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Mark Frauenfelder Recommends: Spaceteam and The Magazine

Mark Frauenfelder of BoingBoing and the Gweek podcast joins us again this week to talk about some of his current favorite things. Mark suggests a turn at the multiplayer iPhone game Spaceteam, which is all about yelling techno-gibberish at friends. In the mood for something a little more quiet? Mark also recommends The Magazine, a minimalist, ad-free digital publication "for geeks and curious people."

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Comedy Writer Simon Rich: Why Writing Like a Child Can Be a Good Thing

Simon Rich got his first book deal in 2007. Since then, he’s published five books, received a nomination for the Thurber Prize for American Humor, contributed regular essays to the New Yorker, and worked on Saturday Night Live as a staff writer (which he recently left for a top-secret writing job at Pixar). How old is he? 29. Basically, Simon Rich has his act together.

The characters he writes about? Not so much. His latest book, The Last Girlfriend on Earth, is a collection of vignettes about lost characters coming to terms with love. And these aren’t your typical stories of romance and heartbreak; in true Simon Rich fashion, his stories make the mundane profound and vice-versa. (No one else can write a story about God’s girlfriend and follow it up with a touching monologue from a prophylactic’s POV.)

Simon sits down with Jesse to discuss the autobiographical elements of his stories, the appeal of writing from a child’s point of view, and how love is a lot like heroin.

Simon Rich’s new book of essays, The Last Girlfriend on Earth, is available in bookstores everywhere.

Want to hear about Simon's obsession with The Simpsons? It's here, in a longer cut of our interview. Click to embed and share it with your friends.

Comedy: Eugene Mirman Discovers a Notebook From His Past

Digging through old stuff from your childhood can be a lot of different things – insightful, hilarious, wistful, nostalgic. But in comedian Eugene Mirman’s case, it was just embarrassing. In this clip from his latest special, Eugene describes a childhood relic, found in his parents’ basement.

Eugene Mirman’s new special, An Evening of Comedy in a Fake Underground Laboratory, is now available as a combination CD/DVD.

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Bill Burr On Confrontation and Comedy

Conventional wisdom amongst standup comics dictates that a crowd has to be on your side before you can make them laugh. It’s good general advice, but it’s not advice that Bill Burr follows – and he’s all the better for it.

Bill Burr’s comedy is, in a word, aggressive. It’s not just that he looks and sounds tough, qualities that have landed him voice acting work in Grand Theft Auto IV and guest appearances on Breaking Bad. Aggression and confrontation are at the core of Bill’s act; he’s not afraid to curse out unruly audience members or start a set with a joke that, in a lesser comic’s hands, might totally alienate a crowd. But his comedy isn’t all tough-guy machismo. He’s just as likely to direct a rant at himself as he is others, a quality that makes his work all the more hilarious and human.

Bill spoke with Jesse a few years ago to talk about Bill’s style of comedy, challenging himself and audiences in his act, and every performer’s most dreaded nightmare: having to follow a dog or child onstage.

His latest special, You People Are All The Same (which was the subject of a recent Outshot), is streaming on Netflix.

This interview originally aired in October 2010.

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The Outshot: Solomon Burke’s "Soul Alive"

On this week’s Outshot, Jesse tears the house down with a timeless live album. It’s Solomon Burke’s "Soul Alive."

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Here's where you can find some of our favorite people this week:

Asheville, NC - They Might Be Giants at The Orange Peel on Sept. 28th;

Atlanta, GA - Adam Corolla at the Tabernacle on Sept. 30th;

Baton Rouge, LA - Brian Posehn at the Manship Theater on Sept. 26th and 27th;

Bloomington, IL - The Comedy Attic will feature Jackie Kashian and Maria Bamford on Sept. 22nd, 23rd and 24th and Doug Benson (taping an episode of Doug Loves Movies) on Sept. 26th;

Boston, MA - The Wilbur Theater will host Bill Burr on Sept. 23rd and 24th and Louis CK on Oct. 1st; Das Racist will be at the Middle East Restaurant and Nightclub on the 28th;

Canton, MA - The Hold Steady will appear at the Life Is Good Festival on Sept. 24th;

Chicago, IL - They Might Be Giants with Jonathan Coulton at The Vic Theater on Sept. 23rd;

Colorado Springs, CO - Doug Benson at The Black Sheep on Sept. 21st;

Des Moines, IA - Demitri Martin will appear at Hoyt Sherman Place on Sept. 23rd;

Detroit, MI - Chris Tucker will perform at the Fox Theater Detroit on October 1st;

Indianapolis, IN - They Might Be Giants and Jonathan Coulton at The Vogue on the 22nd; Doug Benson at Crackers on Sept. 25th; Chris Tucker at the Murat Theater at Old National Center on Sept. 30th;

Louisville, KY - The Improv will host Marc Maron on Sept. 22nd, 23rd, 24th and 25th and Doug Benson on October 1st; Bob Edwards will be appearing to promote his new book, "A Voice in the Box: My Life in Radio", at the Filson Historical Society on the 22nd;

Madison, WI - Dave Atell will at the Comedy Club on State on Sept. 23rd and 24th;

Miami Beach, FL - Chris Tucker will be at the Fillmore Miami Beach at Jackie Gleason Theater on Sept. 24th;

Nashville, TN - They Might Be Giants and Jonathan Coulton at the Cannery Ballroom on Sept. 27th;

New Haven, CT - Das Racist will play at Toad's Place on Sept. 29th;

New Orleans, LA - Chris Tucker at the UNO Lakefront Arena on Sept. 23rd;

New York, NY: Colson Whitehead will be doing a book signing at McNally Jackson Books as part of the New Yorker Festival on October 2nd; He'll also be participating in a panel discussion about Alternative Realities at SVA Theatre on Sept. 30th;

Omaha, NE - Demitri Marin will be at the Omaha Music Hall on Sept. 24th;

Ottawa, ON - Greg Proops will be performing "Whose Live Anyway?" at the Centrepointe Theater in Ottawa, ON on Sept. 23rd;

Philadelphia, PA - The Hold Steady at the Popped Music Festival on Sept. 23rd; They Might Be Giants and Jonathan Coulton at the Theater of the Living Arts on Sept. 30th.

Portland, OR - Scott Thompson and Kevin McDonald perform "Two Kids, One Hall" at Helium on Sept. 22nd, 23rd and 24th; Tig Notaro at Mississippi Studios on Sept. 28th;

Providence, RI - Das Racist at The Met on Sept. 30th;

Raleigh, NC - Kevin McDonald and Scott Thompson performing "Two Kids, One Hall" at Goodnights on Sept. 29th, 30th, Oct. 1st and 2nd;

Richmond, VA - They Might Be Giants and Jonathan Coulton at the The National on Sept. 29th;

Salt Lake City, UT - Jimmy Pardo at Wiseguys Comedy Club on Sept. 30th and Oct. 1st;

Sayreville, NJ - Brian Posehn at the Starland Ballroom on Sept. 30th;

Seattle, WA - Demitri Martin at The Neptune Theater on Sept. 30th and Oct. 1st;

St. Louis, MO - They Might Be Giants and Jonathan Coulton at The Pagaent on Sept. 24th

Tulsa, OK - They Might Be Giants and Jonathan Coulton at Cains Ballroom on Sept. 25th;

Ventura, CA - Doug Benson at the Ventura Harbor Comedy Club on Sept. 28th;

Washington, DC - Das Racist at the 9:30 Club on October 1st.

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They Might Be Giants launch their tour this week with Jonathan Coulton opening. They have by far the most appearances of any performer on this week's list including:

• Tour launch on Sept. 8th at Toads in New Haven;
• Sept. 9th at the Mahaiwae Theater in Great Barringon, MA;
• Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord, NH on Sept. 10th;
• Upper Valley Events Center in Norwich, VT on Sept. 11th;
• State Theater in Ithaca, NY on Sept. 13th;
• Byham Theater in Pittburgh, PA on Sept. 14th; and
• Harro East Ballroom in Rochester, NY on Sept. 15th.

And here's what all of our other MaxFun favorites will be up to this week:

Andy Kindler will be in San Francisco at the Punch Line on Sept. 13th and 14th;

Ben Folds will be in Minneapolis, MN at the Orchestra Hall on Sept. 17th and in Milwaukee, WI at Veterans Park on Sept. 18th;

Bill Burr will be at the Funny Bone in Columbus, OH on Sept. 10th and 11th;

Blitzen Trapper will be playing the Crystal Ballroom in Portland, OR on Sept. 9th; Music Millenium in Portland, OR on Sept. 12th; and Easy Street Records in Seattle on Sept. 13th;

Brian Posehn will be at Ottos Nightclub in Dekalb, IL on Sept. 9th and at the Cubby Bear in Chicago, IL on Sept. 10th;

Chris Tucker at Sheas Performing Arts Center in Buffalo, NY on Sept. 9th, at Citi Performing Arts Theater in Boston, MA on Sept. 10th, and Chicago Theater in Chicago, IL on Sept. 16th;

Das Racist will perform at Bowery Ballroom in Brooklyn on Sept. 12th;

Dave Atell will be performing at Helium in Portland, OR on Sept. 15th through the 17th;

Demitri Martin will be performing Sept. 16th at the Orpheum in Phoenix, AZ and Sept. 17th in San Francisco at the Palace of Fine Arts;

Devo will be at the Crystal Ballroom in Portland, OR on Sept. 16th and Redhook Brewery in Woodinville, WA on Sept. 17th;

Doug Benson will be at the Orpheum Theater in Sioux Falls, SD on Sept. 9th and at the Rialto Theater in Tucson, AZ on Sept. 10th;

Gary Hustwit will be premiering his latest film, Urbanized, at the Tortonto International Film Festival on Sept. 9th, 11th and 16th;

Hannibel Burress will perform September 8th-10th at the Arlington Drafthouse,in Arlington, VA and September 14th - 17th at Comedy Off Broadway in Lexington, KY;

The Hold Steady will perform Sept. 23rd in Philadelphia, PA at the Popped! Music Festival;

Jackie Kashian will be at Kirkland Laughs in Kirkland, WA Sept. 15th - 17th;

John Oliver will be at the Pantages Theater in Minneapolis, MN on Sept. 24th;

Kyle Kinane will perform at the Comedy Club on State in Madison, WI on Sept. 8th, 9th and 10th;

Marc Maron will spend Sept. 8th - 10th at Zanies in Nashville, TN;

Ray Romano will be at the Mirage in Las Vegas Sept. 16th and 17th;

Steven Wright will perform on Sept. 10th at Fox Theatre at Foxwoods Casino in Mashantucket, CT and September 17th at the Meadowbrook Music Festival in Rochester Hills, MI;

Ted Leo will spend Sept. 10th in Portland, OR at the Backspace Cafe;

Todd Barry will make a rare west coast appearance on Sept. 16 and 17 at the Improv in Los Angeles, CA, and he will be joined by Tig Notaro on the 16th;

Two Kids One Hall (Kevin McDonald and Scott Thompson) will perform at Cobbs in San Francisco Sept. 15th - 18th.

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Bill Burr doesn't approve of facelifts.

"Would you rather be 45, and look 45, or be 45 and look like a 28-year-old lizard?"

Tweet Here are some spots around the country where you can catch your MaxFun favorites this week.

Andy Kindler will be at the Playboy Comedy Lounge of the Palms Hotel in Las Vegas August 25th to 27th.

Bill Burr will be at the Stress Factory in New Brunswick, NJ from August 25th to the 28th.

Colson Whitehead will be at the University of Wyoming in Laramie tonight, August 22nd.

Childish Gambino, Mobb Deep and Blu & Exile will be in Mountain View, CA as part of the Rock the Bells Festival at the Shoreline Amphitheater on August 27th.

Jackie Kashian and Maria Bamford will be performing at the Helium Comedy Club in Portland, OR on August 25th, 26th and 27th.

Jimmy Pardo will be at the Funny Bone in Virginia Beach, VA on August 25th-27th.

Kumail Nanjiani will be performing the Meltdown Show at Meltdown Comics in Los Angeles on August 24th with Brent Weinbach, Jen Kirkman and Brett Gelman.

Marc Maron will be at Hilarities in Cleveland, OH on August 25th-28th.

Tig Notaro will be at the Tin Roof in Charleston, SC on August 24th and at the Calendonia in Athens, GA on August 25th.

Kevin McDonald and Scott Thompson will be performing Two Kids, One Hall at Zanies in Nashville on August 25th-28th.

Wyatt Cenac will be appearing at the Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse in Arlington, VA on August 26th.

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• Adult Swim has renewed Rob Corddry's "Children's Hospital" for a fourth season. This show has featured a number of MaxFun favorites, including Rob Huebel and the terrific Henry Winkler!
• Charlyne Yi has landed a role on the upcoming season of "House."
• Starting September 14th, Al Madrigal will be returning to your television in a new NBC comedy called "Free Agents". The show is based on a British sitcom by the same name. If you want to get a taste of it, the network has a quick preview up that includes Al being hilarious. Side note to any fathers who are reading this: you can find true empathy and moral support from Madrigal's funny weekly podcast Minivan Men: A Weekly Podcast for Regular People with Children. Madrigal co-produces the show with fellow dad-comedians Chris Spencer and Maz Jobrani. Last week's episode featured comedian and TSOYA alum Bill Burr.
• Former Sleater-Kinney vocalist and Portlandia star Carrie Brownstein and her new band, Wild Flag, will be releasing their self-titled debut album on September 13th. Then they will be on the road starting October 3rd and throughout the fall. Until then, you should keep your ears busy by listening to their single "Glass Tambourine"
• Zach Galifianakis and the rest of the "Bored to Death" crew will be returning to HBO on October 10th for their third season and the network just released this great teaser clip. I wanna ride the Ferris wheel with these gentlemen.
  

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Here is a quick list of cities and venues where you can catch some face time with your favorite MaxFun performers during the coming week. Click on the name of the venue for ticket info.

• Bill Burr will be at Zanies in Nashville on August 18th, 19th and 20th.
• Doug Benson will be at the Acme Comedy Company in Minneapolis on August 16th, 17th and 18th.
• Jonathan Coulton will be performing while afloat on the Jewel, leaving Skyport Marina in NYC on August 19th.
• Kyle Kinane will be at the Slowdown in Omaha, NE on August 17th and at the Orpheum Theater in Sioux Falls, SD on August 19th.
• Eugene Mirman is celebrating the fifth anniversary of his "Pretty Good Friends" show on August 21st at the Bell House in Brooklyn. Guests will include David Cross and A.D. Miles.
• Tig Notaro will be at the Comedy Bar in Toronto, ON (8/16), in Montreal, QC at La Sala Rossa (8/17), in New Haven, CT at Cafe Nine (8/18) and in Allston, MA at Great Scott (8/19).
• Michael Ian Black will be at the Impov in Louisville, KY on August 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st.
• Greg Proops will performing at the Pittsburgh Improv on August 19th.
• Marc Maron will be at the Playboy Club in Vegas on August 18th, 19th and 20th.
• Scott Thompson and Kevin McDonald will be performing "Two Kids, One Hall" at the Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse in Arlington, VA on August 19th and 20th.

From time to time, of course, there are shows which are likely to be so popular that I wouldn't recommend waiting until the week of the performance to buy tickets. I'll list one or two of those separately each week. Buy now:

• John Waters is doing a one-man show called "This Filthy World" at Salt Lake City's Jeanne Wagner Theater on Oct. 13th.

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This video, made by Bill Burr with our pals from LAist, is a real gem. It's half an hour of Burr driving around and offering his committed opinions about crap in Los Angeles. Bill has such a remarkable energy - so much anger, so much passion, but a real sweetness, too. He's also funny as shit.

Bill Burr is a standup comic. His ferocious style is leavened by the fact that he often trains the ferociousness on himself. His latest special, now on CD and DVD, is Let It Go. He also hosts the Monday Morning Podcast, which is about football and the vicissitudes of the life of Bill Burr.

Burr talks with Jesse Thorn about why he makes it difficult for himself on stage, about shouting down crowds and about fighting to be a better person.