The Antlers have been one of the most lauded bands of the last year, riding on a wave of buzz and expectation after the release of their critically acclaimed Hospice. We caught up with songwriting mastermind Peter Silberman in the middle of a whirlwind month to talk abut the band’s recent Haiti benefit, the grueling months behind the record, and of course, what it’s like being the road.

Crawdaddy!: I know you’ve been recently involved with a high profile Haiti benefit. Can you tell me a little bit about that effort?

Peter Silberman: It was a bit of a last minute thing, as many of these relief benefits have been, which made it all the more surprisingly how such an amazing lineup could be assembled so quickly.  We were really grateful to have a chance to help the cause, and of course, honored to share a bill with Patti Smith and Yo La Tengo.

Crawdaddy!: Tell me about the making of the beautiful, epic, Hospice.

Silberman: It took a really long time. I don’t think I’ve ever worked on something for that long in my entire life. I have a hard time remembering that time in my life (about 2 or 3 years ago), and an even harder time wanting to remember it.

Crawdaddy!: How did you feel when the critical accolades started rolling in? Did you expect the album to be so well-received?

Silberman: Absolutely not. Even in believing in something as much as I did with Hospice, most of me was prepared for it to fall on deaf ears, and as soon as I began expecting failure, I realized this record was going to be my last attempt at making music. When people began responding so positively to Hospice, I changed my mind. I was glad I didn’t quit.

Crawdaddy!: I garnered from your website some association with Sylvia Plath. Tell me about your relationship with her works.

Silberman: I don’t have much of a relationship with her writing, to be honest. I’m more interested in her as a person than as an author. The way in which she’s perceived by others, both her fans and her husband, is interesting.

Crawdaddy!: Share a notable experience from being on the road from the past year.

Silberman: In Holland, we were attacked by an old, drunk British rock photographer asshole.

Read the rest of the interview after the jump.

Crawdaddy!: Where is the most random, obscure place you’ve ever place a show?

Silberman: Back when I was booking our shows (and this was awhile ago now), we played in Greenville, South Carolina and I’m not quite sure how we ended up there (though it is a beautiful town).

Crawdaddy!: What are some goals, musical and personal, that you would like to achieve in 2010?

Silberman: If, while I’m on the road, I could get as much accomplished as when I’m home, I would be happy.

Crawdaddy!: How does living in the musical breeding ground that is Brooklyn affect your creative process (because it has to, right?)

Silberman: Brooklyn’s become more of a place we rest in between touring. Realistically, we’re gone most of the time, and though we’re friends with a lot of Brooklyn bands and musicians, I’ve never really considered us a product of the scene there. But don’t get me wrong, I love Brooklyn.

Crawdaddy!: Do you nurture other forms of creativity and self-expression besides music? Visual arts, for example?

Silberman: I try writing but I never finish anything, and I try cutting things up and taping them back together but I never like anything.

Crawdaddy!: What are a few of your favorite releases of the last decade?

Silberman: Portishead’s Third, the National’s Boxer, Sigur Ros’s ( ), Four Tet’s Everything Ecstatic, and about a million others.