Well, that didn't take long, did it? Finding a younger version of Jake Bugg, that is. Fifteen-year-old Doncaster lad John Lennon McCullagh (that's his real name; they feck you up, your mum and dad, don't they?) has signed with Alan McGee's new label. You'd think he would at least try (or be advised) to deliver acoustic-shouty songs in a same-but-different manner. Mostly, no. These are scallywag tales of the working-class, teenage boredom and getting up to no good, all delivered with a petulant shrug of the shoulders, hectoring blasts of harmonica and blatant references to Bob bloody Dylan. All this noted, McCullagh does have a few interesting songs, notably the self-same Dylan-influenced closing track, The Strand, which is lengthy but often interesting; and Long Long Way, which is a taut and efficiently structured piece of acoustic pop/blues. 359music.co.uk
Download: The Strand, Long Long Way