Jungle Music Genre: An Overview of Jungle Music History

Jungle music is a subgenre of electronic dance music (EDM) that began igniting dancefloors across London, England, in the early 1990s with its gritty mix of deep basslines and rhythms influenced by reggae and hip-hop. Breakbeat hardcore, the insistent, percussive dance music that fueled the sound system and rave scene in the early ‘90s, gave rise to jungle music, which quickly encompassed the sound of young Britain in the mid-1990s.

The jungle sound inspired other styles of dance music, including drum and bass and ragga jungle, and spawned several subgenres before losing ground among listeners. However, it remains a favorite among EDM fans, who revived and retooled its signature sound throughout the 2000s.

The history of jungle music begins in England during the early 1990s:

• Origins: Breakbeat hardcore, a favorite of ravers during the early 1990s, quickly fragmented into different subgenres, including the European-influenced happy hardcore and darkcore, a moody variant that featured samples and synths that suggested suspense movie atmospherics. Early jungle music efforts, issued by record labels like Suburban Base & Moving Shadow, echoed the darkcore formula on sides like DJ Hype’s “Shot in the Dark” and “Valley of the Shadows” by Origin Unknown.
• Jungle techno: A second jungle music faction added more chilled-out elements to breakbeat hardcore: relaxed and melodic beats and rhythms from Jamaican music forms like reggae, dancehall, and dub. Initially known as “jungle techno,” tracks like these by DJs like 4hero and Remarc found an enthusiastic audience among club-goers and DJs at pirate radio stations.
• Popularity and impact: The jungle scene reached its peak popularity in the mid-1990s. The genre had its own dedicated BBC radio program and a slew of hits by this point, most notably 1994’s “Incredible” by DJ/producer M-Beat, Renegade’s “Terrorist,” and “Original Nuttah” by Shy FX with vocals by UK Apache. Thanks to jungle artists like Roni Size and 4hero, who had international followings, the style also reached beyond Britain’s borders. Jungle music’s multicultural components—Jamaican rhythms, electronic music, breakbeats—unified white and Black fans of reggae, hip-hop, electro, and rave music.
• Decline: Like many forms of dance music, jungle music spawned many subgenres, including ragga jungle, which featured more reggae elements, and the light-hearted jump-up; it also provided a foundation for drum and bass (also known as drum ‘n’ bass), which increased the tempo and complexity of jungle breakbeats. These spin-offs eventually overtook jungle music among EDM listeners in the early 2000s. Still, jungle music retained an audience through permutations like drumfunk and new releases by classic jungle artists like ragga jungle originator Michael West, who performed as Congo Natty and Rebel MC.

Several characteristics define the sound of jungle music, including:

1. 1. Beats: Jungle music moves at a breezy 160 beats per minute (BPM)—faster than early hardcore breakbeat productions—with approximately the same tempo as drum and bass. It’s also significantly faster than many of the reggae and dub tracks it samples, which clock in at ninety to 120 BPM, and more recent forms of EDM like dubstep, which operates at 140 BPM.
2. 2. Production: The jungle sound features heavy basslines under a propulsive sonic landscape of energetic breakbeats and synth lines. Synths connect jungle music to breakbeat hardcore and house music; the synths are ominous in early jungle and darkcore and more melodic in later versions.
3. 3. Samples: Jungle producers echoed hip-hop’s vocal and instrumental samples to lend flavor to a track. The “Amen break,” drawn from the Winstons’ 1969 single “Amen, Brother,” is the most frequently used soul/funk instrumental sample, as was the dub siren, an audio test tone that became a siren in the hands of legendary dub producers like King Tubby. Jungle music also used vocal samples from reggae and dancehall, as well as classic R&B and funk hits like Lyn Collins’ “Think (About It).”

There are many notable jungle artists in the genre’s history. Among them are:

1. 1. Andy C: British DJ and producer Andrew Clarke was one of the earliest junglists and a pioneering figure in drum and bass. Billed as Origin Unknown, Andy C and RAM Records co-founder Ant Miles released the seminal 1993 darkcore track “Valley of the Shadows,” which became a foundational element in the development of jungle music. In 2002, he and DJ/producer Shimon produced “Body Rock,” a drum and bass track that reached No. 28 on the UK singles chart.
2. 2. Aphrodite: Gavin King, who produced and performed under the stage name Aphrodite (as well as Amazon II and Aladdin), was an important figure in the development of jump-up, a style of drum and bass characterized by warped basslines. A favorite of top UK turntablists like DJ Hype, Aphrodite paved the way for jump-up in the late ‘90s with a slew of high-energy releases for the Urban Takeover label. After delivering remixes for major US artists such as Nine Inch Nails, Aphrodite signed a distribution deal with V2 Records to bring his label, Aphrodite Records, to Stateside listeners.
3. 3. Shy FX: A jungle superstar from the genre’s earliest days, Shy FX (born Andre Williams) crafted one of jungle’s most enduring classics with 1994’s “Original Nuttah.” As a solo talent and collaborator with fellow artists like T Power and vocalist Dianne Joseph, Shy FX has been at the helm of numerous hit EDM singles, including his own 2001 track “Shake Your Body,” which reached No. 7 on the singles chart. Later efforts included producing “Da Feelin” for Dizzee Rascal and “Light Up (The World)” for Yasmin and Ms. Dynamite. In 2014, he formed Rebel Sound with MC Rage, DJ David Rodigan, and EDM duo Chase & Status.
4. 4. Roni Size: DJ and producer Roni Size debuted on the British music scene as part of a late ‘90s wave of jungle and drum and bass artists like Goldie and LTJ Bukem. However, he stood apart from the pack by winning the Mercury Prize, one of England’s most prestigious music awards, for his 1997 album, New Forms, with his group Reprazent. The album reached No. 8 on the UK charts and produced many hit singles, including the enduring favorite “Brown Paper Bag.” Size collaborated with major US stars like the Wu-Tang Clan’s Method Man and Zack de la Rocha of Rage Against the Machine on subsequent recordings.

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