Britain Isn’t All Tea And Crumpets: Jake Bugg – ‘Zombieland’ Review

Words: Ruby Corrigan

After a nearly three year hiatus after his last album ‘Saturday Night Sunday Morning’ nottingham born legend Jake Bugg is back today with a new tune  labelled ‘Zombieland’, which is the first release from his upcoming album ‘Modern Day Distraction’ which is set to be released on the 20th September. 

As a follower of Jake Bugg for a very long time, I was ecstatic when the news came of this new song, however I had to quickly remind myself that, much like a lot of his newer stuff, it will not sound like his debut album. Why did I force this reminder on myself? Why did I inflict the knowledge that nothing Bugg will put out will ever sound like his debut songs? In short, I did this in order to truly enjoy the song without that nagging feeling in my heart that yearns for his older sound. So a word to all you ‘Jake Bugg’ purists, if that is something you can be in this day and age, no, this song does not feel like it could have been picked up from his debut album, and why should it? He is no longer just that 17 year old boy with his guitar from Nottingham, He is Jake Bugg, a fully fledged british icon whose music has grown with him, and that is certainly something to be celebrated. 

The tune itself is nothing short of enjoyable, opening brightly with a guitar riff akin to the sound of early Oasis. The pounding drum beat that features throughout the tune keeps that upbeat pace going which adds to Bugg’s snappy lyrical flow, as well as adding a layer of grit that features in all of his work. Lyrically, ‘Zombieland’ is extremely poignant. One thing you can never say about Jake Bugg’s music is that it lacks deeper meaning. Laden with social criticism, Zombieland calls back to his debut album in a sense that it addresses what life is truly like in Britain, it isn’t all tea and crumpets, in fact most of the time it is full of hardship and struggle. What I find so beautiful about Jake Bugg’s work is his combination of upbeat melodies with usually quite desolate lyrics, as it acts as a way to highlight beauty and joy in every situation, even in ones that may seem hopeless on a surface level. 

To conclude, I am so glad to see Bugg returning to the music industry and, if the rest of the album is as excellent as ‘Zombieland’ then we are sure in for a treat this September!

Stream the tune below!