Comedy Death Ray and I Love Movies This Week

Boy oh boy, did you miss a great night of comedy in Los Angeles! It may be cold and rainy, but the crowds certainly didn't seem to mind. First up, Doug Benson's I Love Movies podcast (which you will be able to hear on iTunes shortly) had special guests Sarah Silverman and Steve Agee, promoting the upcoming third season of The Sarah Silverman Program and doing their usual thing. You know, being funny. As always, the show was funny although significantly more... multi-directional than usual. Good times. It's still a crying shame this isn't videotaped and aired on TV.

Comedy Death Ray had a fantastic lineup where everybody seemed to have a really funny set. Hosted by Matt Ruby, the brisk show went through a lot of comics really fast. Gabe Liebman and Hannibal Buress should be both added to your "go see these guys" lists if you keep one. The latter is an SNL writer with some fantastic material that he's clearly not sharing with the show this season. (Good on him.) Matt Walsh came out as "Tony Stella," an anti-intellectual comic character with a bit on how one might be an egghead. Great stuff, although the audience didn't seem to be buying it.

Next up was Jeff Garlin (of Curb Your Enthusiasm fame) who riffed on important matters such as sparkly clean penises. There were other things as well, plus something to the effect of "you think I have an act? I just make this stuff up." Which, if true, means this person is far more gifted than any of us will ever hope to be. The reason we jumped at tickets this week was John Mulaney, whose album we looked at last year and who is also a writer on SNL. With tons of new (to us) material, as always, he was a lot of fun to watch. Headlining this week's show were the Sklar Brothers who, as far as we know, are the only funny folk working today with a bit about CJ from District 9. They just recorded a new Comedy Central special, and it's unknown to us if these bits will be in said show, but if they are you probably should make it a point to catch it whenever it airs. (Which, based on what we've seen as incubation times go, could be really late 2010.)

So there you have it! Another fantastic week to remind you of just how spoiled you are to be able to see this kind of comedy for $5 in Los Angeles.

Road Trip Album Picks: John Mulaney's "The Top Part"

WHAT: Stand-up album from this guy you've never heard of
LABEL: Comedy Central Records
GOOD IF YOU LIKE: Oswalt, Mirman, etc.
WHERE TO FIND IT: Anywhere-- Best Buy, Fry's Electronics, whatever

I stumbled on this one because the young John Mulaney appeared on a podcast I enjoy. Otherwise I'd never know who this guy was. He was promoting the CD and his Comedy Central special, which apparently was a wise move because I ran out and bought this on sight.

If you're like most people, you've never heard of Mulaney. I think his highest-profile TV appearances were the aforementioned Comedy Central Presents special or his short quips on the final Best Week Ever with Paul F. Tompkins, but now you can be awesome by getting this CD and making others listen to it in the car when you go somewhere. The most amazing thing about this release is that it's not only hysterical, but it's clean. Not a lot of comedy albums see release without a "Parental Advisory" sticker unless it's on a tiny label which doesn't bother which such things.

Highlights include: "Blacking Out And Making Money," which really sets the tone of his style, and "The Salt And Pepper Diner," which is something you should have around if you want your girl/boy to love you for your taste in humor. Tom Jones on the jukebox + quarters = yes. It's hard to find something genuinely awesome in major retailers' comedy sections, but this is one of those diamonds in the rough. It's a hair over 48 minutes long and about $10, which is quite a deal.