Rob Deering - Charmageddon

Published Tuesday 28 August 2007 at 18:45 by Thom Dibdin

Snatching music-based comedy from the mealy mouth of parody, Rob Deering takes out his axe and lets it riff with blaze of classic rock. From the unlikely source of this slightly plump, mild-mannered bloke who is determined to charm the ladies and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the gents, it is the basis of a well structured and, ultimately, nicely dangerous hour of laughter.

In stand-up terms, Deering has a slight routine but a slick and accomplished delivery. It’s observational in basis and seen from a 30-something perspective. So far so average: TV tells lies, Cheltenham was wet and Harry Potter is worth mentioning.

It’s when he gets into the music side of his routine that it picks up. It’s not just his accomplished use of a looping device to create such songs as Sex Machine or Good Vibrations that is special, although the way he reveals and builds the songs is fascinating in itself. It is the use to which he puts the result, building songs and riffs into the comedy.

Requests - he does a few - allow him to build up a real rapport and lead eventually to a mass stage invasion and much posing with air guitars. Crucially, with enough trust by him in his audience to leave them on stage, to take his bow. Now that is awesome.