"I think there's this weird working man feeling about Eau Claire, or something," he offers after a pause. "You go there and it's like, 'Well, just because we don't have art doesn't mean we can't have art.' You can still do it, but it can be a frustrating place if you don't feel like there's enough people as hungry as you are for a specific type of thing. So I think there are people that stay in Eau Claire because they like that absence and hope that it's going to trigger and start something new. People in Minneapolis are just trying to be a part of something immediate, and for good reason."
"The way Justin views everyone he works with is very heartfelt," says Darius Van Arman, a founder and co owner of Bon Iver's record label, Jagjaguwar. "He's not uncomfortable with mixing or blurring the lines between friendship and business. That can spell the path to ruin for many artists, but I think Justin's also a very good judge of character. He has very good