Last Thursday at the Gramercy Theatre during the New York Comedy Festival, Kill Tony hosts Tony Hinchcliffe and Brian Redban bent over New York City’s bottom-notch comedians into pillories for the love of roasting.
Unsantizied and vicious, Deathsquad.TV’s Kill Tony Podcast spares no soul. As names are plucked from what looks like tin shitcan, randomly selected comedians are invited on to stage for a sixty-second set. Then, they must face the judgment (often wrathful) of a four-person panel, including guest stars ranging from Joe Rogan to Whitney Cummings. Anyone can volunteer, But if you blow it, prepare to be roasted alive—burnt, broiled, and blasted with high-heat.
Kill Tony unfurls like a deconstructed midnight talk show, except the camera crew, band, and hosts are a little bit high and tipsy on tallboys: Tony Hinchcliffe corrals everyone together, directing the rhythm of it all. Redban takes a back seat as the sound designer, chiming in once in a while. A two-man backup band whips up short, crisp covers in an intentionally-bumbling style. It is a straightforward, clever format that tends to play out similarly each time, but this episode had a few surprises up its sleeve.
Professional recidivist and original sinner Shane Gillis showed up unexpectedly to play ball with the Kill Tony cast. Big Jay Oakerson came too the plate too, his look a uncanny mix between a retired football tight-end and pop-punk bassist. Throughout the show, a cabal of ridiculous New York characters shot their shot; most of them air balling, sending waves of pity throughout the audience.
Despite the overwhelming cringe, the night went on to become quite the funny affair: Some geeky dude who looked like he worked at the “world’s last radio shack” went toe-to-toe with Oakerson in a paper-crane contest. A girl named Chelsea—dressed to the nines with uggs and a poncho sweater—may or may not have cheated on her boyfriend while studying abroad in Greece. And the whole show was christened with a big finale, an epic drum-off where dildos and drumsticks crashed into cymbals and snares with machismo passion.
Whether you see them live or slap on your headphones for a pre-recorded podcast episode, Kill Tony is sure to entertain you, one dildo slap at a time!
