Now based in Los Angeles, Michigan's Brad Wenzel is a wry, observational, one-liner comedian whose Sweet Nothings is low-key but immensely entertaining.
His setup/punch line style means jokes arrive disconnected, one idea after another. It might be rapid-fire, but for Wenzel's slow-motion delivery, which gives each joke and punch line space to breathe. It's more space than we get, as it's impossible not to laugh at his ridiculous material that spans his perspective on life and time.
At one point, Wenzel suggests that he's not very smart. He says that if he were in Sir Isaac Newton's place and an apple fell on his head, instead of discovering gravity, Wenzel's mind would lead us all to wear helmets for fruit. It's a simple, effective joke — one of a million he tells on this record — that I'm not doing justice, because it's all in Wenzel's manner and delivery. He is in fact, a smart guy and his writing abilities, on display here, are clearly exceptional.
As a title, Sweet Nothings encapsulates Brad Wenzel's hilarious set here. It's a balm in an intense age and if you blink, you might miss its comedic genius.
(Third Man Records)His setup/punch line style means jokes arrive disconnected, one idea after another. It might be rapid-fire, but for Wenzel's slow-motion delivery, which gives each joke and punch line space to breathe. It's more space than we get, as it's impossible not to laugh at his ridiculous material that spans his perspective on life and time.
At one point, Wenzel suggests that he's not very smart. He says that if he were in Sir Isaac Newton's place and an apple fell on his head, instead of discovering gravity, Wenzel's mind would lead us all to wear helmets for fruit. It's a simple, effective joke — one of a million he tells on this record — that I'm not doing justice, because it's all in Wenzel's manner and delivery. He is in fact, a smart guy and his writing abilities, on display here, are clearly exceptional.
As a title, Sweet Nothings encapsulates Brad Wenzel's hilarious set here. It's a balm in an intense age and if you blink, you might miss its comedic genius.
