by Mike Henneberger

The costume-clad Comic Con crowd has taken their toys—sorry, "collectibles,"—and returned to their fortresses of solitude. But just when you thought it was safe to go back out on the New York City streets (okay, so you never thought that), the Big Apple is being invaded again. This time—with the 31st Annual College Music Journal Music Marathon going on from Oct. 18-22—the invaders a little more frightening: college kids, more specifically, hipster college kids.

And with almost 1000 performers including up-and-coming indie bands and alternative comedians at close to 100 New York City venues, you might as well join us. Oh, did I say us? I meant them. If crowded music halls with "those damn kids and their loud rock-and-roll" isn’t you’re scene, here are some stand-up comedy options that should keep a smile on your face:

The comedy kicks off on the first night of CMJ, tonight at Union Hall. Mr. Coconut’s Comedy Show will feature Heather Lawless, Jack Kukoda from Onion Sports Dome, and the Gabe Delahaye, half of the sketch duo Gabe and Max.

At 10pm the Union Hall night only gets bigger with An Evening with Mike Birbiglia, where Mike will be telling stories from his appearances on NPR’s This American Life, his current show My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend, and his 2011 Comedy Central Records release Sleep Walk With Me.

Here’s Mike telling a story about one of his first comedy performances:

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There's just one more day until CC Live @Bonnaroo Comedy Tent, and I can think of no better way to wait out the last few hours until the big webcast than by watching some Hannibal Buress videos. Not only is he one of the best young stand-ups working right now, but he's also been crushing it as a TV writer, first on SNL and more recently on 30 Rock. He'll be one of the many comedians appearing in tomorrow's webcast, but for now, here's a clip of him performing on John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show.

More Hannibal Buress videos after the jump.

CC Live @Bonnaroo Comedy Tent can be seen this Sunday, June 12 starting at 6pm ET / 3pm PT at comedycentral.com/bonnaroo on the Internet, and on mobile devices such as iPhone, iPad, Android devices and tablets. Follow us all day on Twitter @ComedyCentral, and join in the conversation using the hashtag #BonnarooComedy.

The webcast will also feature appearances by Lewis Black, Donald Glover and JB Smoove with stand-up performances by Ted Alexandro, Craig Baldo, Bill Bailey, Nate Bargatze, Cheech Marin, Ralphie May, Tim Minchin, Eugene Mirman, Tig Notaro, Henry Rollins and puppet Improv group Henson Alternative's "Stuffed and Unstrung."

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We're counting down the days until Sunday's CC Live @Bonnaroo Comedy Tent by highlighting just a few of the great comedians who will be on hand for the big webcast. Yesterday, we took a look at some Donald Glover clips, and today we're featuring the great Eugene Mirman. Unless you're a big, dumb knucklehead, you're already familiar with his appearances on everything from Comedy Central Presents to The Colbert Report. But even the world's biggest Mirmanhead will enjoy rewatching these classic stand-up clips, beginning with this one from John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show.

More clips after the jump.

CC Live @Bonnaroo Comedy Tent can be seen this Sunday, June 12 starting at 6pm ET / 3pm PT at comedycentral.com/bonnaroo on the Internet, and on mobile devices such as iPhone, iPad, Android devices and tablets. Follow us all day on Twitter @ComedyCentral, and join in the conversation using the hashtag #BonnarooComedy.

The webcast will also feature appearances by Lewis Black, Hannibal Buress and JB Smoove with stand-up performances by Ted Alexandro, Craig Baldo, Bill Bailey, Nate Bargatze, Cheech Marin, Ralphie May, Tim Minchin, Tig Notaro, Henry Rollins and puppet Improv group Henson Alternative's "Stuffed and Unstrung."

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If you're a regular reader of this blog or viewer of Comedy Central, you're likely already more than familiar with the very funny Al Madrigal. He's appeared on Premium Blend, had his own Comedy Central Presents special and was recently one of the featured comics on the latest season of John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show. Well, you can add Daily Show contributor to that already impressive resumé, because Al will be making his debut on tonight's show!

Be sure to tune-in at 11/10c. In the meantime, here's Al talking to his new co-worker John Oliver:

After the jump, enjoy a few Al Madrigal stand-up clips.

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Now that Obama has released his birth certificate, it's smooth sailing from here on out, right? Wrong. According to John Oliver, this "frustrated zookeeper" of a president can't even impress his friends.

Don't miss a new episode of John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show tonight at 12a/11c featuring comedians Kumail Nanjiani, Jen Kirkman, Kyle Kinane. and Al Madrigal.

There's an all-new episode of John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show tonight at 12a/11c with guests Brendon Walsh, Kumail Nanjiani, Glenn Wool and Kirk Fox. In this clip, John Oliver says the US is number-one in whack-jobs. Personally, I take issue with that. And as soon as I get out of this jacuzzi full of marmalade and finish giving my ferret a mani-pedi, I'm going to write him an angry letter.

After the jump, Brendon Walsh talks about fake mustaches.

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If Kumail Nanjiani does not amuse you, it is only because you have never seen his work or you are dead inside. You can see how hilarious he is tomorrow at 12a/11c on John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show, but were you aware that Kumail can act, too? It's a fact! And he's LOL-inducing in the following promotional clip for Franklin & Bash, where he plays an agoraphobe, someone who is afraid of open spaces and travel. This is a condition that works well with a career in blogging (ahem), but not so well with a job in a law firm. Behold the magic that unfolds when Kumail combines his skills with those of handsome thespians Breckin Meyer and (SQUEE!) Mark-Paul Gosselaar!

For more Kumail Nanjiani action, be sure to tune-in to an all-new episode of John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show tomorrow night at 12a/11c. He'll be on there with Brendon Walsh, Glenn Wool and Kirk Fox.

Matt McCarthy is one of the most fun comedians to watch live. Whether he's performing in a small room or a packed house, he delivers with boundless, barely-contained energy. He just kicked off Marking Out, a new live stand-up show taking place every third Monday of the month at New York's Ace Hotel (the next one is April 18). You may recognize him from his commercial work where he played the failing cable guy competing with Verizon. Or you may also recognize him from his small role in The Other Guys. Whatever you recognize him from, if you didn't already, it's high time you knew a little more about Matt McCarthy.

What's the origin of the name Marking Out?

That's simple. It’s a pro-wrestling term for when you get excited about seeing something even though you know it's a show. I see a lot of parallels between stand-up comedy and pro-wrestling. They're both bastardized in a way. They're both laughed at, in good and bad ways. They're both so popular, so massively popular, but they're both looked down upon a little bit by certain segments of the world, because of what they are, because it's base performance. It's as base of a show as you can get. Stand-up is one person. Pro-wrestling is two people. It's just, the two most direct pieces of vaudeville and traveling carnival shows and stuff like that.

The thing about comedy too is you know it’s a joke. You know pro-wrestling is a show but you still get excited anyway. You still start laughing. You still start believing, "this guy is a fucking asshole." No, he's just making jokes. It's very, very powerful for a thing that people tend to take for granted.

It seems a lot of stand-ups are very into wrestling. There are definitely parallels there.

It's just about finding your voice, finding a persona or a character or an outlet. There's a lot less athleticism involved in stand-up.

Click after the jump to continue reading the interview and to watch some clips.

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If you didn't see last night's new episode of John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show, you missed John celebrating the short-lived game show Downfall. I never saw the show, but from the way he describes it, it basically sounds like America's Hamlet, but with people pushing jet-skis off of ten-story buildings in place of iambic pentameter.

An all-new episode of John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show airs next Thursday at 12a/11c with guests Brendon Walsh, Glenn Wool, Kumail Nanjiani, and Kirk Fox.

In this Jokes.com exclusive video from SXSW, John Oliver and Al Madrigal talk about dealing with positive hecklers at their shows. Jeez, if I can't heckle negatively or positively, how am I supposed to ruin the entire audience's night? I guess I'll have to stick to neutral heckles like, "I am presently watching you perform stand-up!"

After jump, watch a video of Al performing at SXSW.

An all-new episode of John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show airs tonight at 12a/11c with guests Mike Lawrence, Marina Franklin, Brendon Walsh and Greg Behrendt.

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