Overview of Ep 597 - Fart Goggles (feat. Luis J. Gomez & Lemaire Lee)
Matt McCusker and Shane Gillis host a loose, freewheeling episode with guests Luis J. Gomez and Lemaire (LaMere) Lee. Conversation jumps between comedy-industry banter, personal stories, cultural hot takes, and speculative tech anxiety — all delivered as off-the-cuff humor. The recurring running gag is the idea of “fart goggles” (thermal/infrared goggles to detect farts), which epitomizes the episode’s mix of absurdity and observational comedy.
Key topics discussed
- Comedy scene dynamics: Austin vs New York, who “made it,” and the struggles/comparison points for working comics.
- Personal industry stories: roast culture, Skankfest anecdotes (biggest loser contest, crowd bits), and comedian characters (Crack Amigo, Dietl Beetlejuice).
- Jeffrey Epstein fallout: emails, flight logs, public reaction, and how wealth affects accountability.
- AI and surveillance: fear of AI social platforms, deepfakes, AI learning from each other, and worst-case scenarios (robots, universal basic income, loss of privacy).
- VR and porn: personal confessions about VR porn, technology’s role in sexual behavior and its impact on traditional porn consumption.
- Health/weight-loss trends: Ozempic/GLP-1 skepticism and discussions about fitness choices.
- Relationships and therapy: brief takes on couples therapy, BetterHelp sponsorship tie-ins, and polyamory jokes.
- Privacy & facial recognition: anecdotes about Clear, airport facial recognition, and anti-face-recognition makeup.
- Absurdities and late-night tangents: cloning pets/humans, Hitler hologram/historical holograms, fart-thermal-vision fantasies.
Notable moments & quotes
- Opening mood-setter: “Laughter is such a divine medicine.”
- Provocative claim: Lemaire’s original line that “most of the comics who moved down here couldn’t cut it in New York,” sparking debate about comedy training grounds.
- Tech anxiety nugget: “AI will be your overlords… eventually we’ll just be pets,” used to summarize a worst-case AI scenario.
- Viral-feel bits:
- Skankfest story of contestants kissing each other’s genitals and boxing (comic, extreme festival lore).
- The “fart goggles” idea: hunting farts in public with thermal/infrared gear — repeated as a running gag.
- Emotionally revealing: a host describes having a therapeutic but unsettling chat with ChatGPT programmed as his mother, which became unexpectedly emotional.
Tone & recurring themes
- Tone: Combative-funny, irreverent, and conversational — often crude and provocative in typical late-night comedy podcast fashion.
- Themes:
- Industry paranoia vs. optimism — impatience in comedy careers vs. encouragement to be authentic and patient.
- Distrust of institutions and tech — especially government/AI, and how media/tech can warp reality (deepfakes).
- Nostalgia and generational change — how tech, porn, and social norms have changed how people grow up and interact.
Sponsors & ad reads (brief)
The episode includes multiple sponsor segments woven into the show:
- Shopify (matt and shane promo)
- BetterHelp (therapy ad)
- Body Brain Coffee (Luis J. Gomez product)
- PrizePix (sports betting promo)
- Viori / Viore (fitness apparel)
- Rocket Money (personal finance app) These ads are delivered as integrated reads and brief promos with codes.
Practical takeaways / recommendations
- For comics: be patient — the guests discuss career timelines (first 10 years figuring it out, second 10 building a career) and advise authenticity.
- For listeners worried about AI/privacy: be aware that deepfakes and data aggregation are real concerns; limit what you put online and expect rapid tech change.
- For relationships/mental health: therapy (BetterHelp mention) is presented as a useful intervention for tough moments; honesty and communication suggested.
- Entertainment note: Skankfest-style live events and character bits (Crack Amigo) remain core community experiences—support live comedy if you want to engage more with the scene.
Guests, plugs & where to follow
- Hosts: Matt McCusker & Shane Gillis
- Guests: Luis J. Gomez, Lemaire (LaMere) Lee
- Show plugs mentioned:
- Matt’s upcoming shows (Las Vegas, Denver, Boise, Salt Lake City, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and more) with ticket link suggested via mattmccusker.com.
- Skankfest anecdotes and future festival culture referenced repeatedly.
- Product plug: Luis J. Gomez’s Body Brain Coffee (promo code MS20 mentioned).
Summary judgment: this is a broad, humor-forward episode that mixes industry inside baseball with current cultural anxieties (AI, Epstein fallout, VR porn), personal anecdotes, and recurring comic bits. If you want the whole vibe, listen for the chemistry between the hosts and guests and the repeated jittery digressions (farts, clones, AI doomsday scenarios) that make it feel like a long bar-room conversation.