That’s why listening back to records you’ve made earlier in your life can be a strange and fascinating thing to do. Sometimes they feel good, and sometimes you discover that you can no longer even relate to the state of mind that created those sounds.

Did the inspirations for the album drive you guys to try new recording techniques, instruments, styles, etc.?  Yeah, I think we were all pretty open-minded when it came to experimenting with different things on this record. The more music you digest, the more interesting moods and maneuvers you hear that leave a mark on you. That said, I think a lot of it also comes from the people in your life, the things you’re thinking about on a daily basis.

You have a significantly different sound live (which I highly recommend to any listener). It’s much more layered and haunting. Do you feel playing live gives you a certain creative freedom?
We love playing shows, and I think it can be a pretty good time to really hear the songs and find new ways to interact with each other. My favorite musicians seem to be able to make their instruments into sonic extensions of their personalities and the way they hang out. That’s when things start becoming greater than the sum of their parts, you know?

Indeed. Now I know you’re currently on tour, but do you have anything planned for the near future? Special appearances, side projects, a dramatic band break-up and reunion tour, etc?
We’re heading across the pond for the first time in February, to play shows in London and Paris. Pretty thrilled about that. Other than that, I know that Jeff and I would like to take 2012 to become true taco connoisseurs.

In the end, what do you hope the listener walks away with after a sitting through Coco Beware or one of your live shows?
Maybe kind of like that feeling you have as the lights go down before a horror movie — or when, as a kid, you wake up in the backseat of a car at night to realize you have no idea where you are, but feel excited in a kind of scared way.