Alison Sudol

I feel like for me my happiest moments are tinged with the awareness that there's sadness on the flipside of the coin.

It's fun to play for the 12- and 13-year-olds. The looks on their faces are amazing. Young kids don't have social anxieties. They'll yell things out and sing loudly.

I love doing free shows because then anyone can come.

I always wanted to be an artist of some sort and I was really shy growing up, so performing didn't really seem like a natural choice, but whenever I got on stage to do something I felt more comfortable than I did in real life.

I love Bright Eyes - I absolutely love him.

I grew up listening to a lot of classic jazz, and stuff like The Beatles, and old Motown stuff, and a lot of classical music. I just loved all of that.

I really listened to a lot of oldies. I didn't really listen to anything that was modern until I was 11 or 12.

If you're gonna steal from somebody, why not Shakespeare?

I mean, I knew that one day I'd do something writing-oriented as soon as I started writing. But when I started singing, I was determined to make those two work together, so I just worked at it until I started making stuff that sounded like music.

I was a very quiet kid who didn't feel normal being outgoing and running around, so all the beauty that was in my life, I found in books. Books that made me think and transported me into a different world.

I have all sorts of weird albums that people have given me lying around the house.

A boy I adored when I was 19 gave me the 'Emigrante' album by Orishas. Definitely not my normal taste, but I still kind of love it.

I love the clean elegance of cream and black.

Whether it's a photograph or a piece of clothing, a leather bag or a film, I tend to gravitate towards simple, beautifully made, quietly lovely things. They make me happy.

There's something about a long, high-waisted skirt and little, buttoned blouse that I really love.

There's a certain amount of pressure that you get from being a popular artist, and I think in the past I put a lot of pressure on myself, too. But I always knew that writing hits wasn't really my strong suit.

I do love to dance, and that's fun, but I will never stop writing my quiet, sensitive songs.

You won't find me out in a club. I'm a bit unruly, in my own way.

I just love the holidays so much.

As a musician, you kinda get used to failure in life, and then when things actually start succeeding, it's a very interesting feeling.