Jon Stewart’s band Church And State™ make debut at historic music venue Stone Pony

Jon Stewart’s band Church And State have made their debut at iconic music venue the Stone Pony.

After retiring from hosting duties on The Daily Show in 2015, Stewart took up drumming as a hobby, later forming Church And State alongside Rick Barry, Justin Bornemann, and Andy Bova, who taught him drums.

The band have only played a handful of gigs so far, with their biggest falling last Friday (November 28) at the historic Stone Pony venue in Asbury, New Jersey. Alongside local band Yawn Mower, Church And State opened Status Green’s special 20th anniversary show.

Speaking about his role within the band, Stewart previously told Asbury Park Press he looked forward to rehearsals every week. “I sit in the back and do a little in between song banter,” he said. “I can only work one day a week, but it’s awesome. I can’t tell you how much these guys have brought to my life.

“It’s just such a joy to play with them every week.”

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Last year, Stewart made his return to The Daily Show and heavily criticised both Donald Trump and Joe Biden ahead of the presidential race. “We have two candidates who are chronologically outside the norm of anyone who has run for the presidency in the history of this country – breaking the record that they set!” he said.

In his second episode, he turned fire on Tucker Carlson’s trip to Russia to interview Vladimir Putin, savaging the former Fox News anchor for failing to challenge some of Putin’s assertions, and for disingenuously arguing that Russian citizens have an advantage over Americans because groceries are cheaper, something that Carlson claimed made him feel “radicalised”.

“You’re such a dick,” Stewart retorted. “It will radicalise you, unless you understand basic economics,” he continued. “See, $104 for groceries sounds like a great bargain, unless you realise that Russians earn less than $200 dollars a week.”

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