Carrie Brownstein

I think that there's so many versions of femininity, and in terms of gender as a binary construct, that seems to be being dismantled. ”

I try, in the present, to not exalt the past because I think that's such a way of diminishing the present. And it's hard to live like that. ”

A lot of music for me was about - I mean, aside from the fun and challenge of writing and being really good friends with my bandmates - getting to perform. ”

When I was 16, 17 years old, I became aware of music coming out of Olympia, Wash., which is the state capitol and about an hour south of Seattle. And there were bands like Bikini Kill and Bratmobile and Heavens To Betsy, and for the first time, I heard my story being explained to me, being sung to me. ”

The Northwest, to make a generalization, is a fairly sensitive populace. Slightly self-conscious and very self-reflexive. ”

I think that there is something about the ritual of making things more difficult that people find meaning in. ”

There's something about mean-spiritedness that has a way of distancing an audience. ”

I don't think I realized right away that I was switching from being a fan into being a performer. I've always tried to maintain that duality, because I think fandom is a way of being porous and curious, but it did feel like a step forward. ”

I willed myself into being. ”

I want to have a sense of openness and optimism, even if that means being open to things that are potentially dark. ”