Category: Comedy
Dr. Teeth & the Electric Mayhem Live at Outside Lands Festival
If the mission statement for this blog is to celebrate good and happy-making things, then I am morally obligated to share this video,...... Read More
New Release Roundup: Dinosaur Jr., Jon Reynolds, Tony Lucca, Comedy from Jen Kirkman
MUSIC 1. Dinosaur Jr – Give A Glimpse of What Yer Not Thirty years on, Dinosaur Jr. is making some beautiful music. Melody...... Read More
New Trailer for Dana Gould’s Horror-Comedy Stan Against Evil
More horror! More comedy! Things are looking up for horror fans on TV, especially horror with a sense of humor. Ash vs Evil...... Read More
New Release Roundup: D Generation, essence, The Silks, Joseph C Smith’s Orchestra, Camille Harris, and Anthony Atamanuik and James Adomian Do Trump Vs. Bernie
MUSIC 1. D Generation – Nothing Is Anywhere It’s been almost 22 years since D Generation released their eponymous debut album (and almost...... Read More
New Release Roundup: Music from Ruby Dee and the Snakehandlers, Breanna Barbara and Comedy from Hari Kondabolu, Pat Brown
MUSIC 1. Ruby Dee and the Snakehandelers – Little Black Heart In a genre like rockabilly, which can seem a little cookie-cutter at...... Read More
New Release Roundup 7/15: Frank Zappa and Joe List
MUSIC 1. Frank Zappa – The Crux Of the Biscuit and Frank Zappa for President Being a Frank Zappa completist is a damn...... Read More
Department of Tangents Podcast Ep 10: Tom Snyder and New Comedy from Joe List
My guest for Episode Ten is Tom Snyder, co-creator along with Jonathan Katz of Dr. Katz: Professional Therapist, musician, producer, and comedy writer....... Read More
New Release Roundup – Comedy from Aparna Nancherla, Music from Night Verses and Slow Season
COMEDY 1. Aparna Nancherla – Just Putting This Out There Nancherla’s debut album is also the first release on Tig Notaro’s Bentzen Ball...... Read More
Department of Tangents Podcast Ep9 – Reformed Whores and Music from Tom Snyder
Reformed Whores is a really fun, silly, raunchy duo currently based in New York City. Les Claypool of Primus is a big fan,...... Read More
New Release Roundup – Sara Watkins, Ranch Ghost, Albert Brooks on Netflix
MUSIC 1. Sara Watkins – Young In All the Wrong Ways If you only know Sara Watkins as the fiddle player from Nickel...... Read More
Department of Tangents Minicast – MST3K Reunion Edition
Tonight is a very exciting night for fans of the beloved movie-riffing show, Mystery Science Theater 3000. Stars from the show’s past and...... Read More
Department of Tangents Podcast Ep8 – Musician Robbie Fulks and a Song from Reformed Whores
There is nothing Robbie Fulks lacks as a musician. He is a talented flat picker as a guitarist, and a voice that can...... Read More
Preview: Quincy Jones – Burning the Light Tonight on HBO
“What do you do as a dying man when you’re already following your dreams?” That’s the question we hear Quincy Jones ask at...... Read More
Red Peters: Music for imMature Audiences
Red Peters has been immature for decades. It was true back in the 70s when he was opening for Frank Zappa and the...... Read More
Department of Tangents Podcast Ep7 – Comedian Steven Wright and Music from Robbie Fulks
I’ve interviewed Steven Wright for a couple of different publications over the years and always enjoyed the strange and wonderful twists in the...... Read More
New Release Roundup May 20, 2016 – Mudcrutch, Bob Dylan, Ken Reid, Dan Soder
MUSIC 1. Mudcrutch – Mudcrutch 2 If you’re a Tom Petty fan, you’ve already previewed the first release form this album, “Trailer,” either...... Read More
The Department of Tangents Official 2016 Presidential Endorsement
After careful consideration, the editorial board here at the Department of Tangents have unanimously decided to throw our support behind “Nubbins” Sawyer in...... Read More
Department of Tangents Minicast Ep5: Interview Flashback with Carl Reiner
This was one of my favorite interviews for the Globe, not only because Carl Reiner had so much to say, but because he...... Read More
Department of Tangents Podcast Ep6 – Musician and Filmmaker Brendan Boogie
My guest for Episode 6 of the Department of Tangents Podcast is musician and filmmaker Brendan Boogie. When I sat down with Brendan...... Read More
Department of Tangents Minicast Ep4: Interview Flashback with Margaret Cho
I interviewed Margaret Cho back in October when she was stopping through Boston on tour. At that point, she was still months away...... Read More
New Release Roundup May 6 2016 – Cyndi Lauper, Ryan Adams, and Dan Boulger
MUSIC 1. Cyndi Lauper Detour Lauper has always had one of the best voices in pop music, and here she changes up her...... Read More
Department of Tangents Minicast Ep3: Interview Flashback with Richard Lloyd
Some of my most enjoyable interviews have happened when I don’t ask too many questions. The subject has so much to say, it...... Read More
New Release Roundup: Nate Leavitt & the Elevation, Guided By Voices, The Loom, Texas chainsaw Massacre 2
MUSIC 1. Nate Leavitt & the Elevation Someone Send A Signal I was privileged to hear Nate play a couple songs from this...... Read More
Department of Tangents Podcast Ep4 – Nate Leavitt Interview, Andrew Mayer Comedy
Nate Leavitt spent a couple of decades playing guitar in bands like Delta Clutch, Oldjack, and Parlour Bells before he stepped out on...... Read More
First Minicast: Trevor Williams, Writer/Director of “The Jane,” Out Today on UCB Comedy
Trevor Williams wrote and directed the short film The Jane, which debuted on the UCB Comedy Vimeo site April 13. Funny thing about...... Read More
Interview Flashback: Skyping With Puddles
On New Year’s Eve 2015, I “interviewed” Puddles of Puddles Pity Party for the Boston Globe. I put interview in quotes because Puddles...... Read More
Live Review: Steve Martin and Martin Short – An Evening You Will Forget for the Rest of Your Life
Steve Martin and Martin Short: An Evening You Will Forget For the Rest of Your Life April 6, 8 PM Wang Theatre, Boston,...... Read More
Perfect Routines: “The Morning After” from Inside Shelley Berman
This album, and this routine in particular, has a lot to do with shaping what I find funny. The cadence, the ideas, the...... Read More
Kickstarters: Humor Magazine The American Bystander – Issue Two
There has been a lot of interest in the National Lampoon lately, from the documentary Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead to Ellin Stein’s wonderfully...... Read More