A&E

Dave Attell and Jeff Ross team up for a night of Ball Busting fun

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Fighting words: Attell and Ross doubled up on the trash talk.
Photo: L.E. Baskow
Jason Harris

Three stars

Dave Attell & Jeff Ross May 15, House of Blues.

Risk-taking. In stand-up comedy, it’s one of the essential elements separating the greats from the pack. Dave Attell and Jeff Ross have both proven willing to walk the high wire throughout their careers, and Friday at House of Blues, during the first announced date of their Ball Busters Tour, they might have moved that wire a little bit higher. With the wind blowing hard.

From the moment they took the stage, the two Comedy Central stalwarts worked the room together, for the whole show minus one Ross song. The first third of their set featured the comedians setting one another up for signature bits, skewering each other’s wardrobes and playing with the audience. Ross, best-known for his Comedy Central Roasts, is no slouch. But Attell, one of the most respected comics’ comics in the game, was on a different level.

“You can do anything in this town,” he said. “You can shoot a machine gun, drive a dune buggy, skydive. The only thing you can’t do is walk across the street. You gotta take an escalator over a bridge run by a troll, answer a riddle, get in a gondola.”

Not that the Roast Master General didn’t match the former Insomniac host at times. Attell: “You look like a backup player in the E Street Band and the E is for éclair.” Ross: “You look like you’re going to a plumber’s funeral.”

The last hour of the show featured the duo roasting crowd members who were brought onstage. It was spontaneous fun for a while, but the show could have used a different third act. At some point, no matter how good you are at slamming people’s clothing, life choices and drunken speech patterns, it gets monotonous.

What we lost in that time was more of Attell’s hammer throws. On Subway: “I like to start at the wrong end and work my way backwards. Do you ever do that? It freaks the guy out. He’s like ‘What kind of bread do you want?’ I’m like, ‘We’re not even there yet, dude. I’d like some mayo, please. Put it in your little f*cking CSI gloves and keep moving to the right.’”

At one point even Ross had to admit the night belonged to Attell, saying, “Dave, you’re on fire tonight.” Attell’s response: “Thank you ... for slowing me down.”

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