In case you weren’t around or don’t have the benefit of recall, the summer of 1995 is probably best remembered for two things – a blazing heatwave and ‘the battle of Britpop’. The former saw the UK record its hottest ever August, the latter pitched two of the country’s biggest rock bands against each other as they each released new singles on the same day: 14 August.

The race for Number 1 between Blur (“clean-cut, art-school intellectuals from the South” according to the pre-show blurb) and Oasis (“raw and unapologetic lads from the North”), is the premise for this brand-new play, penned by first-time playwright John Niven. The author of brilliant music industry satire Kill Your Friends brings similarly dark (and expletive-ridden) humour, and no little insider knowledge, to proceedings as he unpicks the behind-the-scenes chaos and rivalry that fuelled the push to get the bands’ respective tunes to the top of the charts.

I won’t spoil things by revealing the winner of the battle between Country House and Roll With It, even though the outcome, despite being played with a degree of tension, is ultimately less important than the in-band angst and other-band enmity that escalates as the absurd race unfolds.

All members of both acts are portrayed on stage, alongside record label bosses Andy Ross (played by Mathew Horne, best known as Gavin from Gavin and Stacey) and Alan McGee (James Oates), high-profile girlfriends Meg Matthews and Justine Frischmann and even journalist Miranda Sawyer, who conducted a notorious interview with Noel Gallagher at the height of the bands’ hostility.

Throw in a soundtrack of Britpop tunes and backscreen playing video clips of news and radio coverage, and it sounds like The Battle covers all the bases for a classic mockumentary-style comedy, but sadly the overall effect is somewhat less than the sum of its extensive parts, with an undeniable sense of falling between the stools. Rather than lift the curtain on the machinations of the music industry (manic executives losing their minds over what is essentially a trivial endeavour) the play largely focuses on the band members’ egos, insecurities and increasingly competitive animosity, none of which are especially revelatory.

There are plenty of laughs courtesy of the Gallagher brothers – portrayed by newcomer George Usher (Liam) and Paddy Stafford (Noel) – as well as Blur’s angst-ridden guitarist Graham Coxon (Will Taylor), but for the most part Niven’s script plays it fairly linear, relating the basics of what happened with little attempt to dig for something even more deranged or absurd in circumstances so ripe for parody. Many characters have little to say or add to proceedings – the girlfriends too often feel token gestures – and those that do are largely predictable caricatures.

On the plus side those caricatures are genuinely entertaining – Usher has Liam’s swagger down pat, Stafford nail’s Noel’s deadpan delivery – and the ante is undeniably upped when the chart show delivers the final result and the bands respond. Director Matthew Dunster moves everything along at a snappy pace and the deft, and daft, romp serves as an enjoyable cultural history lesson, not least for the new generation of Oasis fans inspired by their recent reunion shows.

Reviewed by Steve Adams at Birmingham Rep on Tuesday 17 February. The Battle continues at the venue until 7 March