Music

Blame Gilda Radner. The late Saturday Night Live icon is the reason Peaches crafts irreverent, provocative and often humorous avant-rock.

"Gilda is such an inspiration for me," Peaches said while calling from Joshua Tree, Calif. "She's the biggest reason I'm the way I am."

Radner isn't the only entertainer to impact the playful, hedonistic and campy performer. Sandra Bernhard, Diamanda Galas, Kate Bush and the late Wendy O. Williams have influenced the former elementary teacher, who schools fans on the art of trashy, sexy fun.

"All of those women have had an effect on me," said Peaches, a.k.a. Merrill Nisker. "They're all very powerful and exciting."

The same can be said for Peaches, 40, who will perform Friday at the Granada Theater. There is that rare air of unpredictability and danger whenever Peaches hits the stage. "I miss that," Peaches said. "You want that feeling that anything can happen when you see someone perform. You never know what I'll do."

During recent shows in California, Peaches married gay couples. "There were four girls in wedding dresses," Peaches recalled. "What else could I do but marry them? They're suffering because of California's Proposition 8. They should have the right to marry."

Peaches also walked on the hands and heads of fans as she traveled to the backs of venues. "I had the microphone in my hands the whole time," Peaches said. "It was so cool. I'm about doing things differently."

Indeed. The rebellious vocalist-producer's latest album, I Feel Cream , isn't just a departure from the guitar-driven glam-rock of her earlier work. The album, which was released in early May, is an electronic dance disc, which celebrates aging.

"I thought it would be cool for this album to celebrate getting older," Peaches said. "I thought it would be cool to focus on getting up there, as opposed to making an album about gender politics. I thought it would be fun to make an album in which I can focus on melody, songwriting and the message that you're not dead just because you're 40, even though that's what you're led to believe in this country. I'm just getting started."

Even though her 2000 debut album is dubbed The Teaches of Peaches , the engaging recording artist is the first to admit she has quite a bit to learn, at least sonically. That's why she tabbed an array of producers, including Digitalism, Soulwax, Drums of Death and Simian Mobile Disco, to work on the new album.

"I'm trying to become the best performer and producer possible," Peaches said. "I think one of the best ways for me to get better is to pick the brains of those who produce. I picked up a lot from them. I want to take what I learned and go as far as I can with it, and I'm not just talking about music."

It's not surprising that Peaches has no creative boundaries. "I want to push the envelope," Peaches said. "I'm going to surprise people."

The Berlin resident tours with the Herms (short for the Hermaphrodites); quite the contrast from '70s pop stars Peaches and Herb. Peaches stands out in the rock world as one of the most amusing performers on the circuit.

"The combination of humor and music in this industry is a scary thought for many people," Peaches said. "A lot of people think that music can't be taken seriously if there is humor in it. I feel sorry for those people. I could never be like them. I'm totally different when it comes to what I do. It can be funny."

Blame Gilda Radner.