Jungle
A fast British style with chopped breakbeats, deep bass and a strong ragga or soul influence.
History
Jungle grew in London in the early 1990s from the darker end of breakbeat hardcore s1. Producers used fast, chopped drum breaks and added deep, low basslines s1. The style borrowed from Jamaican reggae and dancehall, and many tracks used ragga vocals s1. It also used soulful singing on tracks such as Goldie's 'Inner City Life' (1994) s1. M-Beat and General Levy's 'Incredible' (1994) and Shy FX and UK Apachi's 'Original Nuttah' (1994) were large hits s1. Origin Unknown's 'Valley of the Shadows' (1993) was an important early record on the Ram label s1. Jungle was closely tied to London's Black British communities and youth culture s2. By the mid-1990s the name drum and bass was used more often, especially as the sound became smoother and faster s1. The style also had a strong influence on later British music, including garage, grime and dubstep s2. Its drum breaks are still used by producers today s1.
Sound
- Fast, chopped and layered breakbeats
- Very deep sub-bass
- Short ragga or soul vocal samples
- Simple, dark melodies
- A rolling, dense rhythm
Key figures
- Goldie — Producer and label owner at Metalheadz
- Shy FX — Producer of 'Original Nuttah'
- M-Beat — Producer of 'Incredible'
- General Levy — Singer on 'Incredible'
Labels
- Metalheadz — London , 1994
- SOUR — London , 1992
- Ram Records — London , 1992
- Renk Records — London , 1994
Defining tracks
Connections
Came from: Breakbeat Hardcore , Darkcore , Dub , Hip Hop Breaks
Led to: Atmospheric Drum and Bass , Drum and Bass , Jump-Up , Liquid Drum and Bass , Ragga Jungle , UK Garage
Sources
- Jungle music — Wikipedia
- All Crews: Journeys Through Jungle / Drum & Bass Culture — Vision (2004)