Do you have to resist the urge to think about it too much?
I think about writing a lot. You tend to when you’re sitting down and not thinking of anything else. You have to allow the subconscious to spill over and let something come out. I don’t think I’ve intellectually been able to consciously sit down and write something. I know people who say the best thing is to write a song every day. It takes me a year and a half to write 12 songs. These are literally all the songs I have. There are writers I look at and have no idea how they do it. Pedro The Lion—I think [David Bazan] is phenomenal. He’s so focused lyrically. He tells a story in such a poetic way. I have no idea how he can do that. On the other hand, you take someone more subconscious like Bob Dylan. He’s piecing together snippets of absurdity and giving meaning to it.

Do you end up using the fragments? Do you recycle, or are some snippets gone for good?
There’s trimming and recycling. There’s times I get a little ways with a song and hit a dead end, and I realize three months later there are three lines that would fit something else, some other lyrical concept. I don’t really feel like I’m a great storyteller, though.

What is your strong suit?
I try really hard to not say the wrong things. [Pauses] No, that’s not right. I don’t know. Maybe there’s just an arc to how I work. I’ve learned the last couple years what doesn’t work, and I’ve come to understand and respect that it’s not all about great lyrics or clever pieces of music and how you record it. Great music is everything together. If you focus too much on one side, it’s not going to work.

Any regrets?
In most cases, I can look back at our old stuff and say, “That song’s fine.” I don’t hear things I’d do differently other than maybe having sung something better. But I usually know when a song has arrived. But we also spend a lot of time editing each other.

Are you a perfectionist?
There are things I haven’t been confident about. I’m glad I didn’t have time to second guess that. When we made the Christmas record, there were times when we thought we were making a huge mistake. We figured it would just be for fans and tried not to make it a big deal or worry too much about it. But around Christmas, we still listen to it.

Have you taken any flack about licensing the recording to the Gap?
Two people got in my face about it. But you know, we had a child and not much money, and it’s not my song. If it were my song and someone were changing it or leaving out the lyrics ... Like the jeans ad with “Fortunate Son” that leaves out all the protest and just keeps the part about waving the flag.

Pete Townshend told Rolling Stone recently that a song like “Bargain,” which he licensed for a car commercial, is his and not the province of any fan. To what degree are your songs exclusively your own rather than the idea of the listener?
I’ve always been leery of that, having gone through the Gap experience. We got more of a glimpse at the logic of an artist. I’m not quite as quick to say “sell-out.” It’s still a concern, though.

People still tend to pigeonhole Low. What do you do to get away from that?
We did a show as the Misfits playing a bunch of our songs fast and distorted and loud. A lot of the people got it, and a lot just stared. Every once in a while, some slower, quieter band decides to go play all Kiss covers. I know where that temptation is coming from.

As a guitar player, do you ever feel you don’t get a chance simply to floor it and enjoy being a technician?
Yes. I play in the Black-Eyed Snakes, a local band that plays unadulterated, primitive violent, negative rock that lets me be destructive and play screaming guitar.

That sounds healthy.
It kind of is. I’ve done this band a couple of years, so now I’m a little more comfortable letting the hammer down. It’s given me some insight.

Are you a better player?
Don’t get me started about my guitar self-image. I play the thing a lot. I’ve played it every day for the last 15 years. I look at this thing, and sometimes I don’t know what is going on. There are times I’m amazed when I look at it and say, “I can’t play this thing.” I don’t think we’ve ever made a record where I thought I played well or had a guitar sound that I liked.

Did having Tchad mix you help that self-image?
The thing we hoped for and think did happen was that he heard things we didn’t and brought those things forward. He shuffled the cards a little bit.

You’ve worked more than once with Steve Albini, whom one doesn’t associate with creating textures. Did he have a lot of input with your sound?
As opinionated as Steve is, it’s your call. That’s one of the things he’s most opinionated about: whether he should be dabbling at all. Just whatever you do, don’t say to Steve, “Make this sound cool.” But we didn’t really do any overdubbing this time with Tchad, either.