INDIE ROCK
Sometimes the freshest sounds come from those who look to the past for inspiration. When 18-year-old Jake Bugg landed on the scene with a thump just over a year ago, like a high-school version of Liam Gallagher, he impressed with his raw, stripped-back blues-infused, 60s-tinged rock 'n' roll tunes. The pressure was on for a follow-up that lived up to the promise of the debut.
Shangri La delivers. The singles Slumville Sunrise - a dirty, rollicking stomp-fest - and What Doesn't Kill You - a short-sharp punk outburst, are, naturally, among the strongest tracks, but the upbeat, jangly Messed Up Kids, with its dark subject matter ("They sell their time, they sell their drugs, they sell their body") is the real stand-out.
Bugg also has a knack for powerful slower songs: A Song About Love is this album's Broken, while Simple Pleasures builds to an epic chorus.
Simple pleasures indeed.
