What a night! The atmosphere was buzzing, the venue packed to the brim, the aroma of beer and the smell of excitement in the air! Ducking and weaving through the crowds of fans, fighting to position ourselves with the ultimate view, the support for JAKE BUGG was incredible. Truly a proud night for the people of Nottingham, seeing a Nottingham artist, with a Number One album, performing in his hometown. And that’s not all, with the hype of being nominated for a Brit Award (#VoteBugg #VoteBugg #VoteBugg!) and announcing on the same day that he will be opening the main stage at Splendour Festival 2013, it really was a warm reception for JAKE who is the first Notingham artist to ever sell out Rock City!
This Nottingham lad needs no introduction as the crowd screams, whistles and chants his name as JAKE gets stuck straight into his first song ‘Fire’. ‘Obviously it’s always nice to be home,’ Mr BUGG proudly proclaims to the diverse crown of Nottingham Music Lovers who came to support. The atmosphere in Rock City was immediately ignited as the Clifton lad nailed the first half of his set with tracks off his debut album ‘JAKE BUGG’.
JAKE BUGG’s presence on stage can only be described as effortless, a Nottingham muse with vibrant infusions of Gallagher meets old school rock’n’roll with a serving of Chuck Berry thrown in. Stand out tracks were ‘Trouble Town’ where JAKE BUGG’s full band accompanied adding texture and Country Folk Rock infusions. The chorus is catchy as hell and I am still singing it two hours after the gig! Despite lyrics that paint a grimey picture of the council estates that JAKE’s grown up in, Nottingham fans can relate to and appreciate JAKE lyrics as they sing along in their thousands: “Stuck in speed bump city, where the only thing that’s pretty, is the thought of getting out.”
Next crowd winner has to be ‘Two Fingers’ as the big brawly man… yes man…behind me was singing his heart out with such emotion and passion along with three quarters of the crowd tonight! This great song showcases just how good a songwriter JAKE is, emotively and telling the story of his early days in Clifton. This song had the crowd eating out the palm of his hand as they contributed by singing along to what now feels like a fully fledged Nottingham anthem.
Leaving the crowd hungry for more he ‘ends’ his set with ‘Lightening Bolt’, which will surely be remembered for years to come, with its incredibly catchy chorus. After several stomps and the crowd chanting ‘We love JAKE‘, the star made a re-appearance for his encore ending the mesmerising night with a couple of acoustic numbers.
This was a gig that was all about the achievement and journey achieved by this extremely talented Nottingham artist and just fuels further the excitement of what the future may bring for JAKE and the Nottingham music scene over the next 12 months.
Right time for bed, good night Nottingham.
Yours in love of New Music,
Steph Hargreaves
#SpreadTheLove
