Ari Shaffir's Skeptic Tank

Ari Shaffir's album. I decided to do a slightly in depth analysis of my CD, Revenge for the Holocaust. This is the kind of thing I want to see more of in comedy. Discussing a standup recording the way an actor or director would discuss a movie. How were the bits concieved? What were the struggles associated with their development? Maybe a funny anecdote or two about the process. So here it is. If you've never heard my album before, enjoy. If you have heard it, here are some facts about it you may find interesting.

Dr. Steve Grraham and Jeremy Horn met me in my hotel room at the MGM to talk about what being a doctor really entails. Dr Steve, as everybody calls him, was awesome. He was completely open about the realities of his job. It's a lot different than I thought. From the hours, to the pay, to the patients, he talked about it all. And Obamacare.

Jeff Danis and Ryan Oneill met me at the Comedy Store on a beautiful January day. We talked about working as an employee at the Store. It's a job a lot of us had and each era of door guy was different. This is about all the different positions we all worked in while we started comedy.

Josh Meyrowitz came over to my LA apartment to talk to Mat Edgar and me about asperger's syndrome. I've been hearing about it ever since I was little but I've never met anyone with it until Josh. He's a little different than they way it's usually portrayed on TV. Maybe that's the comic side of him. Anyway, fun conversations on an interesting condition.

Doc Willis met me at the Comedy Store to talk about his days slinging rock on the streets of Detroit. That's right, when Doc was 14 (What? 14? Yes, 14) he was in a gang and sold drugs to make a living. We go into who his customers were, all the violence, what makes someone hard, and much, much more. It's a really good episode. Enjoy.

Duncan Trussell had me over to his new apartment to do a podcast. We ate a cookie, had some wine, and talked about love. Total coincidence that this is coming out for Valentine's Day, by the way. It was a really good discussion about how we get into relationships that may or may not be good for us. Then we played Occulus Rift and I almost barfed.

Jonas Larsen (the Senior Vice President of Talent and Specials for Comedy Central) met me for the final podcast from Skeptic Tank East headquarters 1. We talked about comedy specials. How they look and why, how they're shot and why, pretty much I got to ask almost everything I've wanted to know about what goes into the process of making a special. I have no idea if it'll be interesting to non-comedy fans or not. Hopefully it will be.

The Schmoes, Kristian Harloff and Mark Ellis, met me at the Comedy Store for a second straight year to have fun and talk about the Oscars. It's the funnest way you'll find to get ready for your Oscar party (home alone in your underwear with General Tso's chicken sauce on your chest). This is such fun conversation that barely relates to the Oscars at all. And of course we got interrupted by Pauly again.

Brandt Tobler and I walked to Runyon Canyon on a hot February afternoon. We talked about what a shitbox father he had. It's a story that has its roots in mall scams that Brandt had worked all through growing up. And it continued to Vegas scams that he ran while living with dear old dad in Sin City.

Jacob Sirof and Sherry Sirof (nee East) each had me over to their places of residence to talk about the divorce that they're going through right now. First I went to Moshe Kasher's old place where Jacob is staying. Then a week later I went to their old apartment to talk to Sherry about the same topic. It's an interesting view into two sides of a disolution of the bond of marriage.

Joe Derosa had me over to his house so we could talk about what it's like boning girls from the comedy scene. But we got way sidetracked by a percieved slight and so we had to deal with that fire before we could get back to the sex thing. And we got some fun stories about the New York comedy scene while we were finding our way back.

Tom Segura had me over to his palatial beach house to do an in depth analysis of his first album, Thrilled. It was a hilarious album and I'm glad he was able to give an inside look at how the bits came to be, his delivery style, and the problems he has looking back at the album. We treat it kind of academically. It's something I'd like to see a lot more comics do in the future and I'm so happy Tom was willing to do it here. The standup will be hilarious and the analysis will be instructive.

Sarah Tiana has me over to her new house to talk about all the places she's been. And she's been to soooo many places. Comedy has brought her all over the middle east and half of Europe. And her adventurous spirit has brought her to many more places. Steve Simeone joins me for the intro and outro on location in the car on a road trip down California.

Nick Youssef takes a break from his busy day of mentoring jihadists to joing me on the roof of the Comedy Store for a podcast. This is the first one I've done from up there. We talked about his time on the AIDS LifeCycle where he rode a bicycle from San Francisco to Los Angeles. We talked all about bikes and then ended it by Youssef making a bet he could never hope to win because he sucks.

Doug Benson met me at the Comedy Store and we sat on the patio, smoked reefer, and talked about each of our years in New York. It was a fun podcast that didn't even get interrupted by the AA meeting letting out through our haze of pot smoke.

Brad Williams joined me on the patio of the Comedy Store one April afternoon to talk about what it's like to be a midget. He was open and honest and it was a fun, informative look at a different life experience.

Pete Davidson came over to my apartment in LA to talk to me about rap and hip hop. He brought his friend Dave Sirus. And lucky he did, too, because Pete was super distracted checking tweets from his first network TV set airing. It was still a fun discussion and I am now a huge Juicy J fan.

Katie Manzella came over for the last podcast ever from my LA apartment. I invited her over to talk about her love affiar with blow jobs. Katie is beyond a pro at it. She's the queen. She loves giving them and she gives them liberally. And by the way, the final number was 12.

Andy Haynes met me at the Comedy Store to talk to me. He gave me a perspective on open relationships that I've been missing. That of a failed open relationship. Fun conversation and it was interesting to hear this side of it. Steve Simeone and Steve Rannazzisi join me for the intro and outro.

Dave Attell joined Kurt Metzger, Big Jay Oakerson, and me at a table in front of the Stand comedy club in New York to talk. Talk about what? Not any single topic like this podcast is supposed to be. It was all meandering. From NYC bums, to Donald Sterling, to Dave's standup series Comedy Underground.

Bert Kreischer had me over to his house to talk about his first CD, Bert Bert Bert. This is the third one of these album analysis episodes I've done and it might end up as the most interesting. Bert recorded this years before he was ready. Years. It was super fun picking this apart with him. We get to mock a 5 year comic for being so foolhardy. Let it be a lesson to all of you. Slow down or you'll crash.

Ms. Pat joined me in a park in Brooklyn (maybe Park Slope? No, that seems wrong) to tell me about what it was like growing up in the hood in Atlanta. Spoiler alert: It was way different than how I grew up in the suburbs of Maryland. It's a story of teen pregnancies, gunshot wounds, and Jimmy Carter.

Jeff Scott had me over to his West Hollywood apartment to tell me the story of his HIV. How he got it, how he's managed to live with it for 30 years, how it's affected his life, how he's been treated by others, and about the friends he's lost. It's one of the most interesting podcasts I've done. You should share it with everybody.

Billy Wayne Davis had me over to his dinge hole of a motel 2 years ago to talk to me about his imploded marriage. It was a wreck and he's finally out of it. I held on to this one for so long because much like a beaten dog, Billy Wayne was still scared of his ex until now. The introduction was recorded on top of the Great Wall of China.

Jason Nash met me at his friends deluxe apartment in the skyiyiy to talk about marriage. Nash has always been, shall we say, rageful about his marriage onstage. It was nice to get a good honest negative view of marriage from someone who is still in one. Intro from Hong Kong.

Des Bishop met me in a park in Beijing to tell me all about China. Des is a comic from Ireland by way of New York and he moved to Beijing a couple of years ago to learn Mandarin to try to do standup for Chinese people. He came as an outsider and after almost 2 years there, he's made quite a few observations about the country and about Beijing in particular. What a cool thing about podcasts that I can record these with minimal effort on the other side of the planet. Dave Smith joins me for the intro and outro.

Kurt Metzger had me over to his apartment in Harlem to talk about drugs. Kurt has always been that one friend that everybody has who can always find anything you're looking to do. From weed, to pills, to coke, Kurt has always been able to find it. And he's tried everything. Keren Margolis picks up the mic from time to time, too.

Mark Normand met me at Tompkins Square park one day. We sat in the grass, took in some sun, and talked about all the women he's been sleeping with. Mark has been going buck wild since his breakup. He's pretty much boning a new girl every 2 days for 2 months. I've never seen anybody on such a tear.

Luis J Gomez came over to my aparment to talk to me. I was trying to figure out how a guy like him was made. Where he came from. Luis is kind of a degenerate. He might disagree, but that's how I feel. So I wanted to see what makes someone become what I feel is a degen. It involves a mother who loves heroin and child abuse.

Al Madrigal, Kurt Metzger, Brody Stevens and John Heffron all joined me at the 2014 Montreal Comedy Festival for the Skeptic Tank's first live podcast. We talked about virginity. About losing it, about who took it from us, about how it felt, and about lots of other stuff. It was a fun time that I wish could've gone on longer.

Dante Nero came over to my apartment to tell me about his days as a stripper. Dante use to work all over New York under the name "Mandingo." It's a life filled with debauchery, sweaty women, and cash. Nick Youssef joins me for the intro and we get majorly sidetracked with talk about Mexicans who don't understand that videos aren't real life.

Duncan Trussell invited me over to his sweet ass apartment to talk about magic mushrooms. I needed someone for a shroomfest episode this year and as soon as I realized I was gonna be in LA, I thought, "Oh! Duncan!" He's like a spirit guide for this stuff. So knowledgeable on the subject and so smart in his analysis. I hope everybody has a great #shroomfest. Be safe. Start looking for mushrooms for next year now. They stay good in a ziplock in the freezer. Happy Shroomfest!

Jonah Ray invited me into his converted garage studio to tell me all about Hawaii. Hawaiians have always been the biggest homers of any state in the US. And the daily life in Hawaii has always intrigued me. Jonah grew up there. So he was more than equipped to handle all the questions I had. Jonah Ray is one of the nicest, coolest guys you'll ever meet. I'm glad to get a chance to talk to him every time. I also have some good news about the Comedy Store I share in the intro.

Christina Walkinshaw met me in Montreal to talk all about Tinder. She's an expert of sorts and she and I discussed all things Tinder, her tumultuous past with Sam Tripoli, deportation and we pretty much just had a fun couple hours. Join us on a Tinderganza!

Nick Youssef and I were in Chicago to watch Arcade Fire and to do a show at Zanies to pay for it. So we decided to do a podcast all about concerts. Nick's been to a million concerts and I've been to a bunch of the ones he's been to. So it's a fun conversation about live music. Direct from Chitown.

Mark Demayo came over to my apartment this week. We drank some beers and talked about his 20 years as a policeman in New York. It was a fun, open conversation. I asked him a ton of questions about what being a cop is like and Mark answered everything. Fun podcast.

Sheng Wang came to my apartment to talk about the Asian American experience. Well, he came over to do a podcast, and then I asked him all about Chinatown, and then it just becomes a whole podcast about Asianness.

David Taylor met me at my LA AirBnb to talk about chefing. Chefing? Sure. David has been cooking for a few years now and he's gotten kind of into it. So we just talked about that. And of course, we meandered a crudload.

Louis Katz met me at Union Square to have whole foods salad bar lunch on steps like champions. We talked about being Jewish. I only really have my own perspective on it, so it was nice to hear what another version of a nonaffiliated Jew is. You'll have to excuse the music coming from the live Dance Dance Revolution going on behind us. New York, man. There's no space. And I do the intro from the most fitting place I could think of for a podcast about Jews. Live from Munich, Germany at Oktoberfest.

Pete Johannson met me at my flat in London to talk about the city. He moved here from Canada 5 years ago and he loves it. We talked all about London. The food, the healthcare, the girls, the drugs, and the comedy. It's been a while since I've seen him and it's always a good time. Intro with Katharine Ferns who's another Canadian comic in London.

Dan Soder met me at my apartment to talk about growing up in a single parent household. Dan's dad was like me, so he was gone pretty early in Dan's life. From then on it was just him and his mother. So we talked about that and some of the usual meanderings and that's how you make a podcast.

Jayson Thibault came to my AirBnB to talk about alcholism. Jayson is a drunk. He's addicted to alcohol. He was sober for almost 3 years and then he relapsed and now he can't stop drinking. So we talked about what it means to be an alcoholic. From how it started, to what it means on a day to day level, to why it continues. It's an educational experience through the eyes of an addict.

Dean Delray came over to my Los Angeles AirBnB to discuss a great love we both share. Candy. It's our muse. Seriously, we're both highly addicted to candy and we can't stop eating it but this is more a celebration of the thing we love. From how we got started on the sugar highway, to how it makes us feel, to our all time favorites. This is all about that sweet sweet.

Steve Simeone is my guest for the 4th of these album commentary podcasts. The cool thing about this one is that Steve's album doesn't come out till tomorrow. I begged him to do this with me and he was cool enough to say yes. So everyone go out and buy Remember This by Steve Simeone and tell 8 to 10 friends about it as soon as you can.

Christine Evans made the block and a half trek to my aparment to talk about sex some. And more importantly, about the threesomes here and Big Jay have been having for the last 6 months. You see, Christine is one of those cool girlfriends. She's into doing fun stuff with her boyfriend and what could be more fun than boning a third person. And then another third person. And then another. It's an informative and boner inducing episode that's sure to be a Christmas classic for years to come.

Joe Rogan had me over to Freak Party studios to do an album commentary of his 2007 album, Shiny Happy Jihad. This is the first time I'm doing this where it's not the comic's first album. But I was there when Rogan was developing this material and I was there for the recording in San Francisco at Cobbs and I thought that added insight would make it way better to talk about this CD rather than his first CD. This is the longest podcast I've ever done. Hopefully iTunes won't have a problem with it. Emjoy your lives.

Kathleen McGee came to my hotel room in Vancouver to update me on all the new adventures she's been on. I had her on to talk about some new sexcapades but then we also got into depression and giving up.

Liz Miele came over to my apartment to talk about dyslexia. Well, she came over to talk about running marathons but the damn recorder screwed its mother right at the end of a 2 hour podcast so then we did another one about dyslexia. We probably should've done that one first because it's a way more interesting subject. She tells me all about her dyslexia, what it means to her, how she copes with it, and how other people react to it. It's a really interesting episode all brought to you by my stupid recorder not auto saving.

Nick DiPaolo met me in the damn soundbooth at The Stand (I've really started doing these just about everywhere, huh?) to talk about life in the sticks of Westchester. Nick is from Boston, lived in New York for probably almost 2 decades, and now he lives up there. He's a guy I always looked up to as a comic so it was nice to get him on.

Morgan Black met me in my hotel room in Vancouver to talk about his job at Insite. Insite is the safe injection place on Hastings Street in Vancouver. It's a place in heroin alley where junkies can go to get clean needles and they can use those needls to shoot up in a place that's supervised by people like Morgan. He watches over them to make sure they don't overdose. If they begin to, it's up to him to try and save them. He's seen a lot since he's been there and he shares it here.

Dan Naturman stopped by my apartment to talk about what Christmas is like as a Jew. It was a surprisingly upbeat and pro-Christmas talk from two people who would have been used as the star on a Christmas tree only 30 years ago. Is that a thing? Anyway, happy holidays, everyone.

Kathleen McGee and I got SUPER high and went to see Dumb and Dumber To and then we did a podcast and talked all about it when it was over. Recorded in my hotel room in Vancouver, this was supposed to be the first Spoiler Alert podcast from me but now it's just an extra gift for New Years. Enjoy. And don't worry about it spoiling any jokes for you. If you were gonna see the movie, you would've seen it by now. Be honest with yourself for once.