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Backstage sketch-style scenes appear throughout the special, telling the story of Earlys terrible behavior.
The persona of his stand-up is the same as his cover-band character: Hes all skeezy (faux?)
black leather pants and scruffy half-beard, clowning at sincerity as he bemoans the state of millennial culture.
The songs are original in those specials.
The fact that its all covers is the crux of the joke.
The stand-up portions ofNow More Than Everbuild towers of righteous, mournful grievance on top of pebble-size complaints.
Early is a delighted, furious close reader.
He mocks the hollowness of be yourself Instagram captions.
Hes great at this; he pulls faces like no ones business.
But occasionally his buffoonery almost tips over into too far, almost winks too hard at the specialsSpinal Tappremise.
(Insert joke about Early and the wordstraight.)
The two aims are not in direct contradiction, but at times they strike dissonant notes.
As a result, its through the cover songs themselves whereNow More Than Everextends itself into mastery.
Music is also a cheat.
It marsNow More Than Evers too-cool affect a little bit, but its also a relief.
Its a brief rest inside harmony for a moment before Early gets back to skewering banalities.
The joke is about how derivative his act is, and his bandmates sit around him loudly saying nothing.
Who would walk out?
