IF YOU GO

WHAT: See Comedian Dave Attell live

WHEN: Friday at 8 p.m. (is SOLD OUT) and 10 p.m. Saturday at 6:30, 8:30 or 10:30 p.m.

WHERE: ComedyWorks, 1226 15th St. in Denver. 303-595-3637

HOW MUCH: $35

ON THE WEB: www.comedyworks.com, www.daveattell.com

"I still get excited about being on stage and coming up with new material,” standup comic Dave Attell told the Colorado Daily. “Getting that initial reaction to something you thought up that day ... is something you don’t get in any other medium.”

A non-stop barrage of bizarre and brooding tangents, Attell’s unrelenting and unapologetic style has continued to drive audiences wild over the years – making him, unequivocally, one of the premier acts to see in the industry, to date.

“Some ladies like to get the Brazilian wax – to me, that’s a myth,” said the comic in his most recent HBO special, “Captain Miserable.” “I usually arrive weeks later, when, whoever that was for, it didn’t work out. Now it’s starting to grow back in. It’s got that five o’ clock shadow that makes it look like your vagina was up all night trying to solve a murder.”

Achieving initial recognition from Comedy Central’s “Insomniac with Dave Attell,” the comic parlayed the success of his late-night travelogue –featuring a few minutes of his standup, followed by a variety of misadventures exploring the nightlife of various cities – with a 2003 Comedy Central Records DVD entitled “Skanks for the Memories.”

In an exclusive interview with the Colorado Daily, Attell described that, although the show went off air in 2004, the vibrant bar culture that made up much of the spectacle of the show and its fanbase has continued to follow him in spirit.

“I’m old now, so I don’t really hit the bars the way I used to,” he says. “But when people see me I guess they assume I’m drinking or need a drink. I suppose it’s a good problem to have.”

Attell, however, remains a true “comic’s comic” in the sense that he has always remained true to following his own unique style. And while he may occasionally foray into projects in other mediums, standup comedy remains as his true calling.

“I try to do as much new material as possible, and the only way to work it through is to just keep going on stage and developing it,” says Attell. “I get the ideas, I write them down and then I try to get them on stage as quickly as possible before somebody else does it.”

As a standup veteran of more than 20 years, Attell has become an icon among up-and-coming comedians. In 2006, “Dave Attell’s Insomniac Tour” was released on DVD – featuring Attell’s stand-up antics in a lineup with Sean Rouse, Greg Giraldo and Dane Cook. The special not only showcases Attell’s comedic brilliance, but illustrates the reverence he commands from other comics.

Recently, Attell has been working again with Comedy Central as the Ringmaster for “The Gong Show” –which offers a hilariously-twisted makeover to the original program of the same name.“For those of your readers who were too young to know or too high to remember, ‘The Gong Show’ was the first talent show,” says Attell. “It was on in the ‘70s before YouTube and ‘America’s Got Talent’ and Dancing With The Whores and all of that.”

Currently airing on Comedy Central Thursday nights at 10 p.m., Attell tells the Colorado Daily that he enjoys hosting the show between celebrity guest judges like Andy Dick and Triumph the Insult Comedy Dog. Even the odd array of talent, which features everything from people on unicycles to a woman who “queefs classical music.”

“There’s no better way to tell someone they either have it or they don’t than with a gong,” says Attell. “I mean, you can have someone come out there and talk to you about your accordion playing for an hour and a half, but if somebody gongs you then you know it might be time for law school.”

For those who can’t wait until next Thursday to see him, Attell will be stopping through Denver this weekend to do five shows at the downtown ComedyWorks – where “Skanks for the Memories” was recorded. Show times are at 8 (SOLD OUT) and 10:00 p.m. on Friday and 6:30, 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. on Saturday. Tickets are available at www.comedyworks.com or by calling 303-595-3637.