Jamie Kilstein - There Is No God and That's Okay

At once confrontational and disarmingly conciliatory, Jamie Kilstein has a powerful knack for unravelling the seams of contradictions and logical non-sequiturs that infect much of the political and religious discourse of his American homeland. He does so in a lucid, cutting manner that has deservedly won him many plaudits from a variety of comedy circuit luminaries.

It is surprising, then, that in this afternoon's set, Kilstein frequently bombs. This is partly due to a cultural disparity with his audience – many of his gags are met with a stony silence that suggests that Edinburgh Fringe-goers simply don't have the same emotional investment in American politics that Kilstein does. All credit to the comic though, he weathers this well. The atmosphere never sours, and the pregnant pauses which perforate his set are evenly balanced with some real comedic gems, at which even the most ambivalent audience members roar with laughter.

Kilstein has been frequently cast as a younger, less divisive Bill Hicks and in many respects, this is justified. His jokes brim with righteous anger and a ribald fearlessness that are strongly reminiscent of the Texan comic. At this stage in his nascent career, though, he lacks that boisterous Hicksian charisma. His shuffling, muttered delivery frequently borders on reproachful, and sits seriously at odds with his partisan subject matter.

Still, Kilstein is a young, talented comedian whose strain of acute political commentary and affable demeanour have won him both critical praise and a rapidly swelling fan base. It is also worth noting that this is only his first Fringe outing – many will be watching him with interest come next August, and justifiably so.