Mel & Sam @ Pleasance Courtyard

You can’t help but like Mel & Sam. Their pounding bass and hyperactive energy are perfect for a Friday night at the Fringe. Like a Boiler Room set, there’s a sweaty intimacy that is often only replicated in comedy by more intimidating acts a la Nick Helm or Dan Tiernan, and very rarely extended to musical comedy (okay, Nick Helm again). 

The musical theatre-trained duo cycle through a heap of songs – there's a Charli XCX-inspired netball number, an ode to Kristen Stewart, a banger for babies, a musicals medley, and a queer take on a beloved kids’ story character. The highlight is their crooning ballad for Where’s Wally though, where Mel shows her flair for improv, leaving one audience member in hysterics with her fake diva noises. A theme emerges across most of them – these are horny, horny gals and it is their summer...

There are points where you’d like a new twist on the songs – an escalation instead of a chorus again, perhaps some more straight-up jokes woven into their lyrics. However, you mind less about the joke count as their tunes are so catchy and their presence is infectiously endearing.

There are also a few brief solo sketches thrown in for good measure. A palate cleanser from their tunes, these are mad snapshots which lean heavily on physical comedy from Mel (chattering of teeth here, a piercing scream of gibberish there). They’re great fun, but feel like a real gear shift out of the format you’re otherwise presented with – especially when so many of the songs are clearly made for two.

High Pony bursts with Gen-Z freshness and pep, at times feeling like you’re trapped inside an unhinged girly’s FYP. Both Mel & Sam’s chemistry really carries the hour, which could be excellent if the gag rate was as high as their hair.

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Mel & Sam: High Pony, Pleasance Courtyard (Below), until 25 Aug (not 12), 9.50pm, £8-14