A Week in Review...New Talent, Squire, Aziz f-in' Ansari.

I started writing as the Denver Comedy Examiner in December, meaning that my time in the Denver comedy scene and the comedy scene in general is more than extremely short-lived, but as one can only base their judgements upon personal experience, well, it's safe to say that I've learned a ton in this short span of time and I'm looking forward to delving deeper into the experience of the Denver comedian. And with that, here we go.

This past week, I was privileged to catch alot of great comedy. After weeks of putting off the pocket-scorching two-item minimum, I finally sucked it up and went to Comedy Works' New Talent night. The first thing that impressed itself upon me was the number of people that were in attendance on a Tuesday night, not for any outrageously big names, but for a mixed group of local comedians from the first-timer to the seasoned pros. With my rampant ADD, I love going to shows where its one comic after another, each feeding the crowd a different energy and style, some great and some not-so-great, but there is a cosmic balance in the in-between, the awkward silences, the jokes that blatantly fail, and how the comics react in times of tribulation. Some of the best moments come out of that, and of course, the opportunity for growth and understanding. The failures seem to be even more important than the victories in this world. It's a type of honesty that doesn't exist in the day-to-day bullshit.

Alright, I'm splitting this shit up, because I wouldnt normally put this all in one entry. Read as you will, fuckers.

COMEDY WORKS DOWNTOWN NEW TALENT NIGHT

And on the talent side of this story, let's get down to some names. And quotable quotes. Staunch performances by Jim Hickox (high-five?), Deacon Gray, Erik Anker, Troy Walker, Chris Charpentier, the lone lady o' the night Roberta Jean Williams, and headliner Brian Hawker. And may I add serious shout out to Erik Anker, because I dont think I could breathe during your entire set. Which was pretty awkward, as I was there by myself. So thanks for that. Additional shout-out to the first timers that went up. Only two of you got sad-faces in my notes...so better luck next time!

Le quotes:

"White people voted for Barack Obama like they were payin' off a credit card. They're like 'We're even, right?"-Brian Hocker..he can say it guys. He's black.

"What do you do if you're an animal rights activist and you get crabs?"-Mike Long with a daunting question

"I bought it at Ross, and then I got on a bus."-Deacon Gray...loved this one making fun of the Ross slogan

"I'm allergic to alcohol. I break out in handcuffs."-Bob Gaudette...so do most of my friends...

And as one of the more interesting aspects of the scene is the general lack of women, I made an observation that they were more minorities in this show than women. According to the demographics of Denver, I think my gender has some catching up to do. Like seriously. What the fuck, ladies.

THE SQUIRE LOUNGE OPEN MIC

Post-Comedy Works, I headed over to The Squire Lounge for their open mic. This would be my fourth time in attendance at the Squire, and it holds a special place in my heart. For the general atmosphere. The dingy whimsy. And the comedians who come to play. On this particular night, the patrons were definitely in a universe that wasn't even borderline aware of the fact that comedy was occurring, and the overall volume of the joint sent my brain into a frenzy of exhaustion. I had to cut out early. And then I almost died the next day at work. But I did stay long enough to catch Jodee Champion's set, which was a level of fucked-up that was beyond awesome, and I of course adore Greg Baumhauer and his ability to remain consistent, innovative, and on-top-of-his-game at all times. And may I add that Gary aka Onus Spears' set had me laughed the fuck out. He killed it.

AZIZ ANSARI, MIDNIGHT SHOW, COMEDY WORKS DOWNTOWN

From Aziz Ansari's Myspace Page

Friday night. At the last possible minute about a wk and a half ago, I managed to score a ticket to the midnight Aziz Ansari show at Comedy Works.......and it was fucking awesome. Fucking. Awesome. I know I'm kind of a douche, and I'm over-positive about everything. But between Aziz, Dan Levy, and local fave Adam Cayton-Holland, the money spent was grrrravy. So worth it.

I have to get in a short bitch session about waiting in the tit-freezing cold for about an hour and twenty. My feet were numb. The people were annoying. Some bitch wouldn't keep the doors open when we were standing right there because she claimed to be pregnant. Yeah, bitch. I'm pregnant too...we finally made it in. But I'm pretty sure my feet are still half-frozen. Ok. Thanks.

Cayton-Holland's bit was good. Real good. He's smarter than all of us, and it borderlines on the unfair. I love how he calls Grand Junction "The Junk" and it will forever be a part of my slang vocab. And I loved his idea for a porno movie "Turn Black the Cock". You're too good for us, Adam.

Dan Levy was an import from LA, assumingly on the same bandwagon as Ansari. And he was, in one word, adorable. I like the fact that he calls himself an "aggressive rollerblader" and that he is taking karate lessons to learn how to defend himself and that he's engaged and loves it. I'm sure every girl across America would want to put this kid in her pocket and make him their bitch. His story of being confused as the Canadian Dan Levy who called Twilight's Kristen Stewart a bitch was awesome. And I think that the fact that he asked Denzel Washington if he "wanted to get wet" is one of my favorite things I've ever heard. Yay for Dan. Smiley face. He is fucking cute.

And then Aziz Ansari. Holy shit, you guys.

When Aziz talks, you listen. And I think its because when he is performing, it doesn't feel like he's doing a comedy show. It feels like he's your funnier-than-you friend and you're just shooting the shit over a few beers. One really important thing that I think is necessary to add is that although Aziz very recently did his first huge Comedy Works special, nearly all the jokes in his set were new material. As I'd caught his special, I thought that his move to be innovative and step up his game on that level was great. As was the comedy.

My favorite bit of the night was based on one of his favorite subjects...R Kelly. On a personal level, I too have a deep and dark obsession with the cocoa-buttah smooth R&B singer, known for his best role in pissing on that 14-year-old girl. I poured one out when he was found innocent, and I've maintained a more-than-awkward assortment of his songs on my iPod. So of course I was stoked when he brought up the main man. And created a bit around the idea that R Kelly would make videos of himself defining every word in the Merriam-Webster dictionary. It was sheer genius. And to top of the awesomeness, Ansari busted out an improv move and had the crowd shout out words for him to define as R Kelly. He nailed paperclip and ATM machine and if this were a real thing, I'd never get anything done. Well played, Aziz.

And, to the delight of everyone in-the-know, he busted out a good segment of Raaaaaaaandy with another layer of improv that killed it. Naturally.

All this considering that it was his third and last show of the evening. We wrapped up circa 2am, a long night of performing for all three gentlemen on-stage. Super kudos to all of them, the show was a frickin' blast.


And ya know, after the combo of all of that shit in one entry, I gotta go. But but BUT I am catching Hot Stand Up with Bobby Crane tonight, and looking forward to seeing Cayton-Holland and alot of other fantastic comics hit the stage. Check it out. Vine Pub. 10 o'clocker.

See you there, kids.