AMANDA PALMER

The cabaret provo-punker in her own words and by her own hand.

I describe myself as… an incredibly well-intentioned mess. I’m addicted to improvisation and sometimes it drives everyone fucking crazy. I actually feel quite comfortable when things are chaotic and manic, and there’s a lot of stage pressure.

Music changed me by… giving me a really important portal out of the reality that I was living in. Listening to The Legendary Pink Dots and Robyn Hitchcock and David Bowie and these insane dreaming people just gave me constant confidence that once I got out of that town I would find my tribe.

When I’m not making music… lately I’ve been giving birth, that took some time. And I spend a lot of time communicating, talking to people about their lives, about philosophies and our problems. I love spontaneous encounters, too – having a baby is a really wonderful gateway into chatting to any stranger, it’s like carrying around a golden invitation. My biggest vice is… wine. Any old wine, boxed, bottled, from the gutter, from strangers, any kind. I wish I were more a distinguishing wine drinker. That, and over-communicating. The last time I was embarrassed was… it really doesn’t happen very much! There have been some real opportunities, but I just refuse.

My formal qualifications are… a bachelor in German studies from Wesleyan University. I’m an ordained Minister in the Universal Life Church – that’s the one where you pay five bucks and get the certificate in the mail. And oh, I was a professional dominatrix for a while, I’ve had some formal training at that. I once had a young guy who wanted nothing more than, for a full hour, to be tickled, ha ha! He laughed the entire time… “Well, it’s your three hundred and fifty bucks!” The last time I cried was… this morning. I got a text message from