WORDS AND IMAGES DESH KAPUR
Arriving at the Parr Hall, Warrington with plenty of time to spare, I was pleasantly surprised to see the venue already pretty much full. This just goes to show how popular Jake Bugg is; everyone gets in early so they can find the best spot to see their hero. So it was a quick drink and then ready for the prolific 30-year-old songwriter from Nottingham. Armed with five studio albums, seven EPs and thirty-two singles (including one as a featured artist). already under his belt and another album on the way, this man oozes talent.
Tonight Jake was going to be his own support, kicking the evening off with an acoustic set and then playing a second set electric with a band
Refreshingly, the stage did not go dark as Jake Bugg strolled onto the stage dressed in black, said his hello’s and picked up his acoustic guitar and launched into ‘Strange Creatures’, “Me And You” and “Country Song” and any worries about living up to expectations were gone, that was followed by ‘Slide’, and “ I Wrote The Book then into ‘Love Me The Way You Do’. and already the sold out Parr Hall was mesmerized, singing along when they knew the words, which to be honest was pretty much every song Jake Bugg’s voice filled the venue perfectly, note-perfect, his guitar so comfortable in his hands playing hook after hook, switching up tempos and slowing them down at will. brilliant way to start the evening.
ACOUSTIC SETLIST:
1/ STRANGE CREATURES
2/ ME AND YOU
3/ COUNTRY SONG
4/ SLIDE
5/ I WROTE THE BOOK
6/ LOVE ME THE WAY YOU DO
7/ SOMEONE TOLD ME
8/ SIMPLE AS THIS
9/ HOLD TIGHT
After a small break and a trip to the bar, it was time for the second set of the night, Jake Bugg and band, the East Midlands troubadour, walked on stage followed by a bass player and a drummer and kicked things off with “Troubled Town” “Messed Up Kids” and “Kingpin” and the energy in the venue instantly went up a quite a few notches, the dancing broke out, arms were slung around there partners as people jumped up and down around them.
It was going to be an evening of old favourites and new material… “Troubled Town”, “Messed Up Kids’, “Kingpin”, “Slumville Sunrise”, and “Zombieland” and by now the Parr Hall was rocking. “Ballad Of Mr Jones”, “Waiting For The World” the brilliant “Two Fingers” and the career-launching “Lightning Bolt” followed and throughout the show, he humbly thanked the audience for coming along and expressed his thanks for their ongoing support. The crowd responded in kind; they loved every moment, and when Jake Bugg slowed everything down and dimmed the light for “Broken” it brought the house down.
Jake Bugg perfectly blends elements of Indie and Country, then puts his twist on it. He sucks you in with his unique voice and tonight it filled the venue perfectly, note-perfect, his guitar so comfortable in his hands playing hook after hook, switching up tempos and slowing them down at will. Tonight he was mesmerizing and had the audience singing along when they knew the words, which to be honest was pretty much every song. Till the next time!!!
FULL BAND SETLIST:
1/ TROUBLED TOWN
2/ MESSED UP KIDS
3/ KINGPIN
4/ SLUMVILLE SUNRISE
5/ ZOMBIELAND
6/ BALLAD OF MR JONES
7/ WAITING FOR THE WORLD
8/ SEEN IT ALL
9/ PINE TREES
10/ INSTANT SATISFACTION
11/ TASTE IT
12 / SCREAMING
13/ BROKEN
14/ ALL KINDS OF PEOPLE
15/ TWO FINGERS
16/ LIGHTNING BOLT
17/ WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU
18/ SIMPLE PLEASURE
19/ ALL I NEED
FOLLOW JAKE BUGG
My life is a soundtrack, i track my life through music, photography is my passion, my escape, my expression. Without both i have pieces missing, thankfully i’m blessed and get to combine both.
Born in Manchester, lived in Australia for 22 years where i was heavily involved in the Australian Music Industry, firstly in bands (Singer) and then managing bands (all original), I moved back to the UK, Wales specifically 10 years ago