Gaffigan, Matt Pond and God!

Titanic II. I know I’m not alone praying hard for a devastating, boat-wrecking hurricane to hit the Caribbean shipping lanes next February.

Knock it off. I’m not against the ubiquitous “Life is Good” apparel, it’s perfect for active grandmas and dorky Narberth dads who want some “fun clothes” for the weekend, but I’m a bit perturbed the Lord has decided to set up a sweatshop and get in on the action. C’mon God, aren’t your throwback jerseys making you enough pieces of silver?

All Hail Pale! I saw comedian Jim Gaffigan kill in Philly this past weekend. Jim is a large, pale clean comic, that’s right, no naughty words for this extremely likable fella. It takes a lot of balls and a lot of talent to go a whole set without injecting the eff-bomb-for-emphasis crutch so many of his peers rely on. He did twenty minutes on bacon… yep, just bacon, and it was brilliant. He also does an hysterical running commentary of his act using a high-pitched whispery voice of a confused Midwestern woman who doesn’t quite get his jokes. This is a brilliant device that allows Jim to bust on himself during his transitions from one bit to the next, “He sure talks about food a lot…” and “That joke didn’t even make sense…” Trust me, it’s funnier heard than read. Jim is right up there with the King of Clean, Brian Regan.

Need even more Gaffigan? He is also Conan’s best guest (hands down) and animated partner in the Internet video sensation, “Pale Force!” NBC has even set him up with a tricked-out website devoted to the crime-fighting cartoon duo. Check out the season premiere.

Pondering. The new Matt Pond PA CD, Last Light, is quite fabulous. It’s hypnotic and lush indie pop that feels so effortless yet is filled with so much substantial musical goodness, a welcomed contrast to the glut of low-fi, quirk-crap bands that are all the rage today. (Yeah, we get it beardy, your vocals are buried on purpose and you’re playing a sitar with your feet. Yawn.).

Congrats! The Barrymore Awards (think Philly Tony Awards) were just announced and the award for supporting actor in a musical went to Dave Jadico, in Mum Puppettheatre’s The Fantasticks. The multi-talented Dave is the younger brother of our pal Tom of the almighty Grundles!