31 October 2011 (gig)
07 November 2011
Jackass and Wild Boyz star Steve-O is now a stand-up comic. Well, sort of. It may sound odd in theory, but Steve-O has always made a living out of making people laugh albeit through getting ridiculous tattoos, letting fireworks out of his rear end and, essentially, self-harm. As for his new material, the clue is in the name: the Entirely Too Much Information tour.
Opening with a joke about blow jobs, Steve-O’s act relies on regaling stories about his colourful sex life, and high jinx with his Jackass comrades. But he also plays with light and shade regarding his three-year (and counting) sobriety and the road that led him there – you’ve got to worry when your hallucinations are concerned about you, he jests.
His current clean state of mind and body does seem to suit him. He confesses to taking Pilates classes, which come into their own when he manages to move a glass of water from his head to a table without handling it – achieved through contortion and highly controlled movement. It’s impressive and palatable, unlike his other party tricks. Steve-O can’t resist dipping into his stunt back catalogue a few times, much to the audience’s joy, so he proceeds to squeeze lemon juice in his eyes, balance a knife on his nose and set his head on fire.
The stand-up comedy platform is an unprotected place to be even if you do have the crowd onside from the get-go. Steve-O hides his vulnerability well and seems relatively comfortable in his ‘new’ guise, lapping up the friendly heckles and thanking everyone for their support. And it’s a role he’s obviously taking seriously, evidenced by him shushing randomly noisy people who disturb his storytelling.
Fans of Steve-O will get this, as they clearly do at tonight’s London gig. Although the show doesn't throw up anything unexpected and is never painfully funny, Steve-O proves he's an entertainer whose self-deprecating and humilating style is still keeping his fanbase engaged. Whether this particular venture really has got legs is debatable – he's got to run out of retrospective material eventually – but the lad probably lives in the moment anyway.
