Review of the comic's stand-up and music tour

A few minutes of Tim Heidecker’s stand-up and you start to see the appeal of reactionary comedians. Being part of an audience who would boo vegans or the very notion of a ‘female co-worker’ offers a tribal, pantomime-like pleasure, even if you don’t really mean it. ‘No more bullshit,’ is his angry catchphrase, eagerly completed by an audience well aware of his work.

But Heidecker is parodying those comics who pander to such base instincts, and we’re all in on the gag. His alter-ego is that of a dreadful hack comedian, desperate to appear edgy and pander to the audience. It’s a well established space in which several comedians operate  – most brilliantly Neil Hamburger, the darkly, bitterly pathetic creation of Gregg Turkington, who just happens to be Heidecker’s partner in the On Cinema podcast.

Heidecker has his own take on the genre, with his character’s delivery racked by uncertainty. He has no conviction in his stance, nor his gags, frequently stumbling over punchlines he has little faith in, or needing to refer to his notes to remind himself what he’s supposed to be saying. The ambition may be ‘edgelord’ but his ability extends only to awful puns. His hot take on the news is telling the audience ‘Ukraine your neck to see me.’

As with almost all puns, the poor quality is part of their groanworthy appeal and Heidecker and his fans lean into that, celebrating their awfulness. Occasionally an unironically good gag gets in, such as one based on iWatches, set up at rewardingly great length with a punter providing the feed line.

The character occasionally lets his frustrations get the better of him, with a lovely bit of physical comedy destroying a flip-chart, demonstrating Heidecker’s talent for clowning. As does a later prop gag with a basketball.   

It adds a little extra depth to a character who could be one note, while the enthusiastic buy-in from the male-dominated audience at Brighton’s Chalk nightclub further adds to the sense of fun. But half an hour is probably this persona’s limit, which is all the comedy Heidecker performs.

For essentially on this tour he’s acting as his own warm-up man for a music gig from the Very Good Band, which he fronts. They’re a good-time bar rock outfit with elements of country and blues, better than you might expect from a comedian’s side-project. Certainly there’s strong musicianship from the five-strong band (including their frontman) that are tight when needed, loose when not.

He serves some comedy in this section, both between the songs and in some of them, though this is not the main point. The stomping Hot Piss – a highlight of the set which Heidecker recorded for a previous album of entirely urine-based songs under the band name The Yellow River Boys – is clearly in this comic category. And Heidecker mocks Bob Dylan’s surprisingly clunky tribute to Lenny Bruce by performing it verbatim. Only the slightest of commentary needed.

Of their own work, nothing quite matches the verve of the Kink’s Victoria, which they cover with oomph, but there are plenty of jaunty toe-tappers, most notably When I Get Up – a remarkably cheery song about depression.

Some more mellow songs have a social message: Property could be seen as Heidecker’s update of Big Yellow Taxi  while Backwards is a cataclysmic but twangy country and  number. Meanwhile his  musical fandom is evident in one song that plays tribute to his awakening via Neil Young’s Harvest Moon, then the very next track namechecks Venus In Furs.

He’s obviously having great fun in his musical endeavours, from grunging on his guitar to going topless, Iggy Pop-style – and that spirit, bolstered by a vibrant band, easily spreads to the audience.

• Tim Heidecker and the Very Good Band are at Trinity, Bristol tomorrow; Rescue Rooms, Nottingham on Monday;The Garage, Glasgow, on March 28 and Vicar Street, Dublin on March 30 before continuing their European tour.

Some sketches from the gig from Brighton-based artist Curtis Tappenden.

Review date: 25 Mar 2023
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett