Johnny Taylor is out of the dark

The most polarizing joke local comic Johnny Taylor tells is the one about his parents’ death. It goes something like this: When he was a kid, he used to routinely have sleepless nights worrying about his parents dying.

Now that they’re dead, he can finally get some rest.

It’s one of the few bits from Taylor’s 2014 record, Tangled Up in Plaid, that he still includes in his act. That joke, along with material about his failed marriages, earned him a reputation as a “dark comic.”

That darkness isn’t so evident on his newer material, though. When Taylor records his new album, Bummin’ With the Devil, on Saturday, June 18, at Harlow’s, folks might see a different side.

“I’m stoked because it’s more of my personality off stage,” he says.

The darkness rep, he says, wasn’t intentional.

“It was just the autobiography of my childhood just happened to create darker material. This [material] is definitely a little sillier.”

Taylor prefers the “storyteller comic” moniker. His routine, whether dark or goofy, is generally autobiographical. For example, there’s the story about finding white-power websites on a co-worker’s computer. Harlow’s attendees should also expect some political (i.e., anti-Trump) material.

Bummin’ With the Devil is set for a release later this year on Stand Up! Records; it will be available on vinyl and various streaming services. $13-$15; 7 p.m. at 2708 J Street; (916) 441-4693; www.johnnyisntfunny.com.