Jamie T

Panic Prevention

"I think that’s the scrappiest version I've ever done of that in my life," mutters Jamie T. He's just finished playing "Brand New Bass Guitar", the first track on debut album Panic Prevention - but the fact it makes the cut says a lot about the free-wheeling, spontaneous spirit of this Wimbledon-born singer-songwriter. Equal parts Joe Strummer and Dizzee Rascal, Jamie narrates witty, filthy, sometimes tragic tales of London life peppered with patois and accompanied by cheap drum-machine beats and the twang of an acoustic bass guitar. That's not to say these songs sound in any way half-formed. On the contrary, in fact, apparently disparate sounds – post-Libertines garage rattle, bumping ska, UK hip-hop - gel neatly thanks to Jamie's garrulous charisma and brassy, clever wordplay. "Salvador" is a driving, spooked slice of punk-blues that couches tales of nightclub pulling in feral, predatory terms, while the deceptively sing-along "Shelia" conceals a tragic narrative of assorted alcoholics and various ne'er do wells that meet with various sticky ends. It's a dangerous, cutthroat London that Jamie roams, but importantly, Panic Prevention makes it sound like ruddy, bloody good fun from start to close.--Louis Pattison

Write a review for Soundblab.

Do you think you have what it takes to write a good review? Have you ever read your favourite music magazine or website and thought you could do better? Well now's your chance. This review is not an official Soundblab review, if you'd like to write one, just get in touch.