We Are Miracles

Album review

The ability to be charming and remarkably offensive at the same time is the cornerstone of Sarah Silverman's career, and she certainly hasn't lost her magic touch judging from her second comedy album, 2014's We Are Miracles. While Silverman's delivery has a likably casual, conversational tone that's winning and surprisingly sweet, her character -- a self-obsessed woman who seems utterly unaware of how awful her statements often are, especially when she imagines she's being thoughtful or insightful -- is clearly the result of a great deal of careful effort, and on We Are Miracles, Silverman takes profound joy in steering the audience into the wall just when it seems like the lovely potty-mouth on-stage has actually produced an idea worth pondering. So a speech on the false divisions in America's political culture leads to the messy realities of the typical sex scandal, a spirited feminist rant about issues of female body image evolves into a punch line about Silverman's less than ideal hygiene, and semi-profound thoughts about our place in the universe detour into an uncomfortable contemplation of her father's genitals. On We Are Miracles, Silverman's skills as a performer are excellent, even when her material is not quite up to the level of her first LP, Jesus Is Magic (which, like this album, was actually the soundtrack to a visual record of her standup work -- Jesus Is Magic was produced as a concert film, and We Are Miracles was drawn from an HBO special that premiered in November 2014, with Silverman occasionally mentioning the cable outlet in her act). That says a lot about Silverman as a standup comic -- even when she isn't delivering laughs (or wildly inappropriate remarks about her parents, her body, or her pets), she's interesting and fun to listen to. Which is good, because there are plenty of moments on We Are Miracles where you might wonder if you're supposed to laugh or just gasp in dropped-jaw shock.

© Mark Deming /TiVo