Underbelly, White Belly
  August 5-11, 13-25 (17:20)

Material:   Delivery:   Laughs: Room:

Edy Hurst will always be the first name down on your party list. You know he is always gonna bring the fun times, & also his guitar, which he plays with proper expertise. Then, after a few beers or something, you’ll find yourself chatting to him in a quiet corner of the festivities about some of the more serious shit in life. That, in a cupcake, is Edy Hurst the performer.

Edy’s 2019 show, Hurst Schmurst, is a mixed bag of songs & chit-chat, some of which are great, some of which not so much. His Twonkeyesque puppet creation is a chief highlight – a Kermit the Frog meets Marvin the Paranoid Android for the modern age – while his Lancashire loop-pedal is a class piece. There are then two climaxes – an extended tale concerning his canalside goose-hoofing antics, told with some proper quality flip-pad marker-art. Next comes that aforementioned moment in the corner of the party when things get a bit heavy, which completely bowled me over as a spectator.

There is a certain children’s entertainer feel to Edy, but he offers maturer elements as well. Overall the ideas are right, & the performance also, but the mixture is a bit chaotic – but perhaps that was Edy’s intention all along.

Damian Beeson Bullen