I used to write a lot by just doing gigs, and just turning up to open mics with two lines of a song, and the pressure would force you to make something up. And I can’t really do that anymore. That was my main process of writing songs, get songs that are totally uninformed by self-consciousness. When I sit down and try to write some lyrics, it just looks like rubbish. I can’t function with two things at the same time. I don’t even listen to music when I’m doing [films]. I think after doing another movie after this movie now, then I’ll try and write some music, hopefully at the end of the year.

I think you need to be able to break through what you think about yourself to try to make any sort of art. I used to play music all the time, and the most amazing part was the freedom that came with kicking myself in the ass, letting go, and surprising myself.

It’s (music) the thing that makes you more naked, more than acting. You can’t blame anyone if you make it bad, you can’t blame any screenwriter, or director. There you are, with your soul.

Music fascinates me, I love it. It’s my passion. And I think I could’ve been very happy with being close to a piano and make a living out of it.

I don’t really need to do stuff to relax or get away because all my interests are part of my job. Like I’ll watch movies to be inspired to do other movies. I read books to be inspired. I listen to music to be inspired to write music. Everything I do is to create something.

I would. I’m just kind of a pussy, I guess. That’s the problem. I’d love to. I think everyone should do open-mic. I think it’s a very healthy thing for your soul. But yeah, I’d love to do it again.

I won’t consider it [an album] until I quit acting. I’ve only played in pubs. I had never recorded anything or made money with music. Maybe just 60 euros for playing here and there. I don’t want to become a franchise like the Disney kids.

I think if I did it [record an album], I’d do it under a different name and not promote it. Maybe I could just do it under Edward Cullen, and we’ll see what happens. That would be pretty obvious. But, maybe? I don’t like to look like I’m cashing in on stuff, so I probably won’t do it for a while. I’m not really interested in having a music career. I don’t care if people buy my stuff or not.

I think Nikki [Reed] gave a CD of stuff I had recorded on my computer to Catherine Hardwicke and I recorded it years ago. I think Catherine just put it into a cut and then said ‘Look at this’ and she played it and it kind of worked. I hadn’t even realized what it was at first and it kind of fit really well. I did not really think about it other than that. I didn’t know it was going to be on the soundtrack or anything. I wanted to do it under another name because I thought it would be distracting, which it has been. So it’s probably all been a big mistake but I like the idea of it and I just think the song fit and I did not think it sounded like me. So I thought it would just work but I don’t know I’m not trying to get a music career out of it or anything.

I don’t know much about contemporary music. I do have an iPod but I listen to a lot of old blues. I listen to John Lee Hooker and Elmore James. I have been listening to them for years. I was obsessed with Van Morrison for years. I went to see him recently where he performed Astral Weeks. I just spent the entire night crying, but I was really obsessed with Van Morrison.

I was in a band years ago. Not like a proper band but I had kind of roll-on, roll-off musicians. I still try and play but it’s weird now since when I’m trying to do it as an actor, it always seems kind of cheesy. I liked playing at open mikes in bars and stuff because it was the only time I really felt free. I did a couple of gigs in LA and people filmed and put them on the Internet. It just ruins the whole experience. You’re like ‘Oh, that wasn’t the point.’ So I stopped. I’m going to wait for all this to die down before I start doing live gigs again.

I used to love playing live at open mics at bars. You could go nuts and be completely free. It would be a cathartic experience for me. I’ve lost a huge chunk of my life.

Music means freedom to me. But in acting you can pretend to be someone else and I like that.

Yes, I did them before the movie. But it’s amazing how they fit. Like I would never have said, I really want to get my songs in the movie. I thought it was kind of funny. There’s a song which two friends of mine wrote in about three minutes and I sang it in my old apartment. I kind of made it into a song and now it’s in this big movie. I thought it was kind of amusing. I had to sing it to the video of my face. It was the most bizarre experience, but I think it really helps the scene. It makes the scene better.

One of them is written by two friends of mine so that was one of the reasons. I’d grown up with loads of musicians so I thought that would be good for them. I mean, I don’t have any plans to release an album. There’s such a stigma attached to actors who release music. Maybe I’d do it anonymously or wait until I’m unemployable.

[The band] is kind of like rocky Led Zeppelin type stuff. We only have done a couple of gigs. We are still trying to figure out its style. It is just a couple of friends of mine and some other people that I have met fairly recently. We just wanted to start a band for something to do. A lot of my friends are actors and we have so little to do all the time, so instead of just being bored, we were like, ‘Why not start a band?’ So we did!

I have been playing the piano for my entire life - since I was three or four. And the guitar - I used to play classical guitar from when I was about five to 12 years of age. Then I didn’t play guitar for like years. About four or five years ago, I got out the guitar again and just started playing blues and stuff. I am not very good at the guitar, but I am all right. I am in a band in London as well.

I am in a band at the moment called Bad Girls. The band belongs to my first girlfriend’s current boyfriend and he was having an open mic night. He invited me to sing, but it was just a bit of fun - that was about six months ago. I don’t know where that’s going to go.