Back in August, I interviewed the band Wild Flag for a profile I wrote for PAPER magazine. (It’s on newsstands now! Buy a copy already.) I was especially interested in talking to Carrie Brownstein because of my love for all things punk rock and sketch comedy. Here’s a bonus snippet of the transcript of my talk with her that I didn’t use in the profile because I thought it was a little too comedy nerd/punk fanboy (i.e. PERFECT for Tumblr):
Alex: I read an old entry from your NPR Monitor Mix blog where you wrote that growing up, you were a fan of Lookout! Records bands, and I thought, “That makes total sense. That’s a very funny strain of punk bands.” How did punk rock inform your sense of humor?
Carrie: I think the funniest things are when you’re not trying to be funny, but when you’re trying to be serious. There’s definitely a strain of that in punk rock. Often I think, looking back, what makes me laugh the most about your youth or those early, self-righteous punk moments were when you were really trying to be your most earnest or your most serious. A lot of what Fred and I do in Portlandia is try to be really serious. And that’s when it’s automatically ridiculous. Punk rock really informed the way I view the world so much, but at the same time it’s such a narrow focal point. I think the parts that are still interesting to look at are kind of contrarian or absurd. I think that definitely informs my humor.
