Doug Stanhope: Word of Mouth

Stanhope has slowly become my favorite comedian...he is a living treasure trove of wit and insight as well as he is a master at detailing disgusting bodily functions and oddball sexual encounters. Word of Mouth may be his best work (even if it isn't exactly my personal favorite), and this is largely because it combines these aspects of Doug's stand up style so perfectly. His satire dealing with American society and an overly controlling government that gets its citizens off on propaganda restating how "free" they are is on the same level as legends like Carlin and Hicks, and occasionally is even funnier! Then, he transitions to dirtier, less political, but still indefinitely divisive and controversial material that explicitly deals with gross out sexual situations, and Stanhope genuinely pulls this stuff off in such a way that it becomes extremely honest, brutal, and sometimes quite relatable. The entire set is a masterpiece of dirty wit and heavily hilarious social commentary that will please those tough enough to embrace the hardcore stances Stanhope takes and the very disgusting ways he can approach more filthy comic material.

Yes, there is a lot of swearing. Yes, he does talk about doing drugs and yes, he is most likely drunk on stage. But who cares when it's this funny. It's NOT for everyone, but that doesn't make it bad. Like the user who had to switch it off because he was 'offended' by the profanity, yeah people were offended by Bill hicks, by Lenny Bruce and are still offended by George Carlin. Stanhope is right up there with them, if you can look past his crudeness you'll see an accurate social comic portraying his views on the world. His Cd's are much better but this is still something to watch and laugh at. People without a sense of humour or people who are offended by vulgarity (like people who complain about south park) should not only not watch this, but they should also learn to deal with the realities of life. How come swearing offends you and world poverty doesn't? But anyone who likes Carlin, Pryor, Bruce or Hicks then you'll love Stanhope.

Staying true to declaring that his comedy is not for everyone, Doug Stanhope's animated performance and his incorporation of his audience shows that his more than a decade as a road comic hasn't been fruitless.

Encouraging his audience to be loud and disruptive fuels his material, spiking it with a opportunities to play his audience, even make jokes at their expense.

Stanhope rips apart airport security, making fun of guys standing around in camouflage, "who haven't done push-ups in five years." Before tearing into the hypocrisy he despises in the U.S. Government, he takes a moment to make fun of bin Laden, and his current uselessness; saying, "bin Laden can't get one muslim to leave a flaming bag of dog crap on an American doorstep and ring the bell."

For years Stanhope has praised drug use and said he has done drugs, and will not quit. He elaborates, sharing his experiences with Viagra, and even illicit drugs.In "Word of Mouth" Stanhope incorporates material from his albums and some unpublished material one can find on his site

jumping around the stage like a hyperactive child, Stanhope performs drunk, and sometimes searches for the right word fighting off the effects of the beer he drinks on stage.

This performance will offend supporters of Bush, overly pious people, and anyone who can't handle excessive amounts of profanity.

So if you fall into that category, watch it anyway.