What do you like to do on your days off from touring?
Well I just got back from a pretty glorious hike through the woods.  Other than that, I just like to be calm.  But that was pretty amazing.

Where are your favorite cities to stop at on tour?
There are a lot.  My favorite is San Francisco I think. 

I just saw you performing with Kara DioGuardi on "Lopez Tonight" the other night.  What was your experience like working with her?
It was incredible.  I wanted to write with her really bad – she was up there at the top of my list of people.  It was really cool.  When it came about, I don’t think either of us really knew it was going to happen.  I thought we were meeting about writing but she thought we were meeting about Warner Brothers because she’s in A&R there and it just so happened that she signed me to the label and we got to write.  We were both confused but we both got what we wanted which is kind of awesome.

How do songwriting partnerships come up?
Most of them get set up for me by my manager and whoever else’s manager but sometimes it’s just through meeting people on the road or around town.  It’s kind of like a family.   I consider a lot of musicians my family – kind of like gypsies – we’re always moving around and we don’t really have homes so we kind of find home in each other.  A lot of times that turns into a really beautiful song and it’s kind of an accident…I really like that.

How do you capture the voices of the singers you write songs for?
I think it’s just about making sure that what you’re writing about connects with them.  It’s more important for the person singing the song to be able to relate to it.  Beyond that, just finding a melody that represents them as well.  It’s just like trying to make the song feel like them, the more they can feel it the better.

Do you prefer co-writing or writing alone?
Co-writing by far.  I think it’s a lot better.  Anybody can write by themselves but you’re not going to get the same type of thing when you write with somebody else.

What inspired the music on your upcoming record?
Well, being alive is the main thing and a lot of the ups and downs of that.  The songs are always real and they’re always just completely and immediately inspired for the most part.  So I guess just being alive and traveling constantly...seeing the unseen parts of the world.  All of those things have to do with it.

What's the title of the new record and what does it mean?
Yeah, it’s called “The Lovesick.”  I like the double meaning of it, and there may be more than two – but I see it more as the positive side like sick with love, like full of and infected with a virus of love or something, instead of the dark connotation of it.  I also don’t mind that though because there’s a lot of darkness and a lot of light.  It’s kind of like I’ve got a disease but it’s not a harmful disease, it’s just love which is very beautiful and powerful.

What songs are you particularly excited to release?
Oh wow! Well, most of them.  But I guess just speaking about people who are seen on the album with me, there are two songs I’m really excited about. There’s a song I do with Colbie and there’s another song I do with Kara DioGuardi.  I was fortunate enough to have them on the album and that’s really exciting.

How have you changed since you recorded The Magnificent Adventures of Heartache and Other Frightening Tales?
Well I feel like half of me is the same and the other half of me is a completely different person now.  A lot of things happen in the span of three years.  It’s really impossible to even understand.  I don’t think I can realize how much I’ve changed yet because the last few years have been such a blur.  I’m sure someday I’ll realize what happened but I can’t yet.

What three albums should every music lover own?
Oh man, wow! That’s a really hard question.  I’d have to make one of them a Bob Dylan album, I just don’t know which one to choose. I'll say:

The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan,

Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd… I think everyone should hear that record no matter what.

What must be noted right now is that everytime I answer this question it’ll probably come out differently because it’s almost impossible to choose three because there are so many incredible albums. 

And also Blue by Joni Mitchell.

What kinds of art do you like to do besides music?
Well I spent all day taking pictures today.  I love that.  Photography is one of the things that I’ve been doing even longer than music.  There’s something magical about it.  I also paint and draw a lot.  Writing is another one, not music writing, but just writing.

What are your musical goals?
My goal is just to be able to keep putting out records and touring, that's really as simple as it is.  I guess that’s a pretty profound thing but I don’t have any specific goals.

What books and movies are you into right now?
I’m always reading Jack Kerouac.  I’ve got a huge stack of his books in the van right now.  I’m reading one right now called Visions of Cody which is the extended and insane but brilliant version of On The Road.  I’m pretty much obsessed with his writing.

One of my favorite movies is Amelie, it’s a French movie, you should definitely go see it.  I also always love The Notebook because I’m madly in love with Rachel McAdams so it doesn’t ever hurt to watch that one.

Check out Jason's MySpace page for more information about his background, complete works and upcoming record!

In the mean time, check out this amazing video of Jason performing his song "Wishing Weed" with Colbie Caillat:

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