Mike Doughty // The Question Jar Show

Release Date: May 28th 2012

Mike Doughty - The Question Jar Show (Snack Bar)

And here we have a double live album from Mike Doughty, the ex-lead singer of Soul Coughing, feat. a lot of songs which were all recorded on his most recent US tour. Basically combining cello, acoustic guitar and a few other instruments, Mike creates a sound that reminds me of so much else all rolled into one. It sounds like a slightly rougher Nirvana Unplugged, a slightly hung over Jack Johnson or a Damien Jurado in training. A raspy sort of folk country. There are some excellent song titles, such as 'Busting Up A Starbucks', or 'I Wrote A Song About Your Car', but they are not as funny lyrically as you might expect. Boo. However, the comical repartee, based on the Question Jar from the album’s title (questions written on slips of paper by audience members before the show and then answered by Mike and his sidekick Scrap in between songs) is pretty funny stuff. There is an awful lot of songs here, and they are all pretty samey. Good, but samey. I kept feeling like if I was at this gig I might be chatting with a friend at the back by about halfway through. I imagine that a studio album would keep my interest for longer. So in conclusion, good, but not that good.

6/10 Lizz Page