Brett Dennen said his desert island food of choice is sushi. After all, raw fish is already on the menu. This clever California folkie, who releases his third album "Hope for the Hopeless" on Oct. 21, is a man of sound judgment. Supports Barack Obama? Check. Keeps his childhood friends? Check. Huge Ween fan? Obviously.
AVE: What was it like the first time you heard one of your songs on a television show like "Grey's Anatomy" or "Scrubs"?
BD: It was a little shocking. You write a song and the song is very personal to you - it's kind of like your baby. You always have a period when you write a song where you don't really want to show anybody because it's still a little raw or vulnerable. And then you get confident with it, and you share it. But then when you hear it on a TV show, it's like the song went out to the world, and it came back to you in a different form, like it grew up or something … I heard my song on "Grey's Anatomy," and it took on a completely different meaning than when I originally wrote it. So it's a little interesting. It's almost like the song doesn't belong to you anymore.
AVE: What's it been like being a musician during a major presidential campaign?
BD: It's been interesting because I've been talking to the people I work with. I'm not afraid to say that I'm pro-Obama, and I'm actually very proud of that. And I wish I could be doing a lot more. My girlfriend earlier today was in the headquarters in Santa Monica, and she was calling people in Nevada. I sort of wish I could be doing that. But it's always a little bit of a struggle talking to the people you work with. … People's votes are people's votes.
Ave: How did the video shoot for "Make You Crazy" with Mandy Moore go?
BD: It was really fun. It was interesting because when we were first starting filming, she wasn't there. She had a later call than I did. So we shot a lot of my scenes earlier. It was my first real on-screen acting. So I was sort of learning as I go, and the director was helping me, and he was giving me tips on how to be subtle and how not to be too subtle. And I thought I was doing pretty good, but then Mandy Moore came, and she's really good. I guess she's been acting for a long time. But just in a very subtle way, she was able to get a lot of points across. … It's a music video. She couldn't say anything; it's all faces. I got very inspired watching her work. It made me want to be an actor.
