One Hell of a Mood Lightener

I just got my copy of Patton Oswalt’s new album 222. Well, perhaps it’s not quite right to think of it as a new album, since 222 is simply the raw, unedited cut of the material used to put together his first album, Feelin’ Kinda Patton.

As depressing as recent events have been, this album has been one hell of a counterbalance. I’m smiling again, something I didn’t think I’d be doing for the next four years. (Patton’s own comments on this nadir of American history helped a bit as well.)

Now, I was singing the praises of Feelin’ Kinda Patton when it first came out, and I’ll continue to do so. For most people, the basic, single-disc cut is probably just fine. An absolutely hysterical showing from one of the finest comedians on the planet.

But there is so much more on this new, two-disc set. Some of my favorite routines that didn’t make the cut the first time around. The George Bush/Darth Vader, stupid/evil comparison (gee, any wonder I’d enjoy that one). The Amsterdam trip. The airline-passenger-with-tabasco-sauce story. And so many others.

Not to mention being able to hear Patton become more and more intoxicated as the evening goes on — while never losing the sharpness of wit that makes his stories so phenomenal.

I’ve recorded most of Patton’s televised standup sessions, with an eye toward transferring the audio to my iPod; once the album came out, I figured I’d just go with that, but there were still a lot of holes.

Now, I think I can finally clear up the TiVo space.