There’s little more ennervating than watching Adam Riches looming at the back of Cow Cafe as the audience files in for another free roaming audience interaction show. Is it best to avert one’s gaze or to match his energy? Rasping his way through a Scottish accent (I dread to think how his voice will be holding up by the end of the run), Riches makes an alternatingly silly and sincere case against the comedy review ecosystem. It is at this point that I wish to restate 1000 Tiny Birds’ purpose, namely to capture my thoughts and recollections of the things I experience, not to review them. I do generally see a difference there. No stars given, no appeal to authority, no expectation that anyone should really care about my opinion or offer it any weight. The audience interaction feels slightly tamer than previous shows - I partly wonder if this is the influence of him doing more in the way of one man shows outside of this space, and partly if it’s a reaction today specifically after accidentally spilling a drink over an audience member within the first three minutes. Riches has a delectable way with turns of phrase that feel both him and true to whichever character he’s playing in any given show. Here, it works wonders to portray an admittedly thin portrait of comedy reviewers, but it’s hard not to understand why by the end. I remained unpicked on throughout, which to be fair does heighten my enjoyment of it. Four stars.