Rob Deering - Charmageddon

"Charm" because he has it by the bucketload; "-ageddon" because he’s geddin' on (geddit?) – Rob Deering’s formula for his assault on "Charmageddonburgh" is perhaps not the most sophisticated. Initially, neither is his material. Glasgow airport and Harry Potter jokes abound in Edinburgh at the moment, many of them a good sight funnier than Deering's. It looks like Deering might simply be, as he unoptimistically implies early on, a fat man shouting in a cave.

Maybe. Or maybe not, because Charmageddon is as much about the music as the quips. Deering is hardly the first to mix the two and, given his tendency towards fancy guitar fretwork (and girth), comparisons with Bill Bailey in particular are inevitable. Unlike Bailey, however, Deering relies heavily on cover versions. A fantastic mimic, Deering's takes on the Smiths' monotony and Jimi Hendrix's coke-fuelled dramatics, for example, are spot on. Furthermore, Deering has some pretty impressive gadgetry, enabling him to record and loop various parts of songs with, as is especially the case for his version of 'Don’t Worry, Be Happy', genuinely hilarious results.

Behind a guitar, Deering gains the improvisational flair he otherwise lacks and, taking audience requests, finally establishes a rapport he had previously struggled to create. This lays the ground nicely for the grand finale which, in a flurry of inflatable guitars, sees Deering getting the band he’s always craved. This has, as he hoped, become his Knebworth, and as he exits, giving out high fives while Lynyrd Skynyrd still loops, the point of Charmageddon becomes clear. It’s far from being the end of comedy as we know it, but Deering proves that mixed media can turn a potentially drab show into a mini revelation.