Cover art for "Fool's Highway" by Cliff Snyder.

Cliff Snyder will perform Dec. 13 at Locals Only

Sometimes when you can't take to the road, you bring the road to the stage.

That is what local singer-songwriter Cliff Snyder, 27, tries to do with his lyrics. A book salesman by day, he's happy with singing songs inspired by imagery of a Western wanderer by night. Here he pauses from his imaginary travels to answer questions.

How did you become interested in music?

I was the biggest band geek in the world in high school, and I still own a tuba, and have that and play that. You don't run into too many tuba players out there. As far as songwriting and guitar music and all that, I started out on bass guitar. I played around with a couple silly high school bands, and picked up an acoustic guitar. It was really just listening to other songwriters and storytellers, like Townes Van Zandt, Steve Earle, Bruce Springsteen -- his quieter stuff. I wanted a format to tell stories.

When did you write your first song?

I still play my first song ("Strong Enough") every once in a blue moon. I wrote my first song about seven years ago. When I first started to write, I wrote more personal songs. I try to tell stories now and get outside my own experience. Initially I was just writing a song about a rough spot I was going though and a challenging time with my wife ..... Since then I've gotten into a lot of other things, but it started out dealing with personal issues.

Do you write many personal songs?

Not as much now. I guess what I really dig about other musicians and folks that I listen to (is) when they can tell the story and the story is based on first-hand experience or maybe this is something they are able to describe. Everything affects you in some way. Really, when I write songs today I try to get outside my own experience and try to tell a story. I guess I like a lot of the stereotypical Americana things. I like long highways, the idea of hopping on a freight train, I like all this cliche Americana, so I write these songs about some dirty, smoky bar somewhere out West. I write too many sad songs. A woman who ends up on the street ..... and dies -- I try to tell these stories.

What about that sort of imagery attracts you to it?

I guess I kind of live vicariously through my music. I ride a motorcycle, and I've always just been so drawn to the American Southwest, to trains, to hitchhiking, to the road. I get out there and I experience that when I can on my motorcycle. But ..... I've got a career and a family. It wouldn't be fair for me and the people in my life to totally throw everything away and end up out West in some dirty little bar with some alcoholics who are there all the time and moving to another town and working at a gas station for a couple days and catching a ride to another town, but I love that idea. I sort of try to live that through my music.

(You talk about) being fair to your family, while some of the musicians you listen to weren't so good about that.

My biggest hero is Steve Earle. ..... (although) the guy's had seven wives. He's a fantastic songwriter and I love Steve Earle's music so much, but he's a bastard. He's a lot better now, but he's really been a pretty sh---y guy to people who have cared a lot about him.

I'm trying to find a way to do this musically and be as authentic as I can and still at the same time not be an a-----e. Which I guess maybe if I had some horrible drug problem and screwed everybody over, maybe I could write more authentically, but I try not to. (Laughs). .....

I guess it's all the storytellers and that kind of Americana genre that resonates the most and seems really authentic to me.

Get out

What: Cliff Snyder, 19Clark25, Ocean Street.
Where: Locals Only, 2449 E. 56th St.
When: 7:30 p.m. Dec. 13.
Tickets: $5.
Info: (317) 255-4013, www.myspace.com/cliffsnyder