Saying that there is nothing interesting in today’s music, and that the old guys are making the best albums is ridiculous. There are many examples that prove the opposite, and Jake Bugg is maybe the best of them. Truth to be told, commercial music was never this bad, and most of the chart-topping songs are sterile, generalized and they all sound alike. But who cares for the charts when the music scene beyond those charts is in full blossom. Good music is only few clicks away, right? If you are an investigator at heart, you will find what you like in the endless cosmos of internet.
As I don’t listen to the radio and I don’t watch TV music shows, I have managed to find a lot of excellent young authors, and Jake Bugg is one of my favorite discoveries. He even managed to climb to the top of the world elite, and it is totally deserved climb.
His self-titled debut from 2013 was one of the greatest debuts in the past couple of years. I mean, no one who combines Cash, Dylan, Oasis and The Libertines is no less than absolutely brilliant. Meaning, this is a British boy hooked on folk rock and Britpop. His sophomore album was named after a studio where it was recorded. The legendary producer Rick Rubin was the one who refreshed the career of the legend Johnny Cash. Long story short – the result was iconic.
Contrary to his first album, Shangri La was more diverse, but also more dirty. If you listen to garage folk rock numbers such as Kingpin and Slumville Sunrise, you will get the idea of the whole record. In my opinion, Slumville Sunrise may be Jake’s best song.
The total shift in atmosphere comes with Me and You, resembling The Coral from their best days, while Messed Up Kids masks Britpop with peculiar guitar ornament in style of Ocean Colour Scene from the mid 90s. The rest of the album presents mostly chill songs, with just a few having the potential to reach the level of Broken, the biggest hit from his debut.
Shangri La was an obvious step forward, especially because Jake didn’t try to repeat the stuff he did on the debut. What adds to the overall impression is that many tunes are under three minutes, so you don’t get bored. What are you waiting for? Spin this record.
