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Brick Wall Comedy
Brick Wall Comedy

Falling Off the Bone

Todd Barry

Comedy Central Records · Album · 2004 · 48 min

Quiet, deadpan comedy from a packed Lower East Side club.

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Todd Barry’s understated deadpan is the kind of comedy that rewards close listening. On his sophomore release, he uses a quiet, casual stage presence to turn petty grievances into profound administrative errors. He treats the absurdities of life with mild irritation, whether he is scrutinizing the awkward tension of a friend who challenges a doctor’s recommendation to drink Gatorade for the stomach flu, or reading actual, mediocre reviews of his past performances back to the audience.

Recorded live at Pianos in Manhattan’s Lower East Side, the 2004 album caught Barry as his career was gaining significant momentum. He had recently been named to Entertainment Weekly’s “It List” as their designated “It Standup,” and Comedy Central Records stepped in to distribute this set. The intimate, packed room at Pianos provides a fitting backdrop for his low-key crowd banter and music-adjacent material, which includes thoughts on Wilco, Sugar Ray, and bands that employ two drummers. The album captures a comedian who is entirely comfortable letting the room sit in silence before dropping a perfectly timed punchline.

The set list

5 bits

  1. Queer Eye For The Straight Guy and elbow waxing

    Destroys the reality show by portraying the stylist flabbergasted at a 60-year-old retired Navy SEAL who has never waxed his elbows, not even in Vietnam

  2. More hygienic sexual partner than Brad Pitt

    Offers a subtle, skewed take trying to convince women that he is a more hygienic sexual partner than Brad Pitt

  3. Failures of delivery and postal services

    Jokes about consistent postal failures and UPS having the operating hours of an East Village trance record shop

  4. Watermelon yarmulke

    A wry observational routine referenced in reviews

  5. Making fun of blogs and Wilco

    Observations discussing blogs and praise for the new Wilco album

How it plays

Tone
Deadpan, wry, subtle, and sour
On stage
Dry, deadpan, slouchy, quiet, bald, with a slightly pained, querying tone occasionally accompanied by a slightly menacing glare
Pace
Calm, crisp delivery with long pauses, a low measured voice, and 60-second bursts of low-key commentary
About
Awkwardness and ridiculousness of personal life, Pop culture and reality television, Mundane frustrations and services

What the critics said

Praised for elevating mundane minutiae into fine craft through crisp delivery, wry observations, and sharp deadpan wit

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: allmusic.com, imdb.com, icollecteverything.com, gothamist.com, list.co.uk, tonemadison.com, en.wikipedia.org, theadvocate.com, first-avenue.com.

Details

Released
Taped
Pianos, New York
Runtime
48 min
Where
Comedy Central Records (album)
Topics
Before
Comedy Central Presents (1999)
After
Medium Energy (2005)

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