I s it the accents? Is it the hirsuteness? Is it the manner in which they stumble around an awkward social situation while singing a lovely / silly ditty? Just what is it that makes people fall so hard for Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie? Heck, maybe we just love everything about the duo that comprise Flight of the Conchords aka ‘the fourth most popular folk parodist act in New Zealand’.
Ever since charming their way into the hearts of Edinburgh audiences in 2002 (the following year they were nominated for a Perrier Award), Clement and McKenzie enjoyed further adoration in the UK with one radio series (narrated by Rob Brydon and including Jimmy Carr as an obsessive fan), 22 TV episodes (also featuring more beloved overseas Fringe alumni, Kristen Schaal, Arj Barker and Rhys Darby) and even made an appearance on The Simpsons in 2010.
Separately they’ve not done too badly either with McKenzie scooping an actual Oscar for penning ‘Man or Muppet’ in 2011 i lm The Muppets, which resurrected Jim Henson’s sock puppets, while Clement has appeared in winning movies such as Eagle vs Shark, Dinner for Schmucks and, get this, Men in Black 3. But news of their recent reunion was hailed as the glorious tonic we all needed in these gloomy, doomy times, and with a TV special also tipped to be on the way, 2018 looks like being the year of the Conchords. But don’t take our word that their return is cause for enormous celebration: here are some thoughts from a bunch of Glasgow Comedy Festival comedians whose shows feature heavy doses of music . . .
NEIL BRATCHPIECE AKA THE WEE MAN Flight of the Conchords last played Glasgow at a sold-out SECC in 2010, during which a fan shouted ‘where’s Murray?’ referring to the character in their TV show played by Rhys Darby. Quick as a l ash, Jemaine replied ‘he isn’t here ’cos he’s i ctional. He’s on vacation with Homer Simpson. And Taggart.’ That wry, offbeat Kiwi humour was displayed with a sharp local reference thrown in. How I wish I’d been there to hear it, but my pal Rob who went to the show told me this story. I also didn’t get tickets in time for their upcoming Hydro gig before it sold out so if you know anyone who knows anyone, don’t be a stranger. After all, a stranger is one down from ‘work mates’ on the friendship graph. Better yet, just tell me any notable things from the show in case The List ask me to write something like this again, which is probably unlikely. I have, however, done this nice little cartoon [pictured, right]. ■ Blabbermouths, The Stand, Sat 10 Mar; The Wee Man’s Rap Battle Showdown 2K18, The Hug and Pint, Fri 23 Mar; Billy Kirkwood & Neil Bratchpiece Mandatory Festival Show, The Admiral Bar, Sat 24 Mar.
PAUL VICKERS AKA MR TWONKEY
with
song, I would say ‘Think About It’ is their funniest lines like: ‘There’s people on the street / Getting diseases from monkeys / Leave those monkeys alone / They have problems of their own’, and ‘They’re turning kids into slaves / Just to make cheaper sneakers / But what’s the real cost? / ’Cos the sneakers don’t seem that much cheaper’. ■ Mr Twonkey: Twonkey’s Night Train to Liechtenstein, Liberté, Fri 9 Mar.
36 THE LIST 1 Feb–31 Mar 2018
TIME FOR As Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie their cult status, we asked some musical to pick a favourite Flight