Ben Kweller has been melting hearts with his soft-spoken, sometimes-rockin', youthful folk-rock since his underground debut hit record Sha Sha was released back in the early 2000's.
Flash forwards to 2015 - he's steadily worked his way into the mainstream, caught the attention of outlets like The New York Times and NPR.
He's toured a hell of a lot, and now has two kids. Kweller says he's enjoying the slower pace of life he's eased into in recent years.
"I'm just happy to be home in Austin, relaxing, off the road, writing new songs," he says.
His yearly excursions to Marfa have become something of a ritual - less of a "gig" and more of a tradition. And he's pretty into being a dad, too.
"I love fatherhood," he says. "I think it's one of the greatest things to have a child. It has been for me."
Kweller played us one his catchier recent songs (really, we can't get it out of our heads) - "Come Full Circle" - which he started writing in Marfa a few years back.
We tried to weasel an extra song out of him, but he said he had to get his new tour van checked out by Marfa mechanic "Bird" Parrott - who's gotten the band out of a pickle before.
"He saved our tour bus years ago," he said. "Our tour bus broke down, and he put that thing back together with some chicken wire and we got ourselves back to Austin."
Ben Kweller in Marfa - "Brought To You By Bird."
