Michelle Shiers on March 17th, 2016

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England’s northern star Jake Bugg managed to spout some oldish-soul blues from his otherwise very young gob at the El Rey on Monday night. The 22-year old crooner opened his set with “On My One,” the folky title track from his new album due this June. Bugg sang “Three years on the road/four hundred shows/Where do I go home?/Where Do I belong/ Oh I’m so lonesome on my one,” suggesting that the boyish troubadour is still finding his way. Luckily his glossy-eyed fans made their way to him on this evening as Bugg pushed through a 20-song set of old and brand new tracks.

Backed by a drummer, bassist, and keyboardist, Bugg remained modestly at the helm of the performance, showing his lyrical prowess and soulful voice, but with almost no between-song banter. Fans grew most excited to hear older tracks. “Seen It All” from 2012’s self-titled and “Simple Pleasures” from 2013’s “Shangri-La” hit in all the right places and paved the way to new songs “Love Hope and Misery” and the autobiographically-themed “Never Wanna Dance.”

The band left the stage for Bugg to perform solo for “Country Song” and then returned for a few more rollicking blues-rock numbers. “Trouble Town,” “Slumville Sunrise,” and “Lightning Bolt” exemplified Bugg’s authentic story-telling, bringing us to the wrong side of the tracks with him. He closed his set, sans encore, with new song “Gimme The Love” leaving his fans shuffling out in even higher anticipation for his upcoming full-length.

Jake Bugg was supported by Los Angeles psych-rock quintet Mystic Braves.

Photos by Michelle Shiers