I'm not always the most upbeat thing. I have my periods of being pissy or worst. In the grand scheme of things, I guess I am mostly upbeat simply because it suits me best and I get more out of life rather than being an angry old man or Debbie Downer.

As far as influences and heroes, I have quite a few. Alex Lifeson, Steve Howe, Jimi Hendrix, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Steve Hackett, , the list goes on. I just wish I could play at the slightest fraction of their abilities these days.