Walking the Room, a podcast hosted by Greg Behrendt and Dave Anthony, is a carnival of love, festival of filth and cavalcade of laughter.
Walking the Room’s main source of joy is in its spontaneity. The pair’s self confessed lack of prepared material and love for one another, over the 90 odd episodes, has created a world in which to create brilliantly funny ideas off the cuff, and have become exceptionally good at it. How they turn minimal amounts of story into extended segments is extraordinary, at times rendering my public bursts of laughter very difficult to hide. Dave and Greg’s ability to switch a story from being told straight, to being torn up and made utterly profane and hilarious is also something to be admired. Just how quickly they move from a seemingly innocuous anecdote into a regaling about fisting or enthusiastic murder, why it’s simply incredible at times.
Their profanity and endless forays into the dirtier side of funny is one of the defining things about this show. A lot of shows, and comedians, use ‘going dirty’ as an excuse for lazy comedy and to illicit cheap laughs, not so WTR. Whilst a lot of their stories end firmly embedded in the crass spectrum, this is not a goal, nor is it a cheap resort. If it wasn’t as genuinely humorous, or clever, or simply pushing the bounds of disgust then it’d easily be unlistenable. But the pair’s delight in diving head-first into piles of filth, then making such great heaps of fun from the depths, makes the podcast a genuine delicacy.
This dynamic of both leaping into rivers of dirty comedy together is indicative of another of the show’s vital traits: Dave and Greg’s chemistry, or flat-out love for one another. I hate to use the term bromance, not only since it’s over-played, but also because that doesn’t quite cover the obvious levels of their affection. The way they go from insisting that they’ll beat each other senseless, to seamlessly intertwining their conversations and thoughts is just priceless. Much as Greg is the loud shouty voice of noise and dynamism, and Dave is a more dour, despairing and angry presence; both switch roles frequently, or don’t adhere to either for long periods. Very few pairings in any media achieve such an interesting and well-worked harmony that allows for them to never end up in dynamic cliché. Their symbiotic relationship is really something special, and really adds to both the humour of the podcast and it’s, warm, close, brotherly romantic atmosphere of the show.
Walking the Room is also in part, a tribute to fruitless anger. Dave’s anger at almost anything that seems ridiculous, cheap, poser-ish or called ‘Greg’ really drives the show forward. His righteous ire, even when embossed more in cadence than words is both a delight for the ears and really helps the show’s motion. Greg’s reactions to these often semi-ludicrous, and sometimes entirely serious outbursts, and the way he can extract the elements of ridiculousness from Dave’s energy adds an even more fevered excitement and humour. One can tell that Dave’s anger is more out of either frustration or in the pursuit of laughter. Even when he is shouting at hobotangs or networks or his neighbours, you can hear that he just wishes the world was more just, or nice, or a little bit easier, but really doesn’t know how to make it so, and Greg gets to endlessly mock him for it.
The occasions where they get a guest in, like Patton Oswalt, Kyle Kinane, one or more of the guys from the TOFOP podcast, it just emphasises the joke cycle. It somehow manages to get dirtier with company. As if the inclusion of another person into the closet is an endorsement of their previous behaviour, and that now they have to give an emphasised version of the show right into the guests face. Guests also offer fresh angles to the podcast, a new voice and a new point of view that is always welcome.
Walking the Room is a show that is simply a joyously filthy caress for the ears, revelling in it’s created universe, and inviting you to revel too. It’s beyond great fun, and it almost offers great laughter; just take an hour to sit down, turn on your headphones and let the show wash over you.
The podcast is available on iTunes or through www.walkingtheroom.com. Both Dave and Greg are available through twitter on @daveanthony, and Greg through @Rippedlikejesus. That’s all, now go put your ears in it.