Rogan's Heroes
Fear Factor and UFC host keeps his eye on comedy
with quicker CD/DVD release of new material
It’s hard to believe it’s already been three years since Joe Rogan’s
last comedy album, but he’s now back with “Talking Monkeys in Space,”
released March 30 on the Comedy Central label, which finds him a little
angrier and fast-paced in his delivery, although the album clocks in a
lot shorter than his last, “Shiny Happy Jihad” (see
review, 4/4/07).
However, Rogan does make up for that with 10 tracks of bonus material
in the form of an extended Q&A session with the audience conducted after
the show captured on the album (from March 5, 2009). In the bonus
material, listeners get another dimension of Rogan, as he dismisses some
questions or comments out of hand, relishing mocking fans of UFC (Rogan
is also a commentator on UFC matches among his several other media
roles) -- saying stuff like “those are gay questions.”
The questions also showcase how sharp Rogan is. For all his marijuana
advocacy, Rogan is quick, belying the myth of pot making you slow.
Almost as if he already had it written, in response to one drug
question, Rogan waxes poetic about DMT, a natural psychedelic produced
by the human pineal gland, and how it wipes your mental slate clean
after taking it.
And this explains why the regular stand-up act tracks on “Talking
Monkeys in Space” are so sharp, particularly the later parts of his act,
“Dr. Phil and His Shitty Advice,” “Touching Yourself Is Evolutionary…,”
and “I’ve Been Caught Masturbating Twice.” On these Rogan hits heights
of Sam Kinison’s classic “I was married for two years” line -- saying,
“if you haven’t gotten caught, you’re not living on the edge enough.
Don’t be a pussy.”
Rogan may not play up an outlaw nature like Kinison did, but his tone
and outlook still are directly inspired by the man, although the
material does diverge toward his own obsessions. And even with a
three-year wait for this album, Rogan has cut down the time between
discs/specials [“Talking Monkeys In Space” is also out in a DVD version]. He’s got a lot to offer to stand-up fans, and with “Fear
Factor” off his plate, he may come out with all of it a lot more often.