You know Thomas Ian Nicholas from Party of Five and the American Pie franchise, but on June 1st, Thomas releases a new album, Heroes Are Human, available for pre-order now. With his third album soon to release, it was so much fun to talk to Thomas about all things music since we all know him for his acting…I learned a lot and you will too. Check it out:

When did you decide that you wanted to seriously pursue music as a career?
I’ve been playing music for about 15 years but only started touring about 3 years ago. My last album, ‘Without Warning’ released in 2008, was the first time that I was really happy with how my songs were coming out and that’s when I decided to really put my best foot forward and put more time into it.

What was the first song you learned how to play on guitar and what advice do you have for someone beginning to play the guitar?
Stairway to Heaven…and the first 2 years I started playing guitar I would play for 3 hours a day, everyday. So the main thing that I would say that helps is time and that goes with everything. Anything you want in life, to be successful, you have to spend time making that happen.

Do you still have your first guitar?
Yes I do. The very first guitar that I played actually belonged to my mom. The first guitar that I bought is in pieces but I still own all of the pieces. If I wanted to, I could put it back together. I thought it would be cool to customize the guitar, so I took it all apart and I tried it but it just wasn’t cool. One day I’ll put it back together.

What would you say are your favorite & least favorite aspects of the music scene in LA?
The best part about the music scene in LA is that you can find any kind of music here and you can find companies to help you get your music out there. The worst part about the music scene is that people will come to your show and when you play again they won’t come back because they’re jaded. It’s like, “Are you going to the next show?” and they say, “Well no I saw it, I was at the first show.” In the Mid-West & East, if people like a band, they’ll go out multiple times to support that band. I have fans that I will see at all of my shows in the Mid-West and on the East Coast and in LA, it’s like one time and they’re done…been there done that. That’s just LA for you.

What is your favorite venue to play in LA?
I love The Viper Room and we just had our CD release party at Molly Malone’s which is a great venue. I’ve always wanted to play at The Troubadour so I am excited about May 29th. I also like The Roxy, I’ve played there once.

Again in regards to favorite & least favorite aspects, can you talk about being solo vs. being in a band?
The best part about being solo is…if I make a mistake, miss a lyric, or extend a part, I don’t have to communicate to anybody about it. Also, it’s a lot more intimate. There’s a different sort of connection with everyone that is there. There is just something a lot easier and simpler about the acoustic shows that I do. I do about 40 acoustic shows a year and then about 40 full band shows a year, so there’s a nice balance.

How did you come to the title, “Heroes Are Human?”
I’ve got a lot of people in my life that I really look up to and that’s essentially the case…they are all people. I think that sometimes we have these great ideas of a hero being a superhero or something that is intangible and in reality, I think that the people that are around us are our heroes.

Where do you go for inspiration and what do you do about writer’s block?
If you have writer’s block, don’t write. You can’t force writing. Sometimes you will get into the position where you have a deadline but that is sort of the beauty about being completely independent and not having a record deal…we write at our own pace.

Can you tell me about your upcoming acting and/or directing projects?
Well I would love to direct again but there is no one banging on my door, so in order for me to direct again, I would probably have to produce at the same time. That means that I would have to find the financing. And as we all know, it’s not the easiest time to find money to do anything (laughs) so I don’t know when it will happen but it will happen at some point. As far as acting, I’ve got a new film that is out in NY & LA called Please Give. It’s the new Nicole Holofcener movie with Amanda Peet, Catherine Keener, and Oliver Platt. The film will release nationwide in June. I am really excited about this film. I am really happy with my performance and it is one of the better independent films that I have been a part of.