Spend a Couple Hours »Blue Jam

Surreal Radio Comedy

If you know Chris Morris, you probably know him from the precursor to The Daily Show, The Day Today or from his more extreme and controversial Brass Eye. While the epically strange radio show Blue Jam has bits of that off the wall take on real life humour (a woman describing organized baby fights for example) this is a far, far more somber and surreal trip than faux documentary tends to offer up.

I received this well sought after (well, among a small subsection of American Chris Morris fans) in a very serendipitous way. I had stumbled across its existence while researching Snuff Box and no more than a few weeks later, our dear friend Matthew (who often has cult and rare pop culture goodies to share) had it ready for my hot little hand without me ever mentioning it once.

The sometimes hypnotic, constantly inappropriate, and poetically absurd show, of which there are hours and hours of, is nearly indescribable, which I realize is extremely lazy to say, especially when you are trying to describe it to others but there you are. It also, particularly if you are already on the darker side of moody, puts you in one hell of a head space. It is hilarious in its own way but I’d be extremely weary of who you might recommend it to. While it grows on me more and more, I think this could be one of the most brilliant finds I’ve had in a while, it is beyond being an acquired taste.

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Posted on March 7, 2010

Movies »Whip It

directed by Drew Barrymore (2009)

Look, there’s nothing extraordinary about the roller derby fluff that is Whip It, but it’s so endearing and uses the many sports movie cliches to its advantage that I found myself (surprisingly) completely enjoying it. After all, sometimes you just want a cliched feel-good movie that delivers exactly you what you expect. Unfortunately, most movies of this nature (think The Blind Side) are terrible and unwatchable – so I guess the fact that Whip It manages to be such a pleasant, easy movie is, in its own way, quite extraordinary.

The cast is good: you can’t go wrong with a bitchy Juliette Lewis nor a handsome Andrew Wilson, and Kristen Wiig is charming as usual. Strangely, as with any movie she’s behind, Drew Barrymore’s performance is off (though not as bad as the cellar door scene in Donnie Darko) – but she deserves credit for her easy-going direction; Marcia Gay Harden, in a role that could have been shrewish and dis-likable, is as complex as the movie can handle as a beauty-contest-loving mother.

Definitely worth a rent for those of us that enjoy a girly teen romp where the teenage girls are neither movie style skanks nor bumbling, giggly idiots; I’m bummed so few teenage girls went to the theaters to to catch this one.

Click here for the rest of Whip It

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Posted on February 28, 2010

Albums »Opium

by Matt Berry (2005)

It’s common knowledge that I suffer from periodic fits of Matt Berry obsession; fortunately, there’s always something new to discover and to fall in love with concerning the man with the golden baritone. This time it’s Opium, his semi-comedic album (available on iTunes!) that has lifted my spirits this week more times than I can mention.

If you thought the Snuff Box theme got in your head (due to the fact that it’s played at least twice per episode), you’ll be happy to hear that the same catchy melody resurfaces, and is set to new lyrics, on Opium. Another high point on an album replete with high points is a sexual escapade called ‘Taking Control of Your Body’ that’s bound to inflame the libido of fans of Barry White, Serge Gainsbourg and “Weird Al” Yankovich alike.

Opium is a difficult piece of music to attach a label to. It is, of course, not entirely serious – there are bizarre spoken word sections about visiting an old-timey prostitute in a tavern and lines like, “They want dancers, young gay dancers!” or, “I need some kind of black magic reggae to sort this one out,” and yet I’ve been listening to this record so, so much this past week that the irony has vanished and has been replaced with a sense of pure, familiar enjoyment.

It’s my dream to see the man in person, he plays out often in London (I even priced a trip out there for one of his shows, but it seemed a bit extravagant just to see One Track Lover – which is not included on Opium, FYI – though not quite as pricey as the trip Jim conceived around a rare Maddy Prior/Tim Hart appearance a while back) but there are no NYC dates listed on his site…

American audiences have yet to catch on, and the kind of specific and offbeat humor Berry deals in may not be immediately appealing to legions of Yanks, so my dream is likely to remain just that… Opium feels the void nicely though.

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Posted on February 14, 2010

TV Shows »Snuff Box

Matt Berry and Rich Fulcher Sketch Comedy

Rich Fulcher is probably best known as moronic American zoo manager Bob Fossil and Matt Berry can be found starring in a substantial number of my favorite things (Garth Marenghi’s Dark Place and AD/BC as well as the Boosh… he recently appeared in an episode of the Sarah Silverman program which really upset me because I don’t want her sleeping with him!) so you can imagine how excited I was when Mike and Shaun returned from LA with a copy of Snuff Box, a musical comedy series written by and starring Berry and Fulcher.

The two of them are so charming that the combination of Fulcher’s weirdly naive, awkwardly earnest physicality combined with Berry’s haughty impatience and perhaps the best voice in contemporary comedy would be funny even if it were just a string of swear words and farting… which is exactly what Snuff Box happens to kind of be… plus some really dark weirdness.

They play friends – well, maybe not friends exactly… comrades, I suppose – who are members of a gentleman’s club exclusively for hangmen. Episodes of their adventures in the hanging business are interspersed with sketches that are often very funny, but just as often downright odd. The six existing episodes (plus a disc of Berry’s music from the series – which will become lodged in your head for days) are available in a handsome boxed set you’ll want to pick up at Amoeba, if you happen to have an all-region DVD player.

Much to the dismay of the cult show’s devoted fans (myself now included), a second season was never commissioned by BBC. I’ve included some clips and a number of stills after the jump.

Click here for the rest of Snuff Box

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Posted on January 31, 2010

Laughs »Today in the Past

Fake Information Podcast

Former professional literary agent John Hodgman‘s wealth of false facts and made-up histories always make me laugh; his brief daily podcast, Today in the Past, is more of the same… which is one of the only instances where that is a very, very good thing.

Make sure to read excellent tomes The Areas of My Expertise and More Information Than You Require, which the podcast was created to promote.

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Posted on January 31, 2010

Books »Home Land

home land sam lipsyte
by Sam Lipsyte (2005)

Home Land is a bitter and acidically funny book about a smart-assed failure named Lewis (also known, after an unfortunate high school incident, as “Teabag”), who, via his high school’s alumni newsletter, decides to tell his former classmates (many of whom seem to personify success and adult contentedness while Lewis spends his time doing little more than loafing around with his friend Gary, a guy who has got some issues of his own – to put it lightly), exactly what is on his mind: to broadcast the inner life of someone who “did not pan out”.

As an anti-hero, Lewis isn’t particularly likable – but then again, no one in this novel is likable. But likability was not a hindrance in my enjoyment of the book, though its cleverness almost was. Home Land nearly suffers from ultra quick witted writing (think Juno) that, while fun to read, sometimes left me wondering how it was possible that everyone in the book’s universe could be so quirky.

Author Sam Lipsyte won a Believer Book Award for Home Land and it earned a spot on the Times Notable Books of 2005.

Click here for the rest of Home Land

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Posted on December 26, 2009

TV Shows »The League of Gentlemen Christmas Special

league of gentlemen christmas specialHoliday of Nightmares

Creepy wet lips, monstrously erect nipples, blood sucking choir boys, voodoo dolls, flying bunny eyeballs, and Papa Lazarou… if you’ve taken my advice before and watched previous seasons of The League of Gentlemen, this will all sound like business as usual – if not, be prepared for the Christmas special of your worst nightmares!!

If you’re the squeamish type and prefer your head filled with sugar plum fairies and such, you may want to skip the stills below/after the jump.

Click here for the rest of The League of Gentlemen Christmas Special

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Posted on December 20, 2009

Web Sites »New Math

newmathMath + Observation = Hilarity

I may be late in discovering the wit of Craig Damrauer – the Times has been posting his often hilarious equations in their Freakonomics blog for a while – but, for anyone else that’s missed out on his simple, poignant and funny work (which has since been published in a book) I pass along his website.

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Posted on December 13, 2009

TV Shows »Stella: Live from Boston

stella live in boston2008 Performance at the Wilbur Theater

The unique comedic style of Michael Ian Black, Michael Showalter, and David Wain may not be exactly mainstream stand up, but it certainly makes me laugh. This is their first live show released to DVD and their easy banter (which should be easy, since they’ve been comedy partners for like twenty years) is an infectious blend of high and low brow humor. Not just anyone can just make me laugh by uttering the phrase, “M’lady farts”, but Wain says it oh so right. The only thing that didn’t go over so well with me was Showalter’s dirt beard.

Watch it instantly on netflix.

Click here for the rest of Stella: Live from Boston

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Posted on November 22, 2009

Albums »True Stories

It's really quite curious that I've never recommended the

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Posted on December 20, 2009

Web Sites »New Math

newmathMath + Observation = Hilarity

I may be late in discovering the wit of Craig Damrauer – the Times has been posting his often hilarious equations in their Freakonomics blog for a while – but, for anyone else that’s missed out on his simple, poignant and funny work (which has since been published in a book) I pass along his website.

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Posted on December 13, 2009

TV Shows »Stella: Live from Boston

stella live in boston2008 Performance at the Wilbur Theater

The unique comedic style of Michael Ian Black, Michael Showalter, and David Wain may not be exactly mainstream stand up, but it certainly makes me laugh. This is their first live show released to DVD and their easy banter (which should be easy, since they’ve been comedy partners for like twenty years) is an infectious blend of high and low brow humor. Not just anyone can just make me laugh by uttering the phrase, “M’lady farts”, but Wain says it oh so right. The only thing that didn’t go over so well with me was Showalter’s dirt beard.

Watch it instantly on netflix.

Click here for the rest of Stella: Live from Boston

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Posted on November 22, 2009

Albums »True Stories

It's really quite curious that I've never recommended the True Stories soundtrack, because it's been a staple of listening pleasure for me for eons. As I've recounted to you before, the movie itself is spectacular and smile inducing and the music, released with Talking Heads songs is just as uplifting.

Byrne initially intended to release an original cast recording containing the songs as they're heard in the film, sung by actors like John Goodman, Swoosie Kurtz and the late, great Pops Staples but at the last minute DB reconsidered and Talking Heads re-recorded the tracks (a move Byrne later lived to regret); though if you get a recent remaster, you'll at least get the Pops Staples and Tito Larriva vocal mixes.

Music video hits like Wild Wild Life and Love for Sale made this pseudo-soundtrack to a pretty obscure film relatively popular and successful but the entire album is golden, not just the familiar songs. Papa Legba, Dream Operator, and City of Dreams are some of my particular favorites.

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Posted on October 19, 2009