David’s One-Man Band (F*ck You, Steven) @ Underbelly Cowgate

The Fringe is often regarded as a time of self-indulgence – fittingly, then, Laurie Stevens’ new character comedy is an entertaining opportunity to indulge your inner teenager. With a title as long as a Fall Out Boy track title, David’s One-Man Band (F*ck You, Steven) is a loving tribute to the emo subculture of the mid-noughties. Despite all the cringe-worthy memories of poorly dyed hair and various adolescent social faux pas that likely brings up for us all, it’s a deeply nostalgic and honest piece that’s impossible not to enjoy.

Decked out in all the staples of the emo uniform (a beanie, spiked choker, and black skinny jeans almost as distressed as their wearer), David makes for an endearingly awkward protagonist. Abandoned by his bandmate, Steven, on the night of their debut gig at the coolest under 16s band night in the Bay Area, it’s hard to tell if he’s up to the challenge. Whilst David may not so easily win over the crowd of Sticky Floors, Stevens certainly wins over the audience of the Fringe. The parodic spin on Freddie Mercury’s famous call-and-response trick is particularly strong in this regard, getting the audience in the emo spirit with variations on an emo lyricist’s favourite word: “tonight.”

Featuring original songs with indulgently fake-deep lyrics and slightly disjointed covers of famous emo songs, there’s something very genuine in this show. For all the doom, gloom, and Sartre quotes that David shrouds himself in, Stevens ensures that hope never leaves the room. It’s certainly funny to watch him muddle through playing the drums in the place of his absent bandmate, but it’s also a clear emotional turning point that becomes far more poignant when the pair reunite. It’s not an emotional reunion by any means – they’re teenage boys, for crying out loud. It’s only when they’re together, though, that the recurrently appearing lyrics of The Middle by Jimmy Eat World gain their true resonance: “It just takes some time […] Everything will be alright.”

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David’s One-Man Band (F*ck You, Steven), Underbelly Cowgate (Belly Dancer), until 24 Aug, 4.10pm, £10-12