Jungle
Breaks · 1994 · 155 to 175 BPM · also known as Jungle Techno
Jungle emerged in London between 1993 and 1995: breakbeats cut apart with surgical precision, sped up toward 160 beats per minute, over soundsystem bass and ragga vocals. It was the first authentically Afro-British music of the electronic era, built on the science of chopping the Amen break and the pride of pirate radio. Its refinement would lead into drum and bass, but its spirit keeps resurfacing with every revival.
15 reference tracks
- Shy FX: Original Nuttah (1994)
- M-Beat: Incredible (1994)
- Remarc: RIP (1994)
- Krome and Time: The Licence (1994)
- Dillinja: The Angels Fell (1995)
- Nia Archives: Baianá (2022)
- Tim Reaper & Kloke: In Full Effect (2022)
- Damian's Ghost: All I Remember (2022)
- DJ Sofa: Zion Gates (2023)
- DJ Sofa: Love Hurts (2025)
- Pendulum: Tarantula
- LTJ Bukem: Atlantis (I Need You)
- Aphex Twin: Omgyjya-Switch7
- Goldie: Saint Angel
- Goldie: Kemistry
At a glance
- Tempo: 155 to 175 BPM
- First appeared: around 1994
- Machines: Akai S950, Commodore Amiga, Roland TR-909, Steinberg Cubase
- The sound: Amen break disséqué, Basses sub reggae, Samples ragga et dancehall, Time-stretch caractéristique
- Labels: Moving Shadow, Suburban Base Records, V Recordings, Western Lore, Philly Blunt, Rupture
- Key artists: Rebel MC, Shy FX, DJ Hype, Remarc, Dillinja (débuts)
Producing Jungle
Jungle sits between 155 and 165 BPM, with 160 as the center of gravity for 1994, and the groove lives in two speeds at once, a break running in sixteenths against a reggae bassline falling in dotted quarters as if at 80. Chop the Amen break into sixteen slices per bar: kick on beat one, snare on two and four plus an extra snare a sixteenth before beat four, pairs of fast kicks on the and of three, changing every two bars as Remarc or Shy FX did. The bass is a pure soundsystem sub, forty to fifty five hertz, playing the root for a dotted quarter, a silence, then dropping to the fourth below, with a downward pitch bend for that dub wobble. Grainy vocal chops and sirens fill the top, built from records rather than keyboards.
The full production course, in French: tempo, drums, bass, sounds, arrangement, mix, plugins and machines, and a step by step start.
Frequently asked
What is Jungle?
Jungle emerged in London between 1993 and 1995: breakbeats cut apart with surgical precision, sped up toward 160 beats per minute, over soundsystem bass and ragga vocals. It was the first authentically Afro-British music of the electronic era, built on the science of chopping the Amen break and…
What tempo is Jungle played at?
Between 155 and 175 BPM.
Who are the key Jungle artists?
Rebel MC, Shy FX, DJ Hype, Remarc, Dillinja (débuts).
