Aaron Bruno quotes:

Coming from heavy music too, it's really hard to have heavy music not sound too butthead-ish or jock-ish, and there's a fine line between Limp Bizkit and Nirvana - there's a fine line there, and it's terrifying.

Never let your fear decide your fate.

I've always found it pretty difficult to write a happy song.

The older I get, the more I realize that you don't have to be around people you don't want to be around, and you don't have to be in a situation you don't want to be in. You have the power to rise up and leave.

I've had the same core group of friends that I've always had. We're surfing, so that definitely keeps you grounded.

I want to surround myself with the people I care about and that has a lot to do with what love is. It's surrounding yourself with the people you do love and trust, and that kind of thing.

Since I was a kid, when I pick up my guitar it's been hard for me to write some sort of bubblegum lyrics. It's not really ever been my route.

My point is I'm kind of an outlier. For whatever reason, the success still blows my mind - that I'm able to talk to people about the music I've written.

Some people are more affected by, I hate to use the word "success," but I don't know what else to say, but some people are more affected by that than others.

I can always be reminded how small I am when I try to surf a wave that's a little bit out of my league, and I just get pummeled. And, when your life flashes before your eyes kind of stuff, deep down under the water where you don't know what's up or down, and that kind of thing, or just Mother Nature reminding you how small you are compared to it. That's kind of the main thing for me.

My drummer is my favorite drummer in the world, and he also happens to be the funniest person you'll meet.

I ran away for a couple years just to prove I've hever been free.

If you're waiting around for something to be handed to you or win the lottery, chances are nothing is ever going to go down, you know, so you got to make it happen on your own.

Videos are tricky because stuff sounds amazing on paper and it seems like it's going to be this mystical experience and you're going to look back and go, "Wow, that was magic." But more times than not, it doesn't end up that way, so I never know what I'm going to get.

I don't know that I can say what exactly love means to me because it would be hard to put that into perspective.

Let's say I'm at a party and I don't like the feeling I'm getting, I'll just leave. Why do I have to be there?

There's a lot of different things, but I think love gives us peace one way or another, and a calming effect on our soul, so I don't know exactly what love is to me, but I know I try my best to surround myself with that. Whenever I can. It's hard sometimes.

You got to head north. It's always about going north, you know?

I've had the same friends I've always had. I mean, I've lost a few over the years.

When I cruise around, I can't help but study people's faces and emotions and wonder why they're feeling the way they are.

The world's pretty trippy. I just like to travel around and see what's out there.

I've been through a lot of ups and downs. I've been on both sides of it all, I guess. So there's not one specific event or thought that I'm dealing with or drawing from necessarily.

I just find that I enjoy the music that feels like there's a journey to the top of this mountain, then you're at the top of the mountain finally with this magical feeling, and you're stoked because you made it, and you're up there, but there's a little bit of sadness to think of all that you lost along the way to get there. I guess I relate and enjoy the path and the struggle very much.

There's a bunch of songs that I call B-sides on the record that you could argue could maybe have some potential commercial success with another artist, but for me, they just felt really whack.

In fact, on a side note, after the success of the first record, I got asked to write for some pop artists, as everybody does, and I did a couple songs for some of these massive stars and the review that I got back was, "This artist likes the song but it's too POP-y for them." I was like, "What do you mean, I thought I was writing for a pop star."

You don't put out music unless you have a sense that people will maybe like what you're doing or you're standing for something artistically.

I'm my own worst critic and harshest critic and I just want to put honest music out there.

My point is, I don't see the need to eat animals. I love animals; besides the horrible stuff that's put in meat, I actually love cuddling with animals and petting them and stuff.

I haven't touched meat or anything like that in over six years. You know what's pretty trippy, once I stopped, I didn't get sick from that point on. I'll get a light cold once in a while, but ever since that, I've just been completely on my toes and it helps for surfing too, to stay light on your toes and be healthy.

I find that a lot of times when family members get bronchitis or the flu or something like that, I'll kind of skate through and be really lucky and not get that sick.

You start treating your body right and your immune system is better.

I can tell when something's real, or when something's put together. I can just feel it.

I really love music and I want to make it better the best I can.

My first attempt at real music was when I was 13. My first signed band was when I was 21; that failed. I got another deal at 26; that failed, and then I was broke.

I don't think we'll really know what's going on until we enter the next dimension and all that.

Look, one of the things that I know for sure is that none of us truly knows. That's it. It'll hit you later.

I have a lot of questions and I don't have that many answers. So what better place to exercise those thoughts than the lyrics, I guess.

I just find that with music I've always felt a sort of comfort.

I was in a hardcore band that had no melody, no chance of finding any success, and I was just trying to figure out what the hell I was going to do with my life. And that came out and changed my life forever - on an artistic level, and a lyrical level, for sure.

Trying to put music out there in the world is a pretty exciting, yet terrifying, thing and I've just been through the ringer.