The first and last time I saw Jake Bugg perform, it was almost a year ago – he was the support act for the double bill of Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds and Snow Patrol (my review of that show is here) in late October of last year. When I heard he was coming to Vancouver to headline, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to see and hear him for a headlining gig at the Vogue Theatre on Friday, September 27 – and my inner music nerd is happy Concert Addicts made it happen.
Jake Bugg’s support act was a Nashville-based band called Honey Honey. Although not every band based in that town is a country music act, when I saw the female singer with a banjo (she also plays fiddle), my suspicions were immediately confirmed. I am not a fan of country music by any stretch of the imagination, but I didn’t mind this band. The singer, Suzanne Santo, does have a pleasant enough voice with strong vocals and both the percussion-playing acoustic guitarist along with the cowboy-hat-wearing, mandolin-and-electric-guitar playing band member provided tight vocal harmonies (both are named Ben). The band started promptly at 8 pm and after 8 songs that had a stylistic range of bluegrass to country rock ended at about 20 minutes to 9. The drummer/guitarist handled lead vocals for the 5th song (he also takes care of the majority of the banter department with the audience) and the band and audience was pretty much completely rocking out to the 6th song, which I kind of liked, in spite of myself. The rest of the audience was also enthusiastic, the downstairs moreso than the mezzanine, although, I did see quite a few heads nodding to the beat and a bunch even stood up at the end of their set.
To begin the set of Jake Bugg, at shortly after 9 pm, the sounds of 1930s/’40s southern blues came over the house speakers and the screams began with the first flash of a torch lighting the way for the young musician touring his self-titled release. His first song was Fire and was performed just on acoustic guitar. As of the second song (Trouble Town), 2 musicians joined him on stage: a lanky bass player and a drummer. Bugg is in good voice and the audience responds accordingly with screeches and screams between songs. As the show progresses I’m struck by the veritable assembly line of guitars that are tuned on stage right – the tech started tuning in the middle of Honey Honey’s set; I guess he wanted to get a headstart on his duties. Too bad he’s actually in full view the entire time. The bass player appears to have his own tech to hand him freshly tuned instruments as the need warrants. Not to take anything away from the quality of the performance, Bugg hasn’t really grown any more chatty in the 11 months since I saw him perform. He will introduce songs, but conversely, never introduced the musicians sharing the stage with him. There’s not a lot of interaction between the three, they just all get on with it really. Of the three, the drummer looks like he’s having the most fun. Simple as This was the fourth song and hoots interspersed the instrumental parts of the ballad and people downstairs singing along with the chorus. The next song, Ballad of Mr Jones, was also a ballad, but by tempo only – it seemed harder, with an edge. I loved the bass line of the chorus in this song. It has a great hook and a Bugg’s guitar solo on the electric guitar was really nice. Nothing overly complicated but rhythmically very complementary to the rest of the song and what else was going on. For Country Song, the ‘band’ disappears and it’s Bugg, his acoustic guitar, and his unique voice. The song is short and sweet in length, but not short on applause it generates. Saffron is also performed on acoustic guitar only and is also a brief one. His picking is really quite lovely, very much in the folk tradition, I think. Song About Love was introduced as a brand-new song. Again, just Bugg and his acoustic guitar and he goes full voice on this song. It has rather anthemic qualities and it’s nicely powerful all around. The audience approves. The higher notes in it could pose a problem for when his voice is tired but if this song takes off, he won’t have to worry about it – it’s perfect for an audience sing-along. Speaking of which, a female voice calls out “You’re perfect” after its conclusion. Bugg gives a shy smile and I can hear giggles from below. Someplace is introduced as one of the oldest songs Bugg has. The ‘band’ is back to support him for it and the drummer opts for brushes on the snare instead of drumsticks. It’s an incredibly pretty ballad. The next one Me & You is also a new song and it sounds vaguely country, but old style (like ‘60s country). Two Fingers is also reminiscent of American music history, but I can envision it more at a ‘50s sock-hop with the way the rhythm works in the chorus. The “I got out, I got out” refrain reminds me of something else though – have a listen for yourself and if you think of something, I’d welcome the suggestions because even a day and a half later, I still can’t place it. The audience claps and sings along and offers the loudest applause of the night so far after it’s done. For Taste It, the tempo is a bit faster and parts of the chorus kind of remind me of Oasis (or, by extension, The Beatles), in a way. Couldn’t tell you why, it’s just what’s tugging at my memory. Moves along very well, quite the toe-tapper, head-bopper. Slumville Sunrise is rather quick in parts and the rest of the time there’s a real urgency meshing between vocals and drums (they’re rather punchy during the verses) with a walking bass line that seems like it’s trying to ground the other two, but they manage to hold on to the tension. REALLY liked it!
To throw echoes of yet another genre into the setlist, I think What Doesn’t Kill What Doesn’t Kill You positively has punk roots. It’s quick and done and gone. They clear the stage at about 10 to 10 pm.
I do take it back – the demands for the encore and seeing Bugg and the band return are the loudest I’ve heard the audience. Sadly, the audience liked their increased volume and so when they got their wish of Jake Bugg’s return they forgot to pay attention or something. Broken is a gorgeous ballad, many people sang along and got out lighters; it would’ve been moreso if people would just shut up, especially during a quiet song. Have some respect – those are real life people up there on stage. It’s not a lip-syncing-dancing monkey or a film you’re looking at - if I can hear you where I am, then I’m pretty sure they can too. As soon as Bugg mentions the next song is a Neil Young cover, the house erupts. The first chords elicit another great response. There are many people on their feet in the mezzanine level dancing along. As far as covers go, he stays fairly close to the original. I would wager it’s a bit quicker, but other than that, it is very recognisable. The final song of the night is Bugg’s biggest commercial success, Lightning Bolt, which is an interesting move. It’s the song everyone knows, for many, it’s the song that got them to purchase a ticket and brought them here. I think Bugg is performing a bit of an extended version. The majority upstairs and downstairs clap along and many again are dancing. A standing ovation ends the show and I begin reflecting.
As an artist, Jake Bugg is a bit of an anomaly. His voice and music sound like he’s not from this time, and yet his lyrics are more current. When I saw him open for Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds and Snow Patrol, it was just Bugg and a guitar and yes, he was a year younger (18), but it was as if the venue (GM Place/Rogers Arena) dwarfed him. This venue, the Vogue Theatre, suited him to a T. Two people backing him up suited him. For where he is now in his career, in North America, this was a great fit.
People I spoke with afterwards were very impressed by him and on the street, folks were raving about how fantastic they thought the show was. One woman even remarked how he wished he were older so he could play longer.
The historical music influences are clearly identifiable in Bugg’s music – the Robert Johnson style of southern rock & roll, as well as flavours from the ‘50s and into the ‘90s. He’s a walking, playing “rock & roll through the ages” troubadour with 21st century sensibilities. Kudos to whoever introduced him to the greats of old who in turn set an even younger Jake Bugg on this path. Well played, all around.
Setlist
Fire
Trouble Town
Seen it all
Simple as This
Ballad of Mr Jones
Country Song
Saffron
Song About Love
Someplace
Me & You
Two Fingers
Taste It
Slumville Sunrise
What Doesn’t Kill You
Encore
Broken
Hey Hey, My My (Neil Young cover)
Lightning Bolt
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