Anglo-French guitarist, singer/songwriter, Laura Cox has been out on the road on her ‘Troubled’ tour since early February. And by the time that the tour bus pulled up outside tonight’s venue in Edinburgh for the opening night of the UK leg, Cox and her amazing band already had 23 shows under their belts; hence, the quartet are purring like a finely tuned jet engine. And material from Cox’s 2025 studio album ‘Trouble Coming’ have been tried and tested, and are firmly rooted for maximum impact in the lengthy setlist.

Bluesy enough for the blues crowd, and capable of rocking out enough to keep the rock crowd interested (as evident by the wide variety of black t-shirts in attendance: Motorhead, Lorna Shore, mixed in with Black Stone Cherry – how’s that for eclectic!) Cox is more Jack White or Dan Auerbach and less Joe Bonamassa. She is damn noisy, and while ‘Freaking Out Loud’ is not aired, it’s still one hell of a loud, full-on ride of a show.

Opening act, The Jesse Garwood Band, are a great fit for the UK dates: energetic and full of confidence without being cocky. Fronting a ridiculously young power trio, guitarist, singer/songwriter Garwood was shortlisted for Young Artist of the Year at this year’s UK Blues Awards. After 30 minutes in his company, it’s easy to see why.

A pesky fire evacuation (false alarm, thankfully) means that Garwood, along with bandmates Elliot Francis (drums) and Ben Hancock (bass), has to dash (gear in hand) through the crowd to get to the stage in time to kick proceedings off. Just 18 (a fact that had many wise old heads shaking in disbelief), Garwood plays with a youthful exuberance similar to Zac Schulze (who he has also opened for), and at times, the audience watches on slack-jawed at the skills on display from all three players. With a mixture of covers (Rory Gallagher’s ‘Tattoo’d Lady’ is dispatched with fiery aplomb) and original material, of which the choice cut is the rip-roaring ‘Bad Lovers Blues’, Garwood turns what could have been a disastrous night into a bit of a triumph. Along with artists like Zac Schulze, it’s refreshing to see younger generations putting their own slant on the blues genre.

As the headliner herself mentioned, it’s been almost seven years since Laura Cox last played Edinburgh, and in the live music business, that’s almost an eternity. Thankfully, her fanbase hasn’t forgotten about her and moved on to somebody else, and by the time that the quartet takes to the stage, with very little fanfare, and launches into set-opener ‘Rise Together’, the bar next door has cleared, and the room is fit to burst. With its laidback, easy groove mixed with some powerful hits from Antonin Guérin on drums, the track from ‘Trouble Coming’ is a perfect way to set the scene, especially when it leads straight into the thrilling urgency of ‘If You Wanna Get Loud (Come to the Show)’, which sees the band flooring it. That same simple mix of rock n’ roll boogie that AC/DC makes look easy, all powered by the staggering work rate from Guérin behind his small kit.

A brief pause for breath as Cox asks the crowd, “Are you ready for a ROCK show?!” (with the emphasis on “ROCK”), before leading her band – Guérin on drums, along with bassist Adrien Kah, and Léo Cotten on keyboards – into another of the eight new tracks aired tonight, ‘A Way Home’. In places, it packs a bit of a Black Keys vibe, especially on Cox’s lush guitar tones. The work of Léo Cotten can’t be praised enough, and at times (especially during the jam on ‘Set Me Free’), it’s almost like he acts as a second guitarist. Guérin and Adrien Kah are a top rhythm section, and the pair combine perfectly on the fatter-sounding ‘Bad Luck Blues’, which packs a Beastie Boys ‘Sabotage’ punch here and there.

Cox’s strength lies in her chameleon-like ability to constantly change things up, and the variety found within the 16-track setlist is staggering. For instance, after the softer tones of ‘Out of the Blue’, Cox turns to a poppier, more commercial approach on ‘Dancing Around the Truth’, which has a thick, pulsing bass intro from Kah. In another dimension, this could be a massive hit for a pop starlet like Olivia Rodrigo; it’s already played at a bouncy, uplifting pace, add some EDM flourishes, some pop sensibilities, and Cox is adding a wing to Casa Del Cox. By the way, the ever-impressive Guérin’s hi-hat work is pure Clem Burke. No higher compliment can be paid to a drummer, so it’s not made lightly. ‘So Long’ continues with the Black Keys comparisons, but there is a RATM ‘Bombtrack’ feel peppered throughout; ‘Broken’ could be Cox jamming Hole tracks with The Edge; ‘One Big Mess’ is punkier, with an Angus Young touch; and after some tinkering, ‘Trouble Coming’ could be a huge modern country hit that adds another level to that extra wing on Casa Del Cox that writing for Olivia Rodriogo brought.

In a genre that can often be quite stubborn and refuses to paint outside the lines, it’s a thrill witnessing an eclectic performer like Cox, who is always evolving and refuses to stand still and be bound by whatever the rules are perceived to be. She covers The Smiths’ ‘Bigmouth Strikes Again’ (where she takes over on drums and Guérin assists Léo Cotten on keyboards), can play the blues, then move to a more modern feel, and when called upon, kick up some dust by out-AC/DC-ing Airbourne on the riotous set-closer ‘Hard Blues Shot’. And she can play. Boy, can she play.

Remaining UK tour dates:

06 May – The Louisiana – Bristol
09 May – Gullivers – Manchester
10 May – Bodega Social – Nottingham

Tickets available, HERE.

Review – Dave

All images – Callum Scott Photography