Time Out New York

“It’s a milestone,” Eugene Mirman says of his debut album The Absurd Nightclub Comedy of Eugene Mirman, released last Tuesday. “I’ve always wanted to create something that you can hold and go ‘I made that.’” How fortunate that he didn’t choose carpentry. Mirman, who co-hosts the long-running show Invite Them Up in the East Village and began touring in 2002, says he was approached to record an album last winter by the indie-rock imprint Suicide Squeeze, home to Modest Mouse, for whom Mirman opened on their February tour.

The album’s structure is simple, but its wit is complex, full of bizarre ideas presented with casual confidence. For example, “This credit card I signed up for allows me to pick the question that they ask me and the answer that I give them. So now, whenever I call, they have to ask me what am I wearing? And I have to respond ‘I don’t think that’s appropriate!’”

When so many comics mimic each other, one wonders if Mirman has been in a vacuum. He’s actually a comedy album collector and says his disc is modeled after those of the ‘50s and ‘60s. True, the back cover is yellowed and features a “qualifying” intro by David Cross. But, thankfully, the material is all from the ‘00s.

Mirman celebrates his release at the Bowery Ballroom Monday 18. Comedy duo Slovin and Allen host indie A-list guests. Attendees are suggested to wear suits and dresses. Telling people you think “That’s inappropriate” is not.