Inspiration is everywhere when you subscribe to the art of noticing. Laura Hobson, singer and songwriter for Michigan’s Phabies, is a longtime practitioner of tapping into life’s endless supply of serendipitous moments and harnessing them to create something that mirrors the beauty of happenstance.

Hobson again showcases the versatility of Phabies in their second album, “The Curse of Caring,” out everywhere June 13. A couple weeks ago, she was kind enough to answer a few of my questions about the band and their creative process.

YY: I love that "The Bloodletting" — the band’s latest single at the time of this interview — came about after a blood draw gone wrong. I can't stand blood draws to begin with, so I probably would have just fainted in that situation, but your reaction was to write a song about it. Do serendipitous moments like these — that would at the very least constitute a good story — often inspire songwriting?

LH: I actually love getting my blood drawn, so it probably happened to the best-case-scenario person it could have happened to! These types of moments and synchronicities are almost always the inspiration for a song. Something as simple as a phrase said in passing, or the four-leaf clover in the yard, or sometimes a color I see repeatedly throughout the week will start turning over in my mind. I’ll know a song is coming when these things happen. I’ve heard it called the art of noticing. You can mine almost any interaction for inspiration if you’re paying attention.

"The Curse of Caring" summons "due urgency about the state of the world while keeping hopeful focus on how to ground one's self amidst the crumbling." A lot of music with a cautionary lean tends to only introduce a problem and stop at that. Did you seek this balance between urgency and hope, or did it just find its way there naturally? What more can you say about the album's message?

These are good questions. I’d like to think that all of us are capable of holding onto hope and despair simultaneously, but hope is a muscle you need to exercise. Some of us have done/are doing the grieving ahead of time so that we’re ready to help others when the time comes.

Daily, we’re inundated with the worst aspects of society because that makes for entertaining news. I’ve heard it said that “fear sells.” There’s also the ubiquitous “rage bait” prevalent on social media. What goes unnoticed most of the time are the helpers. There are so many people doing their best to be a good neighbor, to bring injured wildlife to a rehabber, to text a friend that’s been extra quiet, to use their voices against oppression. These people don’t make the news, but they care. I describe caring as the double-edged sword; to care for something is to love that person or thing.

This album explores the idea that when you love, you have more to lose, but it makes the case that we should all care all of the time, because the alternative is a life not fully lived.

The press release for the album announcement describes the writing style of Phabies as having a "uniquely Midwestern lyrical slant." What does this mean to you, and in a broader sense, in what ways might your music characterize your identity as a Michigan band?

The most Midwestern song we’ve done so far is “No Sharks.” If you live in a place that touches any of the Great Lakes, you’ve no doubt heard phrases like “Fresh Coast, Best Coast” or “Unsalted” in reference to them, the sentiments alluding to some light and unserious competition with the ocean. To live here is to be aware of how special and vast our fresh water lakes are. I’ve driven many visiting Californians to Lake Michigan for the first time, and they can’t believe how ocean-like it is.

I’m a person who’s always been afraid of dark water and any unseen creatures that have the potential to brush against my leg. I don’t feel afraid in the lakes because I know even our biggest fish, the Sturgeon, isn’t interested in me as a food source. This directly influenced the chorus of the song: “No sharks in the water, no tidal waves. Dog days of the summer, dive into the lake.” I think the rest of the lyrical writing for Phabies touches on other themes (love, loss, grappling with change) that aren’t strictly Midwestern, but have the kind of earnestness that us Midwesterners are known for.

Sometimes ephemeral, dreamy, nostalgic and other times grandiose and sweeping, our sound has the ability to adapt like any good middle child.

I understand the band took a School of Song course taught by Brian Eno, who said, "What you want is ways of looking at this world by comparing it with other possible worlds." I imagine his words played a big role in inspiring "Blooms Of April." His wisdom clearly resonated with you — what else did you take from this course that has influenced future songwriting?

I actually wrote the song “Blooms Of April” in an Erin Birgy class (also through School of Song), but no one knows that until now! We partnered with EarthPercent to release the song, and that organization was co-founded by Brian. Our bassist, Garrett Stier, and I took the course with Brian Eno and absolutely loved it, as well as all other classes I’ve taken through SOS. I think Brian Eno has a particularly interesting way of viewing music, in that he seems to dislike most music, mostly because it’s too predictable. He doesn’t like being able to guess what comes next (lyrically or melodically).

He had this one exercise that was so much fun – we were supposed to write a song to fit the space of a random place we chose to observe. I went to an aquarium store and stood around for around 20 minutes jotting down notes, watching fish. I ended up writing in a completely different way than I’ve ever written, there weren’t any lyrics. The piece ended up sounding bubbly and had parts that darted in and out like the little colorful fish I watched that all had such fun names.

It seems that “other possible worlds” can be literal and metaphorical. We are capable of changing the literal world we’re living in, which Brian has thankfully been using his platform to speak about. Metaphorically, we’re able to use sounds and textures in music to manipulate the listener and to create an entire “world” inside the mind. I know when I listen to music, I create music videos for what I’m hearing inside my head. Music is immersive. It’s an important job to consider with care when leading people into a new world.

"The Curse of Caring" was "inspired largely by the natural world," you have a passion for gardening, and Under The Radar wrote of a previous single's "pastoral acoustic chords." I'm starting to see a theme here. How much would you say the natural world drives the band's creative process?

Simply put, nature is like my version of church. I’m devoted to being outside, and it’s always been my favorite place to be and write about. I feel a strong connection to every living being. When you really get into it, you recognize how every little aspect of nature is connected, and this makes nature a tremendous muse. You will never run out of inspiration when it’s drawn from everything that surrounds you. When I was a kid, you could find me in the woods or down by the creek, or out by the pond observing and hanging out with frogs. It’s wild and wonderful the things you see and learn when you’re able to sit for a long time without a phone. I’m inspired by artists who weave these observations into their own work (Sufjan Stevens, Robin Wall-Kimmerer, Wendell Berry, Terry Tempest Williams).

What is your personal favorite track on this upcoming album?

It changes based on the season, but currently my two favorites are “I Care For You” and “Green Cement.” They’re opposites in terms of feel, but the messaging feels important. Usually when I’m writing a song, the relevance becomes more apparent to me as time passes. I would say both of these songs have become a mantra that I sing to myself and keep in the forefront of my mind.

What is something listeners should keep in mind going into the release of "The Curse of Caring?”

We love you! Please stay on this Earth and be a force for good. There are too many bad things happening all at once, so please find a way to create happiness as an act of resistance. I know this isn’t really related to the album, but I want everyone to create more. You don’t have to be an artist with credentials to send a funky letter to a friend collaged from junk mail. Start a list of interesting things you’ve noticed; cloud shapes, colors you’re drawn to, pet names you overhear that you can turn into characters and write a paragraph about. I want people to realize their capacity for creativity and to treat it like a muscle. Creating as an act of love to yourself, for yourself, in any way that you can.