ITS Home Edition: Jake Bugg

and there are always dishes to do. But if you didn't get exactly what you needed, then Jake Bug, the guest on this episode of the home edition of the show, has a suggestion find yourself a musical instrument, because that's

what's been keeping him grounded. We started the home edition of Inside the Studio to let you know how the pandemic has impacted the lives of artists and how they're coping with life during lockdown, and Jake says that songwriting has been a real lifesaver for him during this period.

He talked with our Quarantine correspondent Jordan Rundog about drawing inspiration from all sorts of places, sixties psychedelia, current electronic music, and about what he learned from working with producers like Rick Rubin and Dan Auerbach from The Black Keys, and also why lockdown has made him interested in carbo loading.

It's not what you think. As always, If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to check out the I Heart Radio podcast that Jordan's hosts is called Rivals Music's Greatest Feuds, and it is available wherever you get your podcasts. Hello everyone, my name is Jordan run Tog, But enough about me. My guest today released his self titled debut in when

he was just eighteen years old. The retro tings tracks showcase a talent and soul beyond this age, leading to collaborations with production titans like Rick Rubin and Dan Auerbach. He's in the midst of recording a new album, this time with producer Andrew Watt, who has previously worked with the likes of postmal Loan and Cardi b. His latest batch of songs move beyond the folky, gut bucket blues of his early work and draw from the psychedelic sounds

of sixties San Francisco bands like Jefferson Airplane. You can get a taste on his new single All I Need. I'm so happy to welcome Jake bubb Thank you, Oh Jake, how are you today? Thank you so much for coming. How does this day in Lockdown find you today? Yeah, it's okay, so yeah, just another day of many more of them to come. But I think maybe, well I'm speaking for myself, but feeling a little more relaxed now Christmas is coming up and maybe spend some time with

the family. Hopefully that's that's wonderful. Yeah, that's the best part of this time of year. Uh. You released recently released a new single, All I Need, and I was particularly taken by the first line, call me cynical but original, trying to fit into a world that's so digital. I consider myself an old soul, so that's sentiment really resonated with me. I want to ask you what that line meant to you. Do you see yourself as an analog man trying to fit in a digital world? Because I

definitely do. Um no to a point, But I think it's more about, you know, the times moving so so quick, and it's it's very difficult to sometimes keep up. You know, it goes for many things. I mean, you know something that you know it was okay to say yesterday, maybe not tomorrow or something, and you know, and that goes for social media and things like that. So, yeah, it's just about everything moving a little too quick and trying to fit in where you can. I suppose I love

that track. That that riff, it's like a lost Dave Davis riff or something that's such a great tun Uh. You've said that the song is about being completely engaged in something, being like lost in that moment of flow. Has song writing been a source of soulace for you

during this really stressful, bizarre time. Absolutely. I mean I actually consider myself quite lucky to to be able to, you know, to sit down and win an instrument and write songs, and in this period of time, it's just yeah, it's a bit of a lifesaver really for for me mentally. And yeah, I don't know what I do without it, to be honest, And I kind of urge everybody to go out and get an instrument. Have you been feeling

productive musically? I know that a lot of people, I know they're either feeling like super productive or the other alfort just you know, all right, I put my pants on today, it's a good day. How have you been feeling the film productive? Bit of both? I kind of yeah, the weekends of pants days, I try and keep a

little bit of a balance. So but yeah, I've been working on music for a film about a Brazilian soccer player called Ronaldinos, So that's kind of it's kept me very much, kept me very much busy, and and also I love my soccer and he was a great player. So it's just wonderful to be part of something different and and something as cool as that. Really, how does composing music for a film differ for for just writing music?

For you, It's it seems like a lot more a technical of as the world just kind of composing to a really specific medium. What's that been like for you? It's been great, to be honest, it's a it's a completely different way of looking at music. For example, like when I'm looking when I'm working towards a scene, um, and you know, it's it can be quite difficult because this scene it might have some tension, it might be

quite dark. But along the way to writing the piece for the for the scene, I might create two or three things that I'm like, oh, that's really good, but I have to just leave it alone because it doesn't work with the film. And um, and in a way, it's kind of been this music's kind of been a little bit more for me because I don't have to listen to my voice for so long. It's nice to have a break, to be honest, there's no singing, so it's been good. How has the pandemic impacted your ability

to to write and record? You have a home set up or yeah, so yeah, just a couple of months seven as you're using now, and an s M fifty seven as well, and the symphathizer and a couple of percussive bits, but nothing too big. It's nice to it's

like a little workstation more than anything. You've worked with some incredible producers, I mean Rick Ruben down our back and most recently Steve mac What are some crucial lessons that they've they've sort of taught you about about production, or that you've learned through watching them To be honest that it's kind of I've learned a lot from these guys. But it's also impacted my my songwriting a lot as well.

Thinking in that vein just because a lot of the times, you know, as musicians, we try and make things a little too complicated for ourselves and we forget that sometimes you know, the listeners just want, you know, the main body of the song. They just want you to get

to the point. They want to hear the bits they like and and working with Steve mac and people like that have kind of made me more aware of getting to the point a little more and simplifying things more than anything, rather than you know, you don't always need that extra cord or you don't always need that extra note in the riff. So it's a it's a good way of looking at it now like an editor almost yeah, also, yeah, pretty much. But it's but as I say, it's impacted

my writing. It helps me to if I can think like that as in the writing process, then it just it just saves a lot of time when you get into the studio as well. Always curious with people who can who can write music. Are you superstitious at all? Is there a certain guitar that you like to use, or a certain room you like to be in, or a time of day? Is there something that you feel is like I don't want to say lucky, but I guess superstitions the word I should use or is that?

Is that completely out the window? I think I used to me when I was younger, but it just started driving me too mad. I used to I used to play soccer a lot, and obviously in soccer there's a lot of superstition. Isn't this so growing up? And then one day I was just like, I've I don't know if it's just driving me mad, So I let all

that go. But you know, I kind of have certain things I like to like when I'm like a concert, I always like to make sure we end on a high song rather than a sad song and things like that, but not so much superstitions. Prior to Lockdown, you were working with producer Andrew Watt in the States, who's worked with people like Cardi B and Post Malone. With your name is that people wouldn't ordinarily associate with your music. What's that collaboration been like. Has it radically altered your

your work process at all? Yeah? Absolutely, it's It's been great because it's given me a totally different perspective. More so anything, it was working with Andrew, what it was, it was just really fun more than anything. There was always a high energy around. There was always great musicians stopping by and playing, and you know, Chad Smith would come by and just play on the kit for us

a little bit and it was. It was, It was absolutely brilliant and and that that was That was a good thing for me to be in a studio where the energy is very high, because a lot of the time in the past it's just been me sat down with the guitar of somebody or on my own. So it was a great way of working. Had a lot of fun Chad Smith you mentioned from the Drummer Chili Peppers, and and Pete Thomas too from the Attractions and I

was Costello on the Impastors. What was it like having those guys on the kid It was brilliant, it was funny. I think it worked. Playing with those guys just helped me to improve as a musician. Like you know, if you if if you can't, if you can't stay in time with Chad Smith, then it's probably it's probably not It's probably not for you music because he's like the tightest drummer that is so and he hits the really

hard as well. Sometimes he came to play a show, uh, I think it was like a lot of the Two Loser tour in South America and he had a show in Argentina and he just chucked dropped by the show and played on the drums and my sound guy to turn him all the way down because he was that loud in this club. I don't think he had any of them in the p A to be honest. Yeah, because he's got that guy knows how to project. I guess that's the way I'll put it, for sure. Yeah,

for sure. I know you're working on your new album. How would the sound compare to some of your work that's come before, specifically your your your first two albums. Is it radically different sonic departure for you? I think sonically yes, definitely. It's one thing I was that I wanted to achieve with this new album, was I wanted to take it, you know, everything that was about me, my DNA and all the music I love, but try and we'll put it into there now really and try

and modernize it into of its production. And I just wondered, how could I bring all those older influences and all the music that I love into a into a more modern sound. And working with people like Andrew Watt and Steve mac and things like that have really helped me to I believe, achieved that. So I'm just trying to

strive for that really and and see what happened. I read an interview where you you gave here you're talking about the songs are recording now, and that the only through line that you were able to really sense in it was an influence of Jefferson Airplane, the great sixties psyche rock, San Francisco psyde rock band. What is it that attracts to you to that that psychedelic sound? I

love it too. I don't know. I guess it's I think I loved it so much when I was a teenager and it was just such a a great escape, and like, how are they getting these sounds? Um and at the end of the day, it's you know, it's drum, kick, guitars, bass, and but I was just always wondered how they got such a trippy sound out of it, And and I thought that I thought it was something that's maybe lacking

in today's music, a bit more psyched psychedelia. I thought, why not make it a little more trip and a little bit on the darker side. So and that's why also working with the Camel Fat guys for the for the House song that I did with them, it was it was it was very much that it's more darker lads and a little bit trippy aside. So I really enjoyed it. I love the trick you did with Camel Fairs someone. What was the response from the electronic community

with that? Did they embrace you with with open arms? Surprisingly, yeah, I would. I wouldn't usually say yeah even if they did, but in this case, I was very surprised we played. I did. I came out and played with them at Coachella, and and the crowd well, I think I think anybody could have been singing on the stage and they would have been having a great time, to be honest, But

it was nice to be part of. And then we played in Ibifa and and it just felt very strange to perform without a guitar, just a microphone and and doing a dance song of all things. So it was just it was a great experience, and it was I think it was good for me to, you know, push myself out of my comfort zone a little as well,

giving back to the psychedelic vibe. I love the videos you've heard recently with the with the filmmaking collective High Art, the ones for rabbit Hole and the Saviors for the City. They're incredible. They remind me of an Alex Gray painting or something. What what was the background with with those How did you you first link up with high Art. Well, that was the first instance was we had to do a what they call a vertical video now for like Spotify and things like that, for for for the Camel

Fat song. Um, so they already had their video and then we had to do it was like an extra video bit of content they wanted. So I met them through that and I love what they did, and and I and I just I just love their ideas for the same kind of principle really and psychedelic, crazier effects going on lights and and also you know, an underlining dialogue as well, but nothing that takes away from from the song at all, which is important to me. I

don't like. I don't like videos that have their own concept that's derivative from the music, or or that has too much dialogue. I think it should be open for interpretation. I believe. I mean, it supports your music in such an incredible way. It's it's some of the most amazing videos I've seen in a very long time. I loved Saviors of the City came out in the spring, right when the world was going in the lockdown. It felt

so perfect for the global situation. But that song has been around for for quite some time, right, that's the yeah, it has and that that was the interesting thing about it.

We kind of written it, had written it um and kind of as a it's like a post apocalyptic kind of song really, and and then when when it kind of got released in yeah, in the spring, it just kind of took on this whole different meaning and how people were messaging me, going, oh, you've really captured out things are I'm feeling and it's I didn't even write it for that but aarly, but yeah, it's pretty apt.

At the moment, I thought it's gonna be tough deciding which songs to release at a time like this, because on one hand, you don't want to come across as you know, sort of flipping, but in the other end, you don't want to add to the darkness too. That

must be a difficult needle the thread. Absolutely, yes, I've got many songs ready to go, but I think we we was very conscious of that when releasing All I All I Need, because yeah, it's really not a time people want to feel even sadder and down, So it was quite conscious of that and just wanted to give somebody people something a bit more energy and a little bit more be Really, you started recording when you were

what eighteen? Are there any songs from from when when you from earlier in your career that have had the meanings really changed for you over the years and evolve. I guess yeah. I remember one of the songs we did with Rick Rubin on the second album, Shangol are simple Pleasures that wasn't that wasn't even a single or anything, And so when we play it live, it's like it's

kind of a crowd favorite. We kind of play it second to last and stuff, and it's one of those where they sing along to the riff, which is always fun. But yeah, it was never a bit single release and that's totally taken on its own life. I might have even accidentally stuck a ten minutes solo in the end of it sometimes, but but it's just it's just a nice and fun one that we enjoy playing so and

no ten minutes solos that I made that up. Maybe next time may next time out there may Yes, when the first gig back, hopefully everybody will be so happy to be back at a gig. They'll they'll tolerate a ten minutes solo. Who knows. I mean, that has to be just so tough for you not having you know, that that access point with with with the fans, that that face to phace connection. What's been been filling that

space for you? Um? Yeah, it's been difficult. And to be honest, that filling that space has just been the support on on the social platforms really from from my audience and my fans and honestly, um, from my own personal opinion, I couldn't ask for a better better fans really in terms of when things haven't been going my way and maybe I haven't released the music that they want to, they're still very much, very supportive, supportive of me, and and uh and I've stuck with me and it's

a it's been It's been amazing. Really, I can't ask for much more. So I want to say thank you to them. If any of them listening, well, then let

me ask you this. If you haven't been touring for a while, to make that paying a little less well, what was your your biggest performance mishap, biggest like spinal tap moment where everything was going wrong on tour on the stage, funny enough, like on stage it's never been too bad, but we've definitely had some spinal tap moments where we haven't been able to find the stage and and things like that. Honestly, it's it's certainly let's rock them roll. Oh no, it's that way and so, but

on on stage, I'm trying to think it's been. In fact, the one spinal tap moment for the end of the set I used, he played my song Broken from the first album, and it's a moment where the band walk off and and they have five minutes or whatever, and then after the song they come back on, and so they all come back on. I'm like, where's where's Robo, where's the where's the bass player? And and he'd gone out for a cigarette. He'd gone out for a cigarette

outside a fire door and it closed behind him. Oh my god, that's that sounds like a nightmare. Did Did he ever make it back on? Yeah? He made it back on, but I was just like, what were you doing? He goes, sorry, I got locked outside. I was like, there's there's like two three thousand people waiting in that's there's plenty more as well. I'm sure they'll come to me later on. No, you came from a very musical family.

Was there a moment when you knew that that music was going to be your path or was it always a given? Was this always something that you knew you wanted to pursue it. To be honest, I wouldn't say it's how of confidence or anything like that. But from the age of thought fourteen, I knew it's what I wanted to do. Whether or not i'd be doing it to this level or not, I really didn't know, But

it didn't matter to me. I just wanted to I wanted to see the world and I wanted to play music, And unfortunately that's happened, and and to a degree that I couldn't have wished for. Really, So I'm yeah, very very grateful for the opportunities. But I always know i'd be doing it even even if we were doing the toilet tour, we'd still be doing it. And I think that's what I think. That's what somebody somebody mentioned to

me many years ago. They said, if if you're happy to stay in the terrible hotels and play the small gigs, and you're happy doing that, then it's probably for you. I know early on one of your earliest musical influences was Don McLean, most famous probably for writing American Pie, but so many other incredible songs. Empty Chairs, Vincent. You think you recently appeared in the Classic Albums documentary about

the American Album. I just want to ask you, what was it about his work that that that touched you so deeply? For me, I think it's it's hard to describe when when you feel an emotion or emotions convey to you through song, it can it can be very difficult to describe why you like it or why I don't. But I think that's what I felt. I felt sincerity behind the songs. I felt connection, and most of all, they were just very beautiful melodies with great lyrics and

and I think that's just what spoke to me is It's. Yeah, it's quite difficult to describe. Really, What have you been been listening to during lockdown? I've been finding myself returning to songs I haven't listened to in ten years, like musical comfort food, I guess. But have you been feeling that way too? Yeah, I've been trying to well, because I've been working on the documentary for the for the

soccer for Ronaldino soccer Player. I've been able to learn and listen to a lot more samba and Boston over and things like that. So Gilberto, yeah, exactly, that that guy. I've been I've been rinsing his albums this year. I think he was the top like top artist on the Spotify raps for me or something like that. So that's been great. But also I've been trying to find something a bit more up, So a bit of Funkadelic and

stuff like that been coming up, which is cool. Um and and and I'm trying to been listened to a bit more modern music as well, Like you know, Baby Rose is really cool, and Phoebe Bridges has got some really nice stuff as well, so trying to listen to it. I need to listen to a bit more modern music. But but saying that, you know that the old stuff is great. Oh yeah, I can't beat your seventies drunk. Oh yeah. I love Bill Withers. He's one of my favorites. Oh my god, yeah, that voice that was I was.

I was so sad earlier this year when it when he passed. He's an absolute legend, absolute legend, and fortunately, fortunately enough, I was I was looking enough to on my third album play with James Kadson, his drummer. It is like my favorite drummer of all time, and it was just a dream come true. It was just and sometimes it would just be me and him jamming in the room. I was like, this is just ridiculous, sad, I have no business being sat in this room with

this guy right now. So absolute pleasure. And drummers, Man, You've got some incredible drummers, Okay, Pete Thomas, Yeah, set the one I have for Live Funny. Who else? Who are the heroes of yours that that you've been been able to meet or play with? Oh, I've been, I've been. I've been very fortunate. I worked with I worked with Might D from the Beastie Boys at one time, which is like you would never I would never think like

it would be even why would that even happen? But but but Mike's a great guy, and I love working within such a fun energy to to be around in the studio. And you know, toured with No Gallagher, which was great. That's pretty awesome. And yeah, I've had quite

a few opportunities that are a bit spoiled. Really, has there been a I guess I'll call silver lining with this whole sort of slow down time for you, being able to stay a little more stationary and stay harm as there there's been any upside to this for you? I guess I've been more productive, but because yeah, because I'm so used to traveling like a lot, Like I'm really like desperate to go somewhere now. And to be honest, London has always been more of a convenience for me

than a place I wanted to live. So yeah, I'd love to just I'd go anywhere you know, i'd go. I'd go farm sheep on an island. Have you asked me to They've got a New Zealand. Yeah, that sounds brilliant. Yeah, but they wouldn't let me in. Oh yeah, that's true. My last question. And I've been asking everyone this and it's been so everyone that I've spoken to for the show about this, and it's been so fascinating to hear

everybody's different answers. And if you could snap your fingers and everything go back to the way it was this time last year, back to normal, whatever your definition of normal is, what would be the first thing that you do in places, you'd go people, you hug anything at all. That's a good question, is because I've been thinking about, like, I can't remember the last time I even shook somebody's hand, so you know, so, but I'm not saying that's what

I go back and do. But yeah, I don't know what i'd do, to be honest, I'd probably just make sure I do enough pastor at home because everyone was stealing it. Really everyone was stealing. Why not stealing, no, but everyone was buying pastor in bulk in there. I don't know if they were in the States, but yeah, it's just like why pastor as well? But yeah, that's a I never thought of that. Oh yeah, we had can goods and toilet paper over here, but not pastor.

I don't think I hadn't heard that one. Yeah, the toilet paper was pretty scarce as well, to be honest, Yeah, I think they even put on a limit of how many could buy after a while. But I don't know. It's a hard one because I wouldn't really go back and the anything different because before life was great, Before I was I was touring and playing shows and making music. So yeah, I wouldn't change anything. I don't think we'll get your back out there soon. Jake, thank you so

much for your time to day. It's been such a pleasure. No, that's absolutely pleasure talking to you now. Thank you very much. Inside the Studio is a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, check out the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.