Stand-up comedian Simon King started his What鈥檚 Wrong with Simon King podcast 19 months ago because he had more to say.
鈥淪ometimes there were things I wanted to explore and talk about that weren鈥檛 conducive to having a laugh every 30 seconds,鈥� said the of 14 years who wanted to rant less about society and politics and ruminate more about society and culture.
The result is a quick, clever and comical weekly half hour where King riffs on why he was sucked in by the bogus story of a woman who sought a third boob and why CeeLo Green is an a**hole and busts out impressions and performs characters, such as racist Marge Simpson.
鈥淚t probably saves me a lot on psychiatric bills,鈥� King said.
Listeners can share their love of his in person, Oct. 4, when he records live at Little Mountain Gallery during the first annual , Oct. 2 to 5.
鈥淚鈥檓 up against Norm Macdonald. I鈥檓 f***ed, so come out,鈥� King says in Episode 77 of his podcast. Macdonald鈥檚 stand-up gig at the Vogue Theatre overlaps with King鈥檚 live podcast Saturday night.
A second Stuff You Should Know show was added to the festival after tickets for the event swiftly sold out.
Tickets to Stop Podcasting Yourself and Savage Lovecast with Dan Savage are also going fast says the festival鈥檚 marketing director, Cristy Laubman, who adds that with nine different podcast creators in attendance there鈥檚 plenty for audiences to see and hear.
鈥淛ust for something a little bit different, we鈥檝e got the Sklar brothers [of Sklarbros Country], which is a sports comedy podcast happening,鈥� she said.
The festival is billed as the NorthWest Comedy Fest鈥檚 鈥渢echie cousin.鈥�
Podcast events at last February鈥檚 NorthWest Comedy Fest proved so popular organizers decided to produce the podcast fest.
鈥淧eople can [listen] while they work, they can [listen] while they exercise,鈥� Laubman said of podcasts鈥� popularity. 鈥淵ou can spend an hour listening to your favourite music but you can also spend an hour learning about something鈥� Sometimes you just need a pick-me-up and that鈥檚 a good kind of thing to throw on.鈥�
Laubman has noticed a large number of single ticket buyers for the festival.
鈥淲e hope they get out of their house, primarily,鈥� Laubman said. 鈥淥bviously, you could just stay at home and listen to this in your underwear and you鈥檇 probably have a pretty good time, but we鈥檙e hoping to add a social leap.鈥�
When he鈥檚 not at home, King rants at airports, in hotel rooms and on the road in his car while driving to gigs.
鈥淚t must sound hilarious to cleaning staff at the hotel,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like, 鈥業 think that guy鈥檚 just talking. It鈥檚 clearly not a phone call, I don鈥檛 know what he鈥檚 doing. Is he yelling at his phone?鈥欌��
King favours comedian Doug Stanhope鈥檚 podcast and Dan Carlin鈥檚 current events podcast Common Sense.
鈥淚t鈥檚 nice to have a guest once in a while, but I do like that one person talking,鈥� King said, referring to Carlin. 鈥淚 enjoy that connection with the podcast, especially in the car for long trips.鈥�
That鈥檚 why King鈥檚 shows are usually unedited and rarely include guests.
鈥淚f it鈥檚 a personal podcast I feel it should feel more personal. It should feel more honest,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hen I hear podcasts that sound a little artificial or very heavily produced, that just doesn鈥檛 appeal to me. I like the really natural, conversational stuff.鈥�
What鈥檚 Wrong with Simon King boasts listeners in the U.K. and the U.S., people who probably haven鈥檛 seen his stand-up act. Recently, King met listeners who checked out his live show because they knew his podcast.
King regularly performs at King鈥檚 Head Pub and Displace Hashery in Kitsilano, the Kino Caf茅 and the Comedy MIX.
鈥淧retty much anywhere there鈥檚 a dimly lit room with people who鈥檝e drunk too much waiting to get yelled at, you鈥檒l find me,鈥� he quipped.
King鈥檚 excited to be recording live in front of an audience for the first time Saturday night. The episode of What鈥檚 Wrong with Simon King will include guest comedian and 鈥渓ocal curmudgeon鈥� Dylan Rhymer, and King鈥檚 going to invite audience members to complain for one minute.
鈥淗opefully we鈥檒l all have a couple of drinks and we鈥檒l rock Little Mountain,鈥� King said.
Details at .
