''Shangri La'' is the second studio album by English

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

artist Jake Bugg. The album was produced by Rick Rubin and named after his studio in Malibu, California, where recording took place in the summer of 2013. The album was released on 18 November 2013 and was met with mixed reactions from fans and critics.

Release

The first single "

What Doesn't Kill You What does not kill me makes me stronger (german: link=no, Was mich nicht umbringt, macht mich stärker) is part of aphorism number 8 from the "Maxims and Arrows" section of Friedrich Nietzsche's ''Twilight of the Idols'' (1888). It is quoted or al ...

" was announced and released from ''Shangri La'' on 23 September 2013. On 17 October 2013, " Slumville Sunrise" was revealed as the second single from the album, and a video promoting the song and album was released. Two more singles " A Song About Love" and " Me and You" were released in early 2014. However these singles, and indeed all the singles from this album, have failed to reach the commercial success as the singles on his previous album. Failing to give him a UK Top 40 hit. The album was originally scheduled for release in the United States on 14 January 2014, by

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

, with a five-song EP released on 18 November 2013. However, following a "sold-out" tour in the United States, the release was rescheduled to 19 November 2013, a day after the UK release.

Critical reception

The album received mixed reviews from critics. Barry Nicolson from the NME gave the album a 6/10 review and said "By rush-releasing ‘Shangri La’, Bugg manages to circumvent some second album pratfalls, although he's succumbed to the most obvious one – it's not as good as his first." The Guardian also gave a negative review, giving the album 2 stars and remarking that "his new album is pretty run of the mill". However at Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 66 (based on 15 reviews) indicating the reception of the album has been 'generally favourable'.

Track listing

;Bonus tracks: * "Strange Creatures" (Free download from Amazon.de) * "A Change in the Air" (Extra track from Japanese release of the album)

Personnel

* Jake Bugg –

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

slide guitar Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object (a slide) against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos tha ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

Jason Lader Jason Lader is an American record producer, audio engineer, and mixer from New York. He is also known for playing bass guitar, keyboards, piano, guitar, and as a programmer. He was a member of the band Furslide, and has since worked with Howard B ...

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bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

* Matt Sweeney –

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...

* Pete Thomas -

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Chad Smith Chad Gaylord Smith (born October 25, 1961) is an American musician who has been the drummer of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers since 1988. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012. Smith is also the drummer of the h ...

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 2013 albums Albums produced by Rick Rubin Island Records albums Jake Bugg albums Mercury Records albums Albums recorded at Shangri-La (recording studio)