Sep052007

Preview: Comedy Death Ray - Andy Daly and Nick Thune

Filed Under Records, Stand-Up Comedy

I don’t live in Los Angeles, so I haven’t had the pleasure of attending one of the Comedy Death Ray shows put on by Mr. Show alums Scott Aukerman and BJ Porter. But the forthcoming Comedy Death Ray CD from Comedy Central Records gives me and other California-challenged brethren a chance to experience what we’ve been missing.

There’s a lot of great stand-ups on this double CD set including Brian Posehn, Maria Bamford and David Cross, but a real pleasure is to have tracks from comics who don’t have their own CDs… yet. Both of these tracks from Comedy Death Ray’s 4th Anniversary show. The first features Andy Daly, who does some wonderful non-specific satire of stand-up (the bit has already drawn some raves), and the other is a series of one liners from Nick Thune, some of them devastating.

Comedy Death Ray will be in stores on September 11. Yes, they were quite fine with that release date.

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Jul092007

Out Tomorrow: Patton Oswalt, Werewolves and Lollipops

Filed Under Records, Stand-Up Comedy

Patton Oswalt’s second album Werewolves and Lollipops, his first on Sub Pop Records, comes out tomorrow. You’ve probably already heard the wonderful track where Patton equates the current administration with the Dukes of Hazzard. Here’s a second track from the album, featuring Oswalt describing America’s depressing eating habits. My favorite part of this track is how he launches right into it, trusting the audience to catch on to the setup. Patton Oswalt is arguably the most vital practitioner of the art of stand-up today, so to me this album is a must have. But judge for yourself:

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Apr032007

Preview: Joe Rogan’s “Shiny Happy Jihad”

Filed Under Records

With all the recent news of Joe Rogan confronting stand-ups who steal, many who didn’t know he was a stand-up are going to wonder what his bonafides are. They don’t have to wait long. His new album from Comedy Central Records, Shiny Happy Jihad comes out next Tuesday. This track has Rogan wondering about the motivations for people to blow themselves up and segues into how disturbing guys can be. You may notice a similar theme connecting the two.

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Mar272007

Out Now: Tom Shillue’s “Overconfident”

Filed Under Records

I’ve enjoyed Tom Shillue’s stand-up for a long time. One of the finest comics working the NY clubs today, Tom is casually himself on stage in a time when screaming and over-gesticulating seems to hold sway. He’s funny without frantic force, a tone mastered by folks like Newhart and Cosby. His first CD “Overconfident” was just released today. Here’s one of my favorite tracks from the album, where Tom finds Philadelphia’s ad campaign to entice lovers to visit the city to be a little disturbing. And possibly unpatriotic.

It’s not currently on sale at Amazon, but you can get it on iTunes or, if you prefer a physical copy with photos of Tom cavorting with Jen Dziura and Molly Crabapple, you can go to Tom’s Online Store.

Posted by Todd Jackson at 08:05 PM | Send to Friend | Comments (0)
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Feb122007

Lewis Black wins the Grammy for Best Comedy Album

Filed Under Awards, Records

Besting the likes of George Carlin and Weird Al, Lewis Black took home the Grammy for his album, “The Carnegie Hall Performance.” I have to admit that I am a little surprised by this one - not because of Lewis Black’s album but because Weird Al had a top ten single and Ron White‘s on the ballot twice (once for himself, once for Blue Collar Comedy Tour). The latter one is sort of victory in itself and I actually thought it might give him a surprise win, considering he’s the one Blue Collar Comic that’s liked even by their detractors.

Of course, in a year where the Dixie Chicks win all five awards they were up for, it makes sense that a comedian who equally outspoken about the failures of the Bush administration would win. It’s also a big victory for Comedy Central Records because “The Carnegie Hall Performance” is the first album on the label to earn a Grammy. Big congrats to Comedy Central Records Jack Vaughn - who’s pretty much the architect of the whole shebang over there. (Also deserving of applause is Stand-Up Records Dan Schlissel - who produced the album.)

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Oct232006

A Preview of Christian Finnegan’s “Two for Flinching”

Filed Under Records, Stand-Up Comedy

Like Greg Giraldo, tomorrow Christian Finnegan will also be celebrating his first comedy album release with Two for Flinching. In this track entitled “TPM” Christian shares what the future of computers might be in the wake of rampant internet pornography. It also features the second of two great font jokes as part of his DC Improv performance. (Fun fact: stand-up Todd Levin named Christian Finnegan’s CD beating out titles such as “Straight Outta Drama Club” and “Christina Finnefag’s Revenge")

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Oct232006

A Preview of Greg Giraldo’s “Good Day to Cross a River”

Filed Under Records, Stand-Up Comedy

Here’s a track from the first comedy album by Greg Giraldo entitled Good Day to Cross a River. This clip involves America and its eating habits and it’s one of my favorites ever since I first saw Giraldo perform it as part of the Insomniac Tour. The CD will be released tomorrow, October 24.

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