Introducing: Jake Bugg

Whilst Prime Planet was out at the wonderful Karima Francis showcase the other night we were told about an up and coming musician called Jake Bugg. We continued to be told that he’s only eighteen (but lists ‘drinking, smoking and music’ as his interests on Facebook – our kinda fella) and that he’s like a young Bob Dylan (in other words, a talented guy). The combination of these three pieces of information made our ears prick, and we decided we just had to investigate.

And surprise surprise, we can tell you that Jake Bugg is pretty effing brilliant. He looks like an Arctic Monkey’s younger brother, and has already been championed by the likes of Zane Lowe. He sounds like a ’60s roots/blues singer who’s lived a life as heavy as a Kerouac novel, jaded by life’s wear and tear, wounded by love lost. Barely at the legal drinking age, his songwriting is weighed by such a gravitas, such a mature mindset, that he’s almost unbelieveable. Bugg’s songs already sound like classics; he really is a unique talent.

Anyway, seeing is believing, so here is a selection of our fave Jake Bugg tracks we’ve heard so far. The first video is from when he was on a local BBC radio station not more than a year ago when he was only sixteen – it’s a pretty unbelievable sight and sound to behold. Safe to say we’re smitten.

-Bronya Francis