Jake Bugg - Shangri-La Album Review
Nottingham-based singer/songwriter Jake Bugg is still only 19-years-old, yet here he is with his second album already and, on the back of the acclaim he achieved on his first album, the speedy release of 'Shangri-La' is a promising sign that Bugg is bursting with ideas and has no plans of sitting back on top of his one Mercury nomination.

At 19, Jake is still at a very young age and, despite whatever experience he gained from writing and strumming in his bedroom in his mid-teens, his output has hampered down his lack of world-weariness and know-how into being a serious composer. His nasal (trademark by now) vocals go unchanged from his last album and, really, much of the song material available on 'Shangri-La' hardly differs from his first album either. He is making strides in widening his repertoire, but he probably could have gone further had he been given a little extra time to develop his musical knowledge, rather than rushing something out now to capitalise on his Mercury nomination and the Christmas market.
'Me and You' is a delightful love story sung over Bugg's admirable effort at making a Dylan-esque folk song. You can't fault the kid for trying, as he makes attempts to encapsulate as many of his influences into 'Shangri-La' as he can; although he often finds himself coming up short of the mark for the majority of the album. His attempts at social commentary, such as on 'Messed Up Kids', do reflect his youthful naivety and inexperience as a singer/songwriter more appropriately, as he struggles to write anything endearing or subtle on the album's 'political' song. It's more, "Oi, look there's a chav!" a la Plan B, than it is, "Her profession's her religion/ Her sin is her lifelessness", as his likely hero Bob Dylan sang.
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