Earl Grey and the Loose Leaves @ Wee Red Bar, Edinburgh, 13 March

Openers Fitzroy Soul jumpstart the evening with some high-gain blues and melodic hooks before throwing a soulful curveball that teeters on the brink of dub in places. The songwriting is focused and the band are on point and while the hyperactive bass player may look like Sherlock Holmes in skater clothes it's the music that captures the crowd's imagination. Headliners and fellow Edinburgers Earl Grey and the Loose Leaves take it to another level though, their massively-bearded frontman wailing on his harmonica with enough power to suck an alien through an airlock before unleashing his beastly bluesman's voice on the unsuspecting audience. It's a staggeringly high-energy affair from the get-go with intricate, locked-down bass grooves and nuanced songwriting making it clear that Earl Grey and the Loose Leaves have a lot more on their mind than mere Delta blues atavism. A classy showcase of local talent all round. [Mark Shukla]