188 – Chris Gethard (The Chris Gethard Show, Beautiful/Anonymous)

My First Band Podcast

This week's guest is Chris Gethard. Though Gethard isn't a musician, he is a cult comedy legend, the namesake of The Chris Gethard Show, an actor (who you might know from films like Don’t Think Twice and TV shows like Broad City and The Office), the host of the Beautiful/Anonymous podcast, a soda pop appreciator and historian, a point of New Jersey pride, and someone who has helped countless people with his openness about his mental health struggles. He's also a huge music fan who has performed alongside world-renowned musicians on stage and on his TV show.

Prior to Gethard's Midwestern jaunt (including two shows at X-Ray Arcade on Oct. 7), he told My First Band host Tyler Maas about how music actually helped pave his way towards a career in comedy. Over the course of the conversation, he also talked about memorable basement shows and DIY concerts from his past, seeing Less Than Jake at a July 4th barbecue, unforgettable musical guests during The Chris Gethard Show's run, marrying a member of his house band, briefly singing in a Smiths cover group and how he probably wants to sing in your project.

My First Band is sponsored by Mystery Room Mastering and Lakefront Brewery. The show is edited by Jared Blohm. You can listen to My First Band on iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify and wherever else you get podcasts. You can also listen to rebroadcasts of previous My First Band episodes on WMSE every Wednesday from noon to 12:30 p.m. CST. Music used in this episode comes courtesy of Devils Teeth ("The Junction Street Eight Tigers") and The Unlovables ("Miracle Braves").