Edinburgh Fringe 2024
The History of Electronic Music
Vinney White
Genre: Comedy, One Person Show, Talk, World Music
Venue: Just the Tonic at The Mash House
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
Is it possible for an act to hold our attention for one hour straight? Yes – Vinney White did just that – weaving belly laughs with historical references of a walking, talking musical encyclopaedia! White’s knowledge is second to none and his delivery allows you to relive your own memories whilst sharing a communal appreciation for the origins of electronic music and the stepping stones of how this genre evolved through the naughties. If you are heading out for a night out this is a great warm-up to the main event, you will see why Fatboy Slim adored this show.
Review
A packed audience who are here for the fun facts and others who have simply come along for the ride, this was our shared experience – wonderful. Tapping of the feet, guessing on interactive tasks and singing a long to your well known tunes. White skips to all parts of the world for this history tour, but at no point does this feel like a stagnant history class – oh no, you have a nice balance of jokes and stories to keep you going to find a sense of where your recollection of club electronica may start. There were definitely some experts in the audience.
White’s delivery as a stand up has to be commended when he reminisces on the day he made a set tape for a girl he liked, only to discover she was dating some one else. This sounds like a straight laced story, but White’s timing had us all laughing in this moment, as after all who doesn’t associate music with a fabricated love/first crush?
This is an ambitious show, going back 40,000 years – using samples of multiple sounds, instruments and distortion; you will find yourself questioning how much you truly know about music. White also slips in a few familiar sounds from people in the public eye as part of his act which was a vibe of instant laughs – more of this please.
Still developing in form, this show has the potential to be a massive feature at Glastonbury and other Festival’s or can be adapted more for workshop/music talks – either way, I will be following what White does with his show next and would love him to explore the history of pop culture, the world is his oyster. I recommend you go and see his act, you wont be disappointed.
