25 August 2008 (Music Interview)

Words: Lauren Murphy

As lead singer of the unique 'Brechtian cabaret' band Dresden Dolls, Amanda Palmer and her co-conspirator Brian Viglione have amassed a huge cult following worldwide, since the release of their eponymous debut album in 2003. Renowned for their unique live shows, the Boston-based duo cultivate a kind of dark, gothic cabaret with their use of performance artists, elaborate clothing and make-up - and that's before their superb alt-rock/punk sound even gets a look-in. Palmer is set to strike out on her own later this year, with the release of her solo debut 'Who Killed Amanda Palmer?'.

Hi Amanda, thanks for taking the time to talk to us. How are you, and where are you?

You're welcome. I am fine and frazzled. I'm at Boston airport, about to get on a plane to the woods of Michigan to play a festival with Snoop Dogg and Dave Matthews. Don't ask why. Don't EVER ask why. But it's OK. We were just playing ukulele covers of Radiohead songs in the airport bar, and getting quite a good crowd.

You were very into drama and theatre when you were younger, something which is obvious from the Dresden Dolls' theatrical performances and attention to detail. Were you influenced more by actors/directors/writers than you were by music, at that stage of your life - and even now?

My influences were wide-ranging and went through phases. I performed in a lot of musicals and plays when I was a kid and sang in the church choir, and I never really separated music and theatre in my brain very much: it was always just about performing and being on stage. When I started writing and creating my own plays, they were always music-based - more like surreal live music videos, than straight theatre.

You seem to make your live shows more 'experiences' than plain 'gigs'. Do you ever worry that cynics will dismiss your act as gimmicky?

I don't need to worry about it; it happens anyway. It's a reason that the band has toured so relentlessly. Once people actually see us and have the experience, the word spreads, and the detractors are slowly annihilated as they realise that we're actually a bitchin' band.

It's refreshing to see a band that's genuinely almost unclassifiable in modern music. You must have found it difficult in the early days, though - most music fans need some sort of reference point to be attracted to a new band.

The fans didn't need to classify us, but the industry did. It took us years and years to find people to work with us, even when we were selling out shows. They just didn't know what to make of us.

'Who Killed Amanda Palmer' is your debut album proper. Why did you decide to go solo - is it that these songs are too different to fit on any Dolls album, or was a solo album always an ambition of yours? And is that a Twin Peaks reference in the title?

It is indeed a Twin Peaks reference. That started as a joke, and then grew. This project was supposed to be very small - a few weeks and just solo piano. I was acutely considering recording it in my bedroom. Around the time I was just starting to work on it, Ben Folds came along and offered up his studio and services as a producer. From there, things got out of control and grew and grew, until the whole record took over a year and became a super-arranged beast. Totally worth it, though. I'm in love with it.

How did your collaboration with Ben happen, and how was he as a producer?

Ben wrote a fan-mail to the Dolls website, just to reach out and say he was a fan. We got together to hang out a few weeks later in Australia, and we just hit it off like instant friends. He offered me use of his studio in Nashville whenever I wanted, and when I mentioned my little solo record, he asked if I wanted him to produce it. I said yes almost without hesitating. I just had a good gut feeling that I could trust the guy. We did the record over many broken up sessions in Nashville, and I took parts of it to record out in San Francisco and LA with a few different arrangers and engineers. Ben was wonderful to work with, a total creative genius. We also spent most of the time cracking each other up, since we both have really twisted senses of humour. It was a great match - I'd do it again in a second.

How does your solo material differ from the Dresden Dolls stuff? Do you put more of yourself into it - is it slightly more personal, perhaps?

I wouldn't say that. Many of my songs are pretty personal. Half of the songs that ended up on the solo record are there because they didn't call for drums, but the other half ended up on there because of timing. Had the schedule been different, they would have been Dolls songs.

Did you approach the songwriting process differently when you were writing for your solo album? How much input does Brian usually have?

Not at all. I just write, then the songs wind up somewhere. I bring Brian finished songs, and he arranges the drums parts as he hears them, which is - luckily, and thus why we've been in a band for so long - usually right in line with what I want. We have very few musical disagreements, that's never the hard part.

'The Dresden Dolls Companion' book contained some autobiographical material. Do you think you'll ever write an actual autobiography?

I've thought about it. Writing large chunks of text is hard for me, I'm very scatterbrained and bad at editing. But I might team up with a truly talented writer and do some sort of collaboration. I've actually always been more tempted to write about my time as a street performer - that time of my life was actually way more interesting than my life now.

What can fans expect from a solo show, the same theatrical cabaret act? You've used several bands as your backing band thus far - have you settled on one for this tour?

I decided in the end to bring a group of performance artists instead. The back-up band would have been fun, but a little too-expected. So instead, I have a back-up theatre. Not so bad! We're going to use a lot of pre-selected audience volunteers, too, so the whole night should be really wild.

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'Who Killed Amanda Palmer' is released In Septemner and Amanda Palmer plays Dublin's Academy on September 27th, and Belfast's Auntie Annie's on September 28th. Tickets for both dates are on sale now from usual outlets.

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