Preview: Neil Hamburger is America's Funnyman [Tonight at Emo's Inside]

Neil Hamburger has been derided and applauded, for several years at this point, for being the world’s best worst comedian - his is a conceptual brand of deliberately antagonistic anti-humor that relies more on performance and delivery than the quality of his jokes. And while Hamburger does set an incredibly low standard for a good portion of his material, it’s the occasional line that unexpectedly earns an honest laugh that keeps things interesting, and the audience either scratching their heads or screaming for blood. He employs devices ranging from intentionally poor timing and awful puns to a maddening, near constant clearing of his throat, all of which make a typical Hamburger gig excruciating to sit through if you’re not in on the joke (and some would argue, even if you are).

The rapid-fire profanities directed at audiences deemed to be disrespectful (which is more or less all of them), cheap shots at celebrities, and the occasional inclusion of bizarre blue material that comprise his gigs are even more hilariously baffling when considering his sad-sack appearance. Decked out in a cheap tuxedo, sporting a wildly disheveled comb-over, and cradling a gin and tonic which often ends up on the heads of whoever’s standing in the front row, he looks like a sewer rat’s Tony Clifton, minus the class. On his latest album, last year’s Neil Hamburger Sings Country Winners, he borrowed the concept from Ween’s 12 Golden Country Greats and made his first foray into the world of country music satire. Tonight at Emo’s however, Hamburger will be on stage in all his offensive, confrontational stand-up glory, and love him or hate him, you will definitely not forget him.

Neil Hamburger [MySpace] [America's Funnyman] (unofficial)
Fred Bothwell [MySpace] [Rooftop Comedy]
Chris Trew [Official] [MySpace]
Joel Keith [MySpace]