If anyone's interested and wants to hear more, I have a mix of 92/93 era Jungle [1]
Some rough mixes here and there (especially the first one) because it was live from a NYE event. But it suits the style of music, that era was so raw and fresh, the future was being invented right there! Very happy days :)
> that era was so raw and fresh, the future was being invented right there! Very happy days
I've been told by several Gen-Z that they've never been to a "rave", and I feel sorry for them. In my town, we had quite the underground scene, but then times changed and it is so much smaller now. Now, "kids" just call it all EDM instead of the specific genre that we know and love.
There's still plenty of fresh underground music and the 'kids' are doing just fine. Yeah there's loads of mainstream garbage out there, but there always was. The main difference is that this stuff was being invented, whereas most electronic music now is derived from those early 90s invented genres, but even saying that there's still plenty of creativity.
There's a night in London called Cartulis (which is usually at Fold), when I go there it feels very much like the early rave scene to me (this is just one example, of course). I think there's a tendency when we get older to not be as exposed to the bubbling undercurrent of music, so it's easy to just say "it's not as good as it used to be", but that would be a mistake imho. It's there if you look for it.
I was surprised to see Gen Z called out here specifically, though I guess it depends on where you live/grow up as well. I'd hazard to guess most of the millennials I know also haven't been to a rave!
I don't think there were any available in my hometown (or they were too underground for me to have ever heard about!), and there wasn't much exposure to electronic music at all, so it's not an experience I'd ever considered trying to find out how to have.
Just one person's anecdote, of course, but I wonder what the balance of generation vs. location is!
Wild, have a great time! Low-key jealous. Passed so much time spinning Bukem and MC Conrad during long hacking sessions, made for a perfect atmosphere. Too bad you can’t see them together anymore, RIP.
Additionally, a lot of jungle music were produced on Amiga using the same tracker software as many demosceners (OctaMED, ProTracker, etc). Makes me curious of how many junglists were also active sceners :-)
One of the things I noticed with a bunch of the younger producers is that they make really nice tunes but they don't bother with the whole intro/outro thing so there's no buffer on either end of the track to mix the thing unless you go add them yourself before even attempting to get them in with a bunch of older choons meant for mixing. like this is great [1], but 1:34 minutes lmao what? On the other hand people who have been at it since the very early days are still quietly releasing alot, here's some secret dillinja cuts [2]
OP, the link you provided keeps redirecting me to the Google Play store to install the SoundCloud app, no matter what browser I use to open it. Could you please create a link which stays on the SoundCloud website? Not everyone wants to use apps on mobile just because some service wants to force you to use them.
Hell yeah, I've been listening to jungle mixes on YouTube since this summer and enjoying Jungle Fatigue on Bandcamp. My introduction to jungle-esque music was Toonami so it's been fun exploring this genre more.
I've been having a lot of fun learning trackers as a little hobby in the past year with a cheap portable midi keyboard and some samples to play around with. There's just so many resources to learn from these days on youtube which didn't exist 5-10 years ago and I guarantee you if you have the time for it you can go from downloading renoise and a bunch of samples to bumping out some songs within a week or two of learning. There's also a lot to be said for the kind of sound you get out of older hardware, you have kids who are like 20 years old picking up these things and doing shit like emulating the DSP in there to create a VST for use on modern systems for those who don't want to drop a bunch of money on getting an amiga 500 shipped to their door [1], but you also have people pretty much just doing that and busting out octamed or protracker. Lots of cool clips out there [2]. If anyone is looking to have some fun with all this I suggest bizzy b's channel [3], the 'groovin in g' channel [4], as well as stranjah's channel on youtube [5]
Really the best sound test is done on a few things though, you also want to see how it sounds on whatever consumer audio solutions you have sitting around (the car especially is a good test)
Got me started on watching University Challenge, and now Cosmic Pumpkin is one of my very few "must watch new videos right away" subscriptions on YouTube.
I have to recommend digging into the story behind the person who used to upload UC episodes to YouTube before Cosmic Pumpkin, and the reason that they stopped uploading. Google "Dave Garda", I don't think anyone has done an authoritative writeup but it's a wild one.
The very best of jungle was "UK Apache with Shy FX - Original Nuttah". It got a bit of re-release for its 25th birthday (5 years ago) with an intro by Idris Elba.
I can't accept Drum and Bass, we need Jungle I'm afraid.
Genuinely glad I got to experience so much of it growing up with a PS1 and the genre's stuck with me. If you want to focus on listening or have some soothing background noise, it's perfect, versatile.
While not all jungle, shouout to PS1 racing games for their killer soundtracks. The glorified mixtape of Gran Turismo 2 (all versions!), Colin Mcrae Rally's acid beats, everything in Ridge Racer. Really feels like vidya soundtracks peaked there.
Going from carts to CDs, so much more storage. I've got a great collection of retro (at least from my childhood) games going and PS1 is my favourite, got a big stack
Related to this is the Buck Bumble[1] theme song[2]:
> “That’s the whole point of it, we didn’t want to do sort of boring techno stuff as well, or jungle, so we picked speed garage, it’s funkier than house and garage.”[3]
I'd argue the article gets the history of jungle itself quite wrong too... there's no mention of breakbeat hardcore, no mention of Shut Up and Dance collaborating with Ragga Twins, etc.
Fabio and Grooverider are seminal figures to the scene, yes, but they did not originate the sound.
I've had this argument too many times, and it's not worth repeating. Yes, techno is from Detroit, influenced by Kraftwerk, influenced by Stevie Wonder, influenced by Stockhausen etc etc. Where it comes from is defined by where you draw a line in the sand.
Thanks for the heads up. It's funny how we encounter different sources telling us different things about the history of these subgenres. I'll go back and review/expand that paragraph soon.
Honestly it's more complicated than that. At the same time that techno was being created in Detroit, EBM was being created in Germany and the UK. When techno came back over from Detroit, it as influenced by those things. So modern techno can be said to have both European and African American roots independently. I would say its more accurate to say it originated in Detroit since that is the main basis for the sound, but it is extremely transatlantic.
cool to see ace combat 2 in there cause i love bullet hell games. was wild trying it on MAME instead of an arcade cabinet, hooked up to a subwoofer and realizing what genre it was cause your typical cabinet doesn't go loud enough to hear like half the song in the sub bass
also funny how you can beat the game as a dolphin flying a plane haha
Fun fact:
A high-quality prototype of the original PS1 Wipeout is shown in the movie Hackers (arcade scene). It was done on a high-end SGI server and allowed the dev team to try out tracks and gameplay before porting to the Playstation. There are features and graphics in the movie that do not exist in the actual game.
Ah, I'm glad the demoscene gets a mention. One does not make music on a computer in the 90s without at least some, or possibly a whole truckload of, influence from the demoscene.
I was surprised Unreal Tournament didn't get a mention in the article — it's famous for its music! I fondly remember several of its tracks falling within this genre.
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Some rough mixes here and there (especially the first one) because it was live from a NYE event. But it suits the style of music, that era was so raw and fresh, the future was being invented right there! Very happy days :)
1) DJ SS - Intro
2) Higher Sense - Cold Fresh Air
3) Deep Blue - The Helicopter Tune
4) Roni Size - Time Stretch (93 Mix)
5) DMS & The Boneman X - Sweet Vibrations
6) Engineers Without Fears - Spiritual Aura
7) Omni Trio - Soul Promenade
8) Codename John - Kindred
9) Brainkillers - Screwface
10) Dubtronix - Fantasy (Remix)
11) M-Beat - Incredible
12) DJ Rap - Your Mind (Gimp/Steve Mix)
13) Asend & Ultravibe - What Kind Of World
14) LTJ Bukem – Horizons
15) Bruck Wild - Silent Dub
[1] https://on.soundcloud.com/WjQVyJRfYMyQLP3f8
I've been told by several Gen-Z that they've never been to a "rave", and I feel sorry for them. In my town, we had quite the underground scene, but then times changed and it is so much smaller now. Now, "kids" just call it all EDM instead of the specific genre that we know and love.
There's a night in London called Cartulis (which is usually at Fold), when I go there it feels very much like the early rave scene to me (this is just one example, of course). I think there's a tendency when we get older to not be as exposed to the bubbling undercurrent of music, so it's easy to just say "it's not as good as it used to be", but that would be a mistake imho. It's there if you look for it.
I don't think there were any available in my hometown (or they were too underground for me to have ever heard about!), and there wasn't much exposure to electronic music at all, so it's not an experience I'd ever considered trying to find out how to have.
Just one person's anecdote, of course, but I wonder what the balance of generation vs. location is!
Biggest hit: Rocking steady - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4V5xlLs-OQY
I also cannot get this track he made for a 1998 video game out of my head:
Tremors - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUKno5p9U04
For example Pete Cannon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1eA-FGJ8B0
More recent livesets using dual Amigas, from the Amiga Junglism channel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHPIxrcjKW4https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1P6VxIWFl7g
Some mixtapes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NjqNwHidpkhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oe3jEA7710s
I didn't expect a jungle setlist while browsing HN — bless
I didn't ever expect to post one! :D
One of the things I noticed with a bunch of the younger producers is that they make really nice tunes but they don't bother with the whole intro/outro thing so there's no buffer on either end of the track to mix the thing unless you go add them yourself before even attempting to get them in with a bunch of older choons meant for mixing. like this is great [1], but 1:34 minutes lmao what? On the other hand people who have been at it since the very early days are still quietly releasing alot, here's some secret dillinja cuts [2]
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M77SxLGAxWg
[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfyHx7SCn3g
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrR82XLCKq8
https://soundcloud.com/paullouth/paul-louth-jungle-mix-nye-2...
https://youtu.be/9hJ4OROIvxY
...and as a bonus, have this 'n all...
https://youtu.be/HImPRflyyJk
...and as it's a Wednesday, have this as a freebie:
https://youtu.be/M_tKjqUK5lM
Anyway to avoid app install?
https://soundcloud.com/paullouth/paul-louth-jungle-mix-nye-2...
Thanks for sharing your mix!
[1] https://potenzadsp.com/plugins/amigo/
[2] https://www.instagram.com/p/C0Pf1bNPgWy/?hl=en
[3] https://www.youtube.com/@TheBizzyBScience
[4] https://www.youtube.com/@groovining
[5] https://www.youtube.com/@STRANJAH
For anyone needing an excellent subwoofer, check out RSL Speedwoofer 10e ($299) or 10s. What a world of difference a good sub makes.
https://youtu.be/vDZHEAwDAVo?feature=shared
The very best of jungle was "UK Apache with Shy FX - Original Nuttah". It got a bit of re-release for its 25th birthday (5 years ago) with an intro by Idris Elba.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GclYmrvWyuY
Ali G gave jungle a moment to shine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efgIm9YPZvE
And jungle isnt dead its just evolved a bit! Nia Archives - Off Wiv Ya Headz from last year:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrnDC94_Tic
Amen brother, Amen!
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Genuinely glad I got to experience so much of it growing up with a PS1 and the genre's stuck with me. If you want to focus on listening or have some soothing background noise, it's perfect, versatile.
While not all jungle, shouout to PS1 racing games for their killer soundtracks. The glorified mixtape of Gran Turismo 2 (all versions!), Colin Mcrae Rally's acid beats, everything in Ridge Racer. Really feels like vidya soundtracks peaked there.
> “That’s the whole point of it, we didn’t want to do sort of boring techno stuff as well, or jungle, so we picked speed garage, it’s funkier than house and garage.”[3]
[1]: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buck_Bumble
[2]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8FQ-N0zb2U)
[3]: https://archive.org/details/64-magazine-15/page/n39/mode/1up
> The techno scene originated in Germany, reached the UK, and it was later associated with the Chicago & Detroit EDM scene in America.
Techno was invented in Detroit, house music in Chicago. Germany like techno. In no sense whatsoever did they invent or originate it.
Fabio and Grooverider are seminal figures to the scene, yes, but they did not originate the sound.
[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Belleville_Three
also funny how you can beat the game as a dolphin flying a plane haha
who remembers Ojuice.net?
Twenty eight years!
I’m ashamed of myself.
-Can't forget Facing Worlds in Unreal Tournament 1999! https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=i_0G6WPuss4
-Andy C will be in Los Angeles Nov. 28 (typically plays LA a few times per year)
-Worth checking out: Modern DJs who mix DnB/jungle with "footwork" (musical genre), e.g. Sharelle https://m.soundcloud.com/iamsherelle
-BBC Radio 1, Radio 6, and Rinse FM all have drum n bass shows and are available for free online and through Alexa etc.
-h2k2 had at least one wicked drum n bass set, I wonder if any of you were there :)