If you’ve followed his career, you understand how difficult it is to say which of Fred Armisen’s characters qualifies as his signature role. Between his tenure on “Saturday Night Live” and the skit show “Portlandia” alone, he’s created so many ridiculous personas who have come to life with idiosyncratic twitching and easily identifiable shtikelach that it overshadows Armisen, the person. But as opposed to appearing live as British punk vocalist Ian Rubbish or feminist bookstore owner Candace, he’ll continue his jovial exploration at the intersection of music and humor with his touring show, Comedy for Musicians But Everyone Is Welcome.
That’s not to say he’ll be on stage as his “true self” by any stretch. Clips from past performances tell us you can expect impressions of people in musical situations: band members, audience oddballs attending concerts, and the like. As the name of the show implies, some material will likely skew a touch in the direction of inside baseball suited for real-ass musicos, but the sum total offers an egalitarian mix of stand-up, physical comedy, and instrumental rambling geared toward delighting general audiences.
Armisen is well-versed in the language of musicians, having paid his dues behind the kit with Chicago post-hardcore outfit Trenchmouth and working with Blue Man Group in his earlier years. And while he may be forever remembered for skits like 2010’s dead-on classic Punk Band Reunion at the Wedding featuring his destructive rage-filled frontman of fictional hardcore act Crisis of Conformity, he legitimately has more than enough of what professional noodlers call “chops.”
The reason for his current production—one that he has been touring for a few years now—still trumpets the ongoing happy collision of his two lifelong passions. Conceivably an outgrowth of his Netflix special “Standup for Drummers” (2018), which then went on to become a Grammy-winning album the following year, he can play guitar, he can sing, and he can do quite a bit. So even if some jokes go over your head, if you’ve laughed at any of his antics before, the majority of the punchlines will land right where they should.
CAUTION: The writer’s unrestrained cynicism and unresolved issues shape the writing of this opinion column. Results may vary.
