|
dani eurynome Talk of the Town (downstairs saloon), Oakland, CA June 30th, 2002 It is pretty ballsy to attempt an evening of non-queer-identified entertainment on LGBT Pride day in the Bay Area, but Mr. Neil Hamburger is nothing if not ballsy. How else could you describe a stand-up comedy act that has opened for Mr. Bungle, The F*cking Champs, Guided By Voices, Tortoise, and Tenacious D? How else to describe Neil Hamburger, who is either the worst stand-up act to have graced the stage, or the most brilliant satirist and/or performance artist ever? “You can take a joke about a hooker and make it about Jesus, just by changing a few of the words,” Neil said before the show. That, in essence, is Neil Hamburger. Groans, cheers, and laughs alike abounded in this postmodern absurdist evening. Sketch comedy duo Matt and Nick opened the show. Matt and Nick’s Lil Bits do 30 second sketches that left you unsure if you wanted more or not. The sketches existed in their own timeline, with no preface or explanation, and that of course, was the point. Attaboy and Burke ended the show with their “sugar-induced word ninja” antics- fronting a full band that rocked hard and complimented their hilarous brand of spoken word well. They opened with “Tibetian Cow”- alternating the syllables “moo” and “om” in a sampled/resampled crowd pleaser. But the stars of this evening were definitely Neil Hamburger and Pleaseeasaur. This time around, the infamous Drag City (5 of his most recent releases are on the label) comedian was touring with the Seattle act that is so hard to define. (Pleaseasaur, also known as John Peter Hasson, was in Touch Me Zoo with Joe Talcum of the Dead Milkmen prior to his solo project.) By the start of the show, Pleaseasaur had taken over the small space in the saloon. He placed hospital screens framing the stage area so that he might project images onto them and hide behind them in order to change costumes. And change costumes he did: a furry dog, a guy in a car, and best of all: a wee granny with a baby equal her size (complete with footy pajamas and bonnet) piggybacking her. The costumes were sometimes explained by the songs, but most often were not. Images that were projected onto the screen helped prompt the audience to engage in call and response. Pop culture (a la Olsen Twins) and the stange inner workings of Pleaseasaur’s brain (“Beef Flavored Island”?) collided in this bizzarro slide show that was lo-fi and hilarious. Neil was introduced by Pleaseasaur and came out in his signature rumpled tux and careful comb-over. “What do Elton John and a saber-toothed tiger have in common?” Neil asked on Queer Pride Day. “I don’t know, but keep them away from my ass!” he chuckled. -dani eurynome |