Seattle band Gazebos—singer Shannon Perry, guitarist TV Coahran, bassist Shane Herrell, and drummer Jordan T. Adams—just finished recording their first album, produced by Kurt Bloch. It's not mixed yet, but Perry thinks it went pretty well. Maybe.

"I can't tell what I think of it..." she told me. "I think I like it, but it's really nerdy, and I'm like, what does this mean about me as a person? Just hearing myself doing it, I'm like, is this cool? I honestly cannot tell... I think it is."

If the recording captures even a glimmer of the glam-art, pink-wine energy of their live sets, she's got nothing to worry about. Perry is also one of Seattle's most original tattoo artists (her Valentine's Tattoo Co. opened just over a year ago)—want a simple line drawing of a butt with a heart around it? Rafiki from The Lion King holding the word YOLO instead of Simba? DIE ALONE in dainty sans-serif handwriting? Look no further.

But to really talk about Shannon Perry "as a person" requires moving beyond music and art and into the realm of her obsessions. Fortunately, she was ready.

Tell me about your relationship to online shopping.

I guess I went through a phase. I was receiving multiple packages a day because I was developing a dress collection as a hobby, and I also got really into lava lamps, or just anything, and then I'd forget what I'd bought because I was stoned. I remember one time actually being in the fetal position on the floor and falling asleep at the laptop, shopping. When the presents come—I call them "presents" because I don't remember buying them—that's called "Shanta Claus." Because you never know what you're going to get.

Tell me about your relationship to Whitney Houston.

When I was younger, my dad told me that she had the most powerful voice. That was back when I took things that adults said to be literal. And so when he said she had the most powerful voice, I thought that literally meant this is a definitive statement, and so I listened to her music differently. But she does, kind of [laughs]—maybe I still believe that because he said it. Anyway, I'm obsessed with her and I think she's wonderful, and it's really sad that she's dead, and her daughter... [sighs] god. I like divas, I like girl singers, as a girl singer. She's such an insane talent. Ugh, but bathtubs!

Tell me about your relationship to badminton.

All of these are just going to come right back to my dad [laughs]. When I was a kid, we had a court in our backyard. Our yard was sloped and my dad dug out all the dirt and made this big huge grid with grass and everything, but he put the net at volleyball height. So we learned to play badminton on a regulation-size court but at volleyball height. When I went to junior high, I had no friends. We went to play badminton, and they had the net low, I was like, did they lower it because we’re kids? Are they trying to make it easier for us? So I thought it would be a great way to make friends. But really, I beat everyone in my class, and they just thought I was weirder instead of thinking I was cool. Also, I’m still mostly undefeated.

I'm not sure if this one will come back to your dad, but tell me about your relationship to Leonardo DiCaprio.

When I was in eighth grade, I was obsessed with him, just like everybody. And I remember going to see Romeo + Juliet, and I started crying when they saw each other through the aquarium. I continued crying all the way through the movie and then walked out of the theater crying, because I had never kissed a boy, and I was really romantic. And it was Claire Danes from My So-Called Life—and I was like, I identify with that girl. She's a weirdo, and he's like the hottest babe in the world. It's a joke now [indicating her TWO Leonardo DiCaprio portrait tattoos]. If I saw him now, I don't even wanna kiss him. He's got a goatee... I hear he’s dating Rihanna? He’s usually dating supermodels. Did you hear that joke that Tina Fey and Amy Poehler made on some awards show? "And now, like a supermodel's vagina, let's all give a warm welcome to Leonardo DiCaprio!"

I guess I can go ahead and ask you one music-related question. What music are you into at the moment?

I've been spending time in the last year with Talking Heads, which I never spent time with before—now they're like my favorite band. And more glammy stuff, kind of queer-dude arty stuff. I think that also relates to the band—I feel like there are some songs that TV makes that are from that glam era. I don’t know, I’m just trying to catch up on stuff that my dad didn’t teach me [laughs], just to bring it back to that. I love David Byrne. I feel like the reason the Talking Heads are my favorite band right now is because he's such an artist. It's one thing to be in a band, but he just seems like a life artist. He seems like a truth teller. An existential weirdo.