Episode 7: Laughter, Late-Night, and Learning Your Voice
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So, yeah, we kind of cheated with this title. Sorry.
The three of us are performers. Chris and Charlie do comedy, improv and stand-up; Ed is in a band and hosts an open mic. So, we spend a lot of time thinking about and analyzing performers. We spend most of this episode talking about how people put together their acts and find their niche, then what the end game is for someone with a career in comedy.
We also discuss how band/team dynamics work and affect the group. Finally, we come back around to talk about the workings of the Late Night Talk Show Circuit, including how Charlie thinks neither Letterman or Stewart were funny as stand-up comedians, but serve as excellent hosts. (Judge for yourself using the liner links below.) Also, apparently, EVERYONE has been screwed out of their chance to take over The Tonight Show, including you, dear listener.
Keep your podcatcher submitted to catch our next edition which will be our first official minisode. In in, we'll discuss a possibly disturbing trend in in our pop cultural consciousness: cynical irony.
Liner Links:
P.S:
One of the themes of this episode is that there are things going on in the background that we're misdirected away from paying attention to. And, in the end, it's mostly people running around jockeying for position. To that end, we start off with This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race, by Fall Out Boy. It's on their album infinity On High. It's all about how no one is genuine and people will simply do what they need to exploit you. We suppose. Or maybe it's about the Cold War.
Next, we had Panic! at the Disco's Hurricane, from the Vices and Virtues album. (Wow, check that out. Another third track!) Ed really likes this band, if you haven't been able to tell by their inclusion in two different episodes now. As far was we can tell--we're not music critics, after all--is that it's about how even when deep shit is going down, people still will just want to forget and be entertained. Kind of like that one Outkast song about the failing relationship that gets overshadowed by people's obsession with shacking asses. That's what Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik was about, right?
We ended with Childish Gambino's song I'm Alright, from his album Culdesac (which you can download for free). It's not unique among rap songs for centering on how being in the limelight is tough, requiring sacrifices, but it's a good song. We all want it all--time, friends, fun, work that's interesting and makes tons of money/fame. Sometimes, you just want that sweet Tonight Show gig. But you can't always get what you want. But if you try sometimes, you might find you get what you need.
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