Chris James' debut stand-up album An Actual Comedy Album is a great one for the millennials. You know, the ones who are overeducated and underemployed, scouting the work-field for something that pays a living wage, before admitting defeat and sheepishly moving back in with mom.
The theme of financial woes permeates the majority of the album. Sure enough, the first track opens up with "How's everybody doing? How about financially?" James then launches into what can be viewed as questionable tips and tricks for getting by without going (completely) broke. James discusses his decision to choose squatting over moving back in with his mother, how he prioritizes his bills in order to decide which one he can opt out of paying with the least hassle, and an ingenious way of fooling self-checkout machines into charging you less for bulk items (and subsequently getting yourself banned from the grocery store).
He moves on from economic struggles to examine some of the more exasperating characters in his life — hecklers, a misogynistic friend named Steve, and an alcoholic grandmother. He then closes the album with a bit called "Drugs" in which listeners can almost picture a dewy-eyed James looking forward to the day when market competition drives the price of weed all the way down to a few cents. With this final bit, we have come full circle back to the topic of finances, and can see why James may feel the need to get really high.
Whether intentional or not, An Actual Comedy Album does an apt job of trumpeting the plight of millennials while simultaneously infusing the topic with humour, demonstrating that sometimes you just need to take a step back from those credit card statements and have a good laugh.
(Comedy Records)The theme of financial woes permeates the majority of the album. Sure enough, the first track opens up with "How's everybody doing? How about financially?" James then launches into what can be viewed as questionable tips and tricks for getting by without going (completely) broke. James discusses his decision to choose squatting over moving back in with his mother, how he prioritizes his bills in order to decide which one he can opt out of paying with the least hassle, and an ingenious way of fooling self-checkout machines into charging you less for bulk items (and subsequently getting yourself banned from the grocery store).
He moves on from economic struggles to examine some of the more exasperating characters in his life — hecklers, a misogynistic friend named Steve, and an alcoholic grandmother. He then closes the album with a bit called "Drugs" in which listeners can almost picture a dewy-eyed James looking forward to the day when market competition drives the price of weed all the way down to a few cents. With this final bit, we have come full circle back to the topic of finances, and can see why James may feel the need to get really high.
Whether intentional or not, An Actual Comedy Album does an apt job of trumpeting the plight of millennials while simultaneously infusing the topic with humour, demonstrating that sometimes you just need to take a step back from those credit card statements and have a good laugh.