I had forgotten almost completely that there was once, about twenty years ago, a thing called “alternative comedy,” which seemed about to break out and become part or even most of the mainstream practice of standup as “alternative music” (though by then it was already rare to hear it so referred to) had done with mainstream radio. That didn’t happen. Standup, today, is still mostly made of jokes. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. But Janeane Garofalo, it turns out, is still going around doing a different thing, talking, being weird, looking at notes, enjoying herself. People laugh.
In the 60s we had the Smothers Brothers, and even SNL was far more edgy in the early years.
The great stand-up acts of the 60s–Bob Newhart, Nichols & May, even early Andy Griffith–were not about jokes, more like skits. They sold tons of records; many of us had their routines memorized. No idea whether Janeane Garafolo does anything like what they did.
Have you seen Portlandia? It’s not stand-up, but I would describe that as mainstream “alternative” comedy