cool idea you know ... but these people would never have it...
So, what's the last book you've read? Last book that I've read, umm, the last book that I've read ... I was reading quite a few. um, actually, ugh, this is pitiful but the last book, if you want me to be serious was OS X for Dummies. Haha, I swear to god. I upgraded my laptop, and got OS X, I'm a big Apple freak. So it was a fucken, you know, dummies guide. Before that, um I reread Catcher in the Rye recently, which is always my favorite you know, oh! And The Da Vinci Code yeah, I love that book. I haven't read that book yet ... It's really good. It's a good read man. It's ah, it's so fun. It's so fast paced, I mean each chapter is like two pages, so you're like, I'll read another, I'll read another, and you're just, before you know it. And it's a great mystery and you learn some cool stuff, yeah, I highly recommend it.
All right, so I was asked to ask you what does the Jewish Star of David represent? Star of David, well, if you read The Da Vinci Code you'll find out. Well if you want, I mean, you know but the Star of David really is like um, it's, all right well, apparently, you know like, the triangle, the right side up triangle is a symbol for a phallus basically, you know and so it represent masculine and then an upside down triangle is also considered a chalice, which is like a cup, which represents the feminine, you know. And, basically the Star of David is like the intertwining of the two, so it's sort of like a unity, symbol of unity and fertility I guess, and protection. I'm not, a symbologist or anything ... but uh, that's what I've taken from it.
So, that's all the questions I have ... Right on.
And thanks for your time. Yeah, no problem, thank you.