Dan St. Germain is Bad At The Good Times
Label: Aspecialthing Records
Recorded live at The NerdMelt Showroom in Los Angeles, CA on September 13, 2013
Beard Trimmer: Phillips Norelco QT4070...just kidding. Dan doesn't use that crap.
Chad White, Wants To Grow A Beard, Can't
Bad At The Good Times reveals that comedian Dan St. Germain knows who he is. He’s a bummer. He likes music. He’s disgusting. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. After appearing basically all over the place – from Conan to The Electric Company to You Made It Weird and many more– Germain decided to release a stand up album filled with his offbeat wisdom. We get to experience almost every facet of his life from his working as a museum security guard to him having to actually return a girl’s phone number.
Germain seems to not feel shame in situations where many others would die, figuratively, if they even get a whiff of embarrassment. But that’s where his humor shines. He aims to make comedy uncomfortable and it’s working so far. In Bad At The Good Times, we get to see the man who created Ding Dashes, a delectably terrible dessert consisting of ranch dressing inside ding dongs, describe why he loves The Dark Knight (including a pretty accurate depiction of Harvey Dent). He even does some light crowd work, which is always welcome.
Oddly enough, he includes some one-liners that encompass their own section that are more akin to something Demetri Martin would spout. These are strange but welcome additions to the album. However, they do signal a slowdown towards that leads towards the end. They don’t add to the experience nor do they really detract. Listening to them, we can get a glimpse into Germain’s writing process; where jokes stem from and where they can and cannot go.
Germain’s Bad At The Good Times does a good job at introducing us to the comedian. He is charismatic and has the swagger of Burt Reynolds carrying a bottle of Jack Daniels. The album screams its freshman status with possibilities of opening up. A little more tightening on the jokes and things would be better. Germian’s style of brute comedy is a welcome addition to a bland landscape.
Grade: 52 Ding Dashes out of 70.
Additional Information:
Additional vocals by Joe DeRosa
Produced by Matt Belknap and Ryan McManemin
Photography by Mindy Tucker
Artwork by Jen Tam