Neko Case

“I know that I can sing really loud. It's like having that really big Evinrude engine on the back of your fishing boat. But I've been trying to be more dynamic with my voice, and not just singing on 10 all of the time out of terror.”

“I tried to have more than one emotion on the record.”

“I think I've kind of been mistaken for somebody who's trying to be a spokesperson for animal rights, and the fact is I'm not qualified to be a spokesperson. I am passionate about it, but I'm not trying to make other people do what I do.”

“I should have been an abortion. The only reason I wasn't was that my father was a Christian.”

“All I want to do is sing on other people's records.”

“I grew up with lots of animals and I related more to them than I did to people. I feel a lot of empathy for them.”

“The Bible tries to make humans not animals the whole time. I think it's a bit of a mistake.”

“I really wanted to find a piano for the farm house. There were so many free pianos on Craigslist, I thought, 'Let's get as many free pianos as we can and stick them all in the barn.' I got eight in a short period of time, only six of which were tunable, but it's still quite funny.”

“Country music is completely punk-rock. It's the original punk-rock.”

“I would be a huge hypocrite if I didn't tell you that at one time in my life I thought the way that you made music was you got on a major label and you got famous.”

“There's just kind of a sweetness about Canadians. Americans are a little more pushy, I mean, in a way that I enjoy - they're basically pushy because of their enthusiasm - we're a lot clumsier than other people.”

“You can't just play the same thing, over and over again.”

“I try not to be overly literal. When I'm writing songs, I write down a lot of words, and then I try to simplify it. I like to give people hints or words that make visual pictures for them.”

“I just want to make stories. They don't have to have a moral or a reason. There might be some mild cautionary notes, but they're not moral. They don't impart any Judeo-Christian ethic of any kind.”

“I didn't want to be the girl who posed in 'Playboy' and then - by the way - made some music.”

“If I could ever be on a Missy Elliott record, I could then die. Missy Elliott, Mary J. Blige - I love hearing them interviewed, I love the way they talk about their art. They're very self-assured, they're funny, they're inviting. I love it.”

“I just really dig feeling subservient to nature. It brings me a peace and calm. Kind of like a Faustian thing, I think.”

“I have this typical Ukrainian face. Even people who know my music don't recognize me most of the time, thank God.”

“I have a real dog-like mentality, in that it's like, 'Where is my next meal coming from? Am I ever gonna eat again? Will I ever write another song again? Will anyone show up for tour?' I think it comes from being really poor as a kid.”

“I don't feel nervous or fearful when I'm on stage.”