Since the mid-1990s, Australian singer-songwriter Ben Lee has been fusing his playful love for melody with a vigorous intellectual curiosity.

Now based in Los Angeles, where he lives with his wife, the actress Ione Skye, and daughters Goldie & Kate, Lee’s recent output includes an album of Songs about Islam for the Whole Family, a musical adaptation of the children’s book, B is for Beer, and, most recently, covering some of his indie icons, including Sonic Youth, Pavement and Guided by Voices

In this episode, Lee chats with host Jonathan Dekel about fostering creative empathy in his children, unlikely carpool soundtracks and tracing his musical roots to the court of Czar Nicholas in Russia.