I have a super little program that randomises my Jungle folder just to mix things up a bit (excuse the pun), rather than bashing the usual same 50 tunes or so. One of the random files that popped up was the excellent Probe & Pugwash’s The Tomb that I first heard on a Grooverider set mixtape about 60 million years ago. It took me what actually seemed like the Jurassic Period to ID the dark little roller, as of other darkside tunes of the 1993 era. This led me to think that I was into the scene probably a year too late as the stuff I wanted 2008/9 may have easily been ID’d by people of the community on the internet, I should have known what they were initially if I would have started buying vinyl approximately 12 months before.

I was further convinced by this ‘I came into the scene one year too late’ by a video in a Whatsapp group by my mate Squid of MC $pyda freestyling in a reggae fashion with Roni Size refusing to play any tunes to showcase the MC’s talent for 3 abysmal, excruciating, shocking minutes. I had a rant, saying it was nincompoops (yeah, trust me, I used a stronger word than that) like this that ruined the scene for me with MCs starting to double-time, demanding equalisation on the mixing desk so their volume was the same as the tunes being spun and ordering a rewind every 9th second, along with reggae lyrics that I can’t pissing understand in the first place. Just an opinion. This got me thinking that the MCs back in my particular raving days (93-97) were to some people more important than the DJs themselves, something I’ll never understand. There were a handful of MCs I did like, like Man Parris & Lenni who actually did their job and hyped up the crowd, rather than firing off their own lyrics. I’d have loved to have been going to events about 18 months previous listening to the legendary Ratty & Robbie D sets, even the Ratpack (lot of haters for them now when they were both talented in their own right) got the ravers buzzing. Then my other mate in the group, also named Squid (long story), piped up that he actually liked reggae music and that Jungle actually stems from this. He’s right in a fashion, but Jungle has influences from reggae, mainly the sub bass and rhythm. To my mind, Jungle obviously evolved from Hardcore, but there was bit in between, like some sort of Brexit limbo, where the scene was split into two – happy and dark. Me? I preferred the moody dark stuff, always have, and The Tomb sent me on my way to create a set that is very dark indeed. I was a little surprised that as I got to about twenty tracks, most of it is Darkcore from ’93 with hardcore breaks and rhythms, so this set is an amalgamation of my Hardcore & Jungle folders which I enjoyed mixing very much. I did cross-reference after I got stuck on about 30 tunes with this excellent list on Discogs, but it did help me add another two tracks to this mammoth set.

Anyway, rather than giving info, video and download links to every track (come on, I’ve got better stuff to do with my time, like, erm, going to the pub), you’ll have to make do with my clanging… You’ll also notice that there’s a lack of mad X-fader bizniss and I let the records play out; I was just honestly standing over my decks admiring the tunes, and I really enjoyed myself. Here’s a detailed track listing:

• The Invisible Man – Intro (Think About It) Not even a minute long track, this disturbing vocal simply states that if you do too much gear and your brain may be at melting point, what if you stayed like that for eternity? Like the title says, think about it. Don’t do drugs, kids.
• S.L.M. – The Horror More Hardcorey than Jungley, this is a great set opener with it’s quite frankly frightening FX and general atmosphere.
• The Man From Formation – Darken You With My Presence (A2) Standard fare from DJ SS, but the film sample scream usually gets my neighbours looking up at the window when I rinse this bad boy full blast.
• Defender – Feel It (Bass) 2 Man, I just love this beat-orientated track with a wicked amen and robotized (I just made that ace word up) ‘Bass’ vocal sample that is copiously used throughout the track, yet is somehow hypnotising. Include the shifted up B-line that subtly changes and techno bleeps towards the last third of the tune, this is solid stuff.
• Pascal & Sponge – Nosebleed (Left Nostril) Some lovely speaker panning on the intro, the overall vibe is dark with some nice filtered amens, then a cool string section halfway through with tight rave stabs that make this release a strong one.
• Jim Polo & Neil Vass – Underground Feeling An early instance of how amens could be chopped up with limited computer processing, there’s some nice pads and hoover sounds layered over this tight production.
• 4 Horsemen Of The Apocalypse – Drowning In Her The artists are actually the brilliant Foul Play plus Tone Def Records owner Yomi in this very well engineered banger. Something I never heard in the clubs for some reason, big shout out to my northern friend Stuz for introducing me to this one!
• DJ Fokus & DJ Stardust – The Theme Wicked beats which always takes me back to The Prodigy’s Jericho (Genaside II Remix), it reminds me of the previously mentioned Feel It track Fokusing (like what I did there?) on the breaks.
• Probe & Pugwash – The Tomb Superb Darkcore, I especially love the way the hi hats are chopped in just after the intro and when they get a full loop the rumbling bass kicks back in. Also note the creepy synth stabs at 1:27 which when I listen to in the car (always when I’m on my own, mind) I always copy by audibly going, “pyowww… pyah-pyah-pyah-pyah-pyowww” (I know you’re doing this yourself now). Took me 15 years to ID this one.
• Peanut & Riot – The Howling Even the title sounds scary and trust me, it doesn’t disappoint with a church bell opener with a dog (or is it werewolf?!) howling and a manic laugh, then followed by an ace riff which brings in the amen. But wait – there’s more! Halfway through there’s the breathy synths which make this a stone cold contender for the darkest tune of the era.
• Bounty Killaz – Lay Back The Bounty Killaz, aka DJ Pulse & Wax Doctor, are very good engineers in their own right and I love all their stuff. Some well programmed clean drum loops (standard for this pair) with layered choral pads, this is essential listening.
• FBD Project – Breakin Up The flip-side to The Core (more on that later), I didn’t initially like the filtered overlapping snares that in my mind weren’t levelled properly, but darkness fell across the land at 3:45 for one of the eeriest drops I know in my collection. Add in the tops for more effect, then the break kicks in again and… oh my God. Hiding under your duvet time.
• Probe & Pugwash – Back From Hell The other side of the aforementioned The Tomb, this heavier amen cracker is just as good, watch out at 1:29 for the dark stab with the amen chopped in.
• The Invisible Man – Twisted Took me a decade to ID this bastard. Associated with Bukem, although plenty of other DJs played it, this track was absolutely rinsed to death in 1993 upon it’s release. This has everything, including the iconic vocal, “I’m going to take you to a place that you’ve NEVER been before“. Top tune on a top E.P., Mr Graham Mew (I’ve met him, nice bloke) knew how to make a storming tune.
• Oz Beats – Untitled (A) A rare delve into 1992 for me, it packs a punch with that classic riff which just shows how that sometimes, simplicity is the best policy.
• Probe & Pugwash – The Tomb Part Two An obvious remix of the previous The Tomb, this one is more well known and still has menacing elements about it, with some nice Halloween-ey chords halfway through.
• Ramos & Vinylgroover – The Beast (Shadow) Not the most obvious of artists for producing some classic darkside but it does well, yet always threatens for me to go into severe chipmunk piano arpeggio mode as the same instruments and samples that were used in Happy Hardcore tunes are ever-present. However, an immaculately executed track that again, about halfway into it, presents real murkiness.
• Mega City 2 – Darker Side Of Evil Not the most darkest of tracks as the title may suggest, but it’s sprinkled with a Predator 2 sample which is always a good thing.
• Green Buddha – The Chamber A heftier amen & bass offering, this is a good example of when the engineers really started using the technology to it’s full potential back in 1994 and the scene started to have more definition about it; the happy/dark split had already erupted. Pissed off this got into the mix as I have a shitty top end copy.
• D.O.P.E. – When I Was Young (DJ Easy B & T Bag Revisited Mix) – Flipping heck, I hope I don’t have to type out that title again. Another Bukem record bag regular, I may use the word polished a little too often on this blog, but this tune defines it. Some really ghoulish sounds in abundance with a classic amen and more bell-sounds to create an air of nastiness. Edit: My missus was listening to this yesterday and told me the vocal is a Supertramp sample… ohhh yeaaah.
• FBD Project – The Core (Beardy Remix) The original takes me back to Pandemonium at The Institute every time as I associate this tune with that particular club night and environment. I still remember standing in the right hand corner watching the lasers glide over the crowd whilst everything else was pitch black. This one in the mix is a 2015 remix which adds a bit of freshness to an otherwise splendid record.
• Essence Of Aura – Can I Dream (Uncut Dub) I love Essence Of Aura, ever since their wicked release Destiny in 1992, a track that probably convinced me to get into the scene and start dancing like a man who is on fire. Amazing talent on this track, Essence Of Aura were always genius at making addicting riffs. There’s a resplendent bio of them on ‘Cogs, and this description sums up the Midlands rave scene perfectly.
• Wardance – Jammin – Brilliant bit of tune writing released on Formation that thankfully didn’t stick to the tried & tested method for that label. A nicely cut up Hot Pants break for an intro which accommodates the forthcoming amens admirably. Add in some breathy pads and a Poltergeist sample from the film and you’ve got yourself a killer tune that sounds insane.
• Nut-E-1 – Underwater Fireworks I admittedly wasn’t familiar with this release, I’m glad I can play it to my heart’s content in this day and age. There’s some very good work focusing on the tablas that precede the main amen break over dark strings. Sublime.
• Intense – Para Time Continuem (VIP Dubplate Mix) I’m unaware of how I got this particular mix, but it only just shades the original Time Space Continuem by replacing the Army Of Darkness (Evil Dead 3) strings sample with yet another one. I like bleepy things.
• DJ Fokus – Vexxed Indeed, the opening Hardcore-sounding riff gets me vexxed in a negative fashion but I get turned around by the beat programming which leads into some freakish techno FX that bring in the main break, like, lush.
• Chaos & Julia Set – Use Of Weapons Volume 1 This pair banged out some right corkers, and although this one may sound a little experimental, it works well to the point where I’d pay all of my wages to be transported back in time to listen to this in the clubs again. The band name? Excerpt from Discogs: “Dom Fripp tells us in his own words. “I got the name from a poster in the Mathematics department of Warwick University. The title was “Chaos and Julia Sets”, the Julia being Gaston Julia, the French mathematician”
• X Dream, Troy & Cortex – X.T.C. E.P. (B1) From the infamous E.P. which nobody can get their hands on for less than £200, this track, probably the most well known, has that Police – Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic guitar sample that still amuses me today of how ace it works with the breaks. And that Angel of Death vocal sample? The Simpsons.
• X Dream, Troy & Cortex – X.T.C. E.P. (A2) More creepy goings on at a roughneck pace, this super-rare white label does not disappoint.
• Bass Ballistics – Stand Tall Maybe I didn’t do this track justice when vaguely describing it earlier in this blog but there’s that much going on here, I count more than six different phases of the track which basically I felt gave me bloody good value for money on my first ever Jungle Hardcore purchase.
• The Trip – Snowball (Remix) Unsurprisingly spiffing stuff from the Kniteforce crew, this chunky smasher has a grimy undertone to it.
• Mindscape – Jungle Heaven I honestly bought this for the pervy label logo, but was more thrilled when playing it back home at the opening female computer system alarm Sci-Fi warning dialogue, followed with attack-minded snares. Damn shame that this vinyl E.P. was tainted by poor mixing levels as I loved the quirkiness of this track. Hold tight though as there’s some uplifting strings with the standard RnB reverb vocal which crescendos into downright meanness.

In Tha Mix

This week, I’m going off-road with tunes that… that, I can’t believe this… that don’t have the amen break in them. Yeah, I know. I’ve been digging through my (virtual) crates as of late and found that about 90% of my tunes have the amen break, but I do like the Jungle with proper homemade beats and it gives a crisper, sometimes edgier sound.

Goldie – Hyena 1

Goldie’s Hyena 1 (if you think you’ve heard it before it’s in the brilliant 2000 film High Fidelity) is a good example of raw minimalist Jungle and I tend to drop it every week because that bassline catches everyone out – not me though, I cheat with cue points. Class tune, this won’t be available for download though as it tends to steer towards a more DnB style.

Discogs

DJ Kane – Lost

A bit of a weird one, this. It’s got an intro rough break that actually doesn’t evolve yet after a couple of minutes you get the tune. It’s a nice little roller with some good dark samples thrown in (the YouTube description is excellent) and IMO was a few years ahead of it’s time.

Discogs

Found!

DJ Phantasy & Gemini – I Feel Free

Lovely darkness ‘pon the intro with a well-spliced short vocal that rolls into an addictive sub bass and overall clean track. People associate this with Bukem but it was caned by a lot of other DJs too just out of its sheer quality. I liked DJ Phantasy, a very talented producer and DJ who in the Midlands scene was a tad underrated, even though he played the same tunes as LTJ. Still remember his set at Mr. B’s where he dropped PFM’s Love & Happiness, which I think was the first time I ever heard it.

Discogs

Imprisoned

Boogie Times Tribe – The Dark Stranger Part 3

This version just nails it for me man. Better executed, darker, crisper, yet has all the original elements within. The original was an anthem in it’s own right but them strings at 2:00 are to die for. If imbeciles aren’t aware of what Darkside is, throw this at ’em.

Discogs

The Happy Mate

Urban Wax – Rollin Intelligence

First heard this on one of the finest mixtapes I’ve ever heard, DJ Destruction @ Amnesia House 1994. I downloaded the entire track list about 5 years ago and every tune is a corker, including this well produced atmospheric roller. I had some good stuff on Urban Wax, Phantasy’s label that leaned on produced beats rather than sampled ones, and it was refreshing. Some nice jingly-jangly goings on at 3:33 that make this a stand out track.

Discogs

Let Me Be Your Phantasy

Nomad – I Wanna Give You Devotion (Hard Step Mix)

Pinching a smattering of the vocals from the original, this isn’t a bad remix and there are admittedly a background layer of amens, this tune focuses on the fast paced snares which kind of reminds me of Moving Shadow productions about a year before.

Discogs

Wanderer

M-Beat – Dark Dub

This one’s in the no-mans-land of whether I slot this in my Hardcore or Jungle folder due to the beat alone but I like the intro and the not-so-uplifting samples that sound nightmarish all the way through the track. M-Beat knocked out some solid stuff on Renk but I went off them when they commercially released the truly awful Sweet Love and stated in an interview on this new fresh sound in Mixmag: ‘The sampling just had to stop’. I’m like, who the bejesus do they think they are?! So, hmmm, you didn’t sample that amen in the Hard Step remix of it then? Still, top drawer artist.

Discogs

Marion-Beat

DJ Krust – Set Speed

A generic, probably boring release on V, but this has stood the test of time and to be fair to Bryan Gee’s label they did add something extra (usually snares) to the Tech Step scene that I bastard hated. I had the SS remix on vinyl as I liked the snappiness of it but years later I’ve decided I prefer the original for the better B-line.

Discogs

30mph

Blackstar featuring Top Cat – Champion DJ

Another ragga-Jungle tune spewed out on Congo Natty but I loved the energy in this one. Surely a staple for future tunes of this genre to be based on?

Discogs

Rude Boy

Ramos, Supreme & Sunset Regime – Journey Pt 1 (Fusion Mix)

Originally bought for the Crowd Control remix, I was well chuffed when I found this tune on this excellent strong EP. Is this classed as Happy Hardcore? Doubt it. Okay it’s got the obligatory piano riff but it’s used in a key that sounds very dark indeed to accompany the (Rambo?) strings. I also love the “drop the bass” vocal that is the law to chop in but instead of the bass dropping in as suggested, there’s more high hats and snares that make this tune sound mentally fast. Simple fare, but effective and still gets dropped in 2019 by yours truly.

Discogs

John Rambo

DJ Panik – Revelation

Finally, this track was so hard for me to locate that I rediscovered it after a blind download of a batch. I actually wore the cassette mixtape (escapes me now which DJ set it was) out by constantly rewinding it and listening to THOSE ethereal pads at 2:33. These evolve into an organ synth with some tinkly bits layered with a simple dreamy vocal… and then the beat kicks in without any warning whatsoever. An amen would have probably spoilt this track, it’s one of them tunes that I’d probably cry at if I had a few pints of cider.

Discogs

Church Goer

And here’s a mix of the whole lot: Continuous Mix

Bit quiet on the old blog-front lately due to some PC-related and WiFi gremlins; I’ve discovered that gently kicking my tower or tutting at the modem box doesn’t actually solve anything. I’ve also been rinsing my decks and doing a few mixes for this blog but I end up drifting out of genres so the mixes can’t be uploaded.

Yesterday I also discovered a relatively new label, Hardcore Underground Breaks, that really appeals to me and I found a tune on there that has shot straight into my top 5 of all time… gotta be a tune an’ half to get there, right? So yeah, I’m guilty of downloading some (more) of Darwin‘s stuff from iTunes as he’s heavily associated with the Happy Hardcore scene, but he’s a lovely bloke and I feel he’s got some right talent for writing tunes. I first discovered him after a tune ID asked by someone on a forum – the tune had Beverly Craven’s Promise Me vocals (as caned by Pure White – 4AM) sang by a different female artist with a kind of uplifting, heavy and fast style which I instantly loved. The melody at 1:48 gets me Every. Single. Time. I tend to loop that 20 second riff when I’m playing it and reckon I could listen to it for, ooh let’s say, 3 days solid quite easily.

Rave On.

Keep your eye on the June 7th post too, as I’ll be mixing those tunes up straight after publishing this one!

Following on from the radio show Curly & I used to host, the man himself gave me a link last week to one of our shows, an all-Jungle special with the excellent DJ Gershwin on microphone duties with promoter Andy Stringa for support. A fun-filled evening, Curly steering towards the ragga-edge side of tings and me, well – ahem -anthem bashing.

I’ve listened back to my set and could never upload it as my mixing and levels are so bad I winced so much that I ended up with a permanent grimace like Clint Eastwood (that’s a Dean Koontz quote after he reread his Demon Seed novel 20 years later). I’m not too embarrassed by it as the tunes are ace but it gives me an opportunity to remake it – or refix it as the DnB kids say nowadays – as my first ever proper mix on my brand new not-so-plasticky controller.

Yep, stuff you’ve heard loads before but it’s always handy to have a stone-cold classic 1993/94 Jungle set on your device.

Also, after discussion with a few people, I’ll be doing a continuous mix of all the blog tunes which gives me a superb excuse to mess around on my decks even more, so check back the older posts and you’ll (eventually) find a mix of ’em.

Curly & Swipezster Show 29th July 2010 (Swipez 2019 Refix)

1. Deep Blue – The Helicopter Tune
2. Roni Size – Music Box
3. Omni Trio – Renegade Snares (Foul Play Remix)
4. Omni Trio – Feel Good
5. Noise Factory – The Future II (The Remix)
6. Subnation – Scottie’s Sub
7. MA2 – Hearing Is Believing
8. DJ Rap & Aston – Get Rushed
9. Engineers Without Fears – Spiritual Aura
10. Q Project – Champion Sound (Alliance Remix)
11. PFM – Love & Happiness
12. LTJ Bukem – Music
13. Apollo 2 – Atlantis (LTJ Bukem Remix)
14. Aladdin – So Good
15. DJ Crystl – Meditation
16. DJ Taktix – The Way (The VIP Mix)
17. DJ Krome & Mr Time – Ganja Man

Ten years ago, I met a man on Interweb-land named Curly and we agreed to meet at a train station. Yeah, I know that doesn’t sound right in this day & age, but I’m glad we did. We both had a love of the now-dubbed Oldskool scene, although he was (and is) into the more hardcorey 91-92 era and we were both looking to get back into it by ways of DJing the damned stuff again. I went down the ‘Tandy’ route (those of you old enough will know what I mean) and bought a plasticky digital controller for £150 that read my mp3s via software. Curly though: he was never shy about spending coin on decent studio kit and bought a pair of 1210s, Serato software with the time coded vinyl, a top end booth mixer and dedicated 2 laptops to his studio (draped in Manchester United flags & a strangely stained life sized poster of Cheryl Cole on the wall), as well as paying over a ton for an engineer to reroute and hardwire broadband straight into that box room where I had many, many good laughs.

The set up was strange to me, as the vinyl read mp3s and reacted to them when you touched the platters. Or, as Curly’s cousin commented: Witchcraft.

However, we blagged a weekly internet radio show on here to run every Thursday, and we were briefly famous. I may be looking back through rose-tinted glasses, but I’m sure we broke the record for most listeners on a weekly show. To be fair, Curly carried that show as there were a few occasions where I couldn’t make it because I was in meetings at work or my hairdresser’s car badly let me down. There were a few special guests, a chat room, lots of banter, and tunes: By God, there were tunes.

Curly has two cracking lads and an ace missus, but sometimes his deepest Black Country Willenhall-ness shines through. Like how he guffaws at gentlemanly trouser coughs, always had a beer towel within his vicinity (I really, really, can’t get into that) and his creme de la creme: being best mon [local dialect] at my wedding… and getting lost driving to the reception.

Here’s a video of when I showed what a really great friend I was after he drove me to the boozer, got stuck in the snow, and instead of helping to push him out, I filmed him:

Anyway, Curly didn’t feel the Jungle as much as I did, and vise versa with the Hardcore, so we actually never played ‘Back2Back’. Curly tended to monitor the levels while I looked after the internet side of things and it worked really well. On one rare occassion, he tore himself away from 1991-mode and went all gunshot and grimy on me, so here’s 3 tunes for your perusal (and ownership if you’d like):

The Three Million Dollar Men – This Town

A very well looped Specials recognisable sample that works well with the break until it adds extra guff and sort of loses it but then cleans itself up again after 1:40. I remember Curly chopping this one in so tight I recorded it on my Nokia (we are talking a decade ago, come on). Wonder if that’s an MC Bassman sample toward the end of the track? This vinyl’s a bit awkward to get hold of too, hence the £150 price tag.

Discogs

Ghost

Remarc – R.I.P. (DJ Hype Remix)

Remarc for me is a top producer and mad amen-splicer but I did tend to steer clear of anything remixed by Hype, can’t for the life of me remember why now, so Curly reintroduced me to this. It’s all about the bassline here, and if anyone asks me what is the bassiest (is that a word?) tune I have, it will always be this mo-fo. Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant.

Discogs

Pussy-Getter

DJ Bass take A Lick

This track – played at least bi-monthly by yours truly – always reminds me of the Curlmeister, explainer of the Wotsits test (my account may be deleted if I go into detail) and most laid back bloke I know who has the humour of a six-year old and a degree which endears anybody around him. Another (sigh) £150 tune, this has the classic reggae hook and just the chunkiest amen known to Jungle-kind.

Discogs

’94-style

Next up, rare slabs of wax that were generally released but the labels were short-lived, hence their intense pricing. I agree that some of the money paid for these amen tearouts is ridiculous and I certainly wouldn’t pay the asking amounts… especially when I originally bought them for about a fiver a piece.

However, there’s some very good stuff here so I’m proud and privileged to be sharing these with you.

The Urban Dread – Top Priority

This was one of those 1995 heavy amen generic releases that had the obligatory reggae sample, Sesame Street beat intro, booming amens and bouncing bass. I may make this track sound boring, but believe me, it isn’t. On the second phase of the main break, there’s a trigger on the crash cymbal that carries on through the rest of the break loop, and it’s absolutely CRAZY. I’ve never heard anything like it since and this clever bit of drum programming made this by far the heaviest-sounding plastic that I ever owned. The only flaw I can say about it is that I don’t quite get the Ruff ‘n’ Tuff artwork, it’s appalling.

The Urban Dread also went by the name TDK, who did a lot of collaboration with the excellent Bizzy B. Lots of his stuff later.

This track goes out to my good buddy Pauline, who can’t get enough of this tune.

Discogs

Utmost Importance

Unknown Artist – Never Felt

Yeah, let’s get that many-sampled Jem 77 I’ve never felt this way vocal out the way, but it does actually work and is well used and spliced throughout this heavy, heavy amen bomb-fest. Again questionable artwork on this label’s only release (what, a tank with an elephant’s head to denote that the label is heavy? Really?) but I’m being really picky. The tune, still elusive with little known about it nearly two and a half decades later, will speak for itself.

Discogs

So rare

Phyzix + Tricks – Crazy Tings/Meridan

I loved this upon its release, a very catchy reggae vocal hook with the background pianos included, and then the tune mutates into some fast paced break business with a unique bassline that, for me, irritates me in 2019. My more mature ear (although I do have a pair) prefers the other side, Meridan.

It’s a long-winded affair if you play it from the start with some nice pianos and potential bass with stabs of a decent break that you think will build into the climax – wrong. It sort of fades out at 2:56 as if the sound engineer fell asleep at his/her mixing desk and then another ‘intro’ is upon us. Twenty seconds later though, the best. With some good, solid drum writing and a Reese bassline that’s used to decent effect as it usually wasn’t in a lot of releases, this is a barn-stormer (is that a thing?) of a track. Was proud to own this.

Discogs

They always mess wid you

The Source – The Chase

The only other Ruff ‘n’ Tuff release, this time TDK & Bizzy B join forces again as The Source. Wishy-washy flutey opener – something I hated in 165bpm+ tunes, along with saxophones, what’s that all about?! Track redeems itself quickly though with some teasing chopped in amens before the beat properly kicks in making this just about purchasable for me. But then another Reese bassline, albeit a little filtered, is upon us after two minutes and the madness spawns. This bit is where you can hear Bizzy B’s magic coming through. I will say though that for a 1996 release, it is a little dated.

Back in the day, I had a dream that I actually didn’t own this as I was so used to rinsing the orange Ruff ‘n’ Tuff release so when I woke up I had to check that it was in my record box. Maybe it was a premonition to keep hold onto the pair of them as they would be worth a small fortune together today.

Discogs

All 3 for free

So here’s a mix of them, including a special treat at the end from a previous post!

Continuous Mix

So, a feel-sorry-for-meself, ego-stroking (I said ‘ego’), pathetic, wistful post of all them lovely white label vinyls I owned that are worth a few bob these days. The prices are taken primarily from the Discogs website, although that may not be a fair reflection of their true value – trust me, I’m waiting for the “1p” comment. One reviewer said that it ruined Jungle that there are too many kid DJs these days with mommy’s credit card that can push the price of a vinyl up; a little harsh as I blame other online sites too, but goes to show how the internet can pollute the scene we all once loved (mongols at Retardcore Bunglism, take note).

I realise today that if I still had the elusive vinyl, only a couple of nerds (one of them myself) would really appreciate it, so really I’m just kinda glad I had them for a while, totally unawares how much they’d be worth decades later. It’s sort of nice seeing a record that can fetch up to £200, and seeing the actual piece of vinyl I owned as the image on ‘Cogs… as it has my handwriting on it. Don’t get me wrong, some white labels I bought were, to put it politely, absolute dog vomit. Others were just pre-releases of tunes that came out a fortnight later. But the rest… ooooohhhhh man. You are in for a treat.

The Urban Tribe ‎– Fred Locks Jungle

Imagine the scene – Musart Studios, The Custard Factory, Digbeth, Birmingham, some evening in 1995. There’s a few people in there: sound engineers, DJs (moi), other people associated with the studio (never worked out what they actually did there, but they were always present)… and G.E. Real. Amidst the perfumed fog of smoke, there’s an old reggae sample that’s instantly been sampled and sped up. Then some mad amen added. And then that bass. My God, that bass. Think it took them overall about 2 hours, believe it or not. I’ll never forget seeing Kier sitting down on the floor at the end of the night strumming an acoustic guitar. I felt a bit guilty because when I was on the other side of the decks on the dance floor back in ’93, he had the unlucky tag of ‘the 4 deck wizard’. It may have been on only the one flyer(?), but me and my mates really laughed that one up: “DJ Swipe the 17-deck wizard!” we’d MC into our headphones (old trick of temporary microphone plugged into mic channel) hooked up to our ancient hi-fis. I’ve tried since to mix with 4 decks (admittedly digitally) and flip me, it is hard.

I was at a Pure X (Que Club) event where GE Real played a set with MC Chickaboo that was full of dubplates, if hazy memory serves. This changed my opinion of GE Real, and he was a local lad done good, too. And then, two years later, shortly after I was in the studio, he gave me a copy of the tune. RIP big man, the scene was never the same without you.

Incidentally, I’d be interested if anyone is aware of the whereabouts of a few people I remember from Musart – Techno Paul, the other Paul, Bear, Pablo, Andy the Rocker, Cooper Ranks, Lanny and Sharkey, who I’m sure owned the studio and also ran Obsession at The Institute after Pandemonium left. I was a regular at Musart on most Friday nights as I hired out the decks to record my sets as a professional set up. Dubtronix were a couple of floors up, and just up the hallway was the inventor of Hardbag, the late, great Tony DeVit, who recommended I use Musart. And yeah, GE Real did a collaboration with Dubtronix, so you can have that as well.

Right then, Ready for some craziness?

Discogs

7 Miles

Discogs

Cream Studios

Soran – Soran EP

I believe I played the B side first, Heavy Fever, back at home after a ‘blind’ purchase at some back street record shop (yet again, probably long closed down) in the middle of Birmingham. It’s a standard fare amen tune probably a year too late in that it doesn’t sound quite so polished, although I still like to drop this in sets. The main track, Wanna Be Down, is a much better tune that sounds very clean and overall is well produced. I luuuurve a short reversed bar of the break cleverly interspersed into the main one, and there’s plenty of that here. A simple, yet effective tune. Found on the label Headless, all strong releases, I’ll post up another banger from their back catalogue soonish. I can’t find the vid for Wanna Be Down, so you’ll have to make do with both tracks to download.

Discogs

Wanna

Marx & Triple A – Space + Time

I was well pleased when I bagged this, but G.E. Real ripped the piss out of me when I played this as an intro in the studio, calling it ‘The Motorbike Tune’. I was bemused to say the least, but as I don’t like to speak ill of the dead, he did lift his chin in appreciation as he knew what he was on about when them amen breaks cut in from nowhere. Admittedly the track could have been arranged better (a bassline as an intro is never the best idea), but I just love the simplicity and bleepiness of this track.

It took me years to ID this track as Quality Control 2, as the only thing etched in my vinyl was ‘QC002’. It only popped up on Discogs in the last 12 months with details of the artist & track titles. Banging.

Discogs

Revving up

DJ Fallout – Lullaby

I had the test pressing of this with a thick, pulpy texture instead of the smooth paper in the centre of the vinyl and the only info I had was that it was by Fallout. The Discogs link I’ve given is the actual promo released to give a bit more clarity, but at the time I called this ‘The Breathing Song’. A poorly looped piano for an intro that makes me think this was ripped straight from a film – all suggestions welcome – but the well programmed amen works to full effect. Fallout had a habit of producing long drawn out intros, one of which was Love Me which to be fair blew the goddamn roof off Quest the first time I heard it (conveniently last in her set to build up the atmosphere), but the flip side of Lullaby contradicts this with another amen-smasher, Major Respect.

I’ve had the privilege of meeting Fallout a few times and with all due respect she’s lovely, but I wish she spent more time in the studio making her tunes sound a little less rushed, unlike her collaboration with Tango’s (another Jungle soldier sadly passed) Revelations, yet to be released to my knowledge – don’t worry, you’ll get your hands on that in the near future.

I had my copy kindly stolen by a fellow DJ whom I’d invited round my home for a bit of a sesh. Doesn’t matter, the numpty couldn’t mix because he didn’t even know he had to cue his records and this was a shame as he had a brilliant MC who accompanied him. Dude, if you’re reading this, I don’t begrudge you anything because I’ve had several pieces of wax nicked before & after your particular dipping. It happens, as any decent DJ will attest to.

Discogs

Sleeeeeeep

DJ Vibes – Sing It Loud

So to end this post on a lighter note: I did fumble around with happy hardcore a bit, which a lot of DJs like Pilgrim regret… but I don’t. There were some serious uplifters and absolute slammers within that genre, but chipmunk vocals – No! And No! again. This is an example of higher (nearly doubled) pitched vocals that sprinkled the HH scene, but I’ve heard it in Jungle sets too.

I had a habit of playing this as an intro at 33rpm where it sounded almost House tempo-perfect and then, just as the beat kicked in, I’d switch to 45 for the track’s ‘normal’ speed. I vividly remember my dad on the landing outside my bedroom studio, whistling along to my pleasing set intro vocal and when I switched speeds he shouted, “what the bloody hell is that?!”

How I came about to have this on white label I have no idea; I do know that the other side, Obsession, was an HH anthem that I liked and that I unwittingly bought it quite badly warped to a degree where it just about didn’t make the stylus head jump. I told my evil stepmother at the time (I’m not making this up) about this irregularity; she suggested covering the vinyl in a tea towel, and ironing the bugger on a cool setting. Suffice to say, after a long trip down the pub, I tried this and ended up with something that resembled a horrific science experiment gone wrong. I gave up by throwing it in the bin (not the only time I’ve done that – chuck vinyl away, not iron it), which was probably the best place for it. Anyway, here’s the tune for you noobs, but I just can’t bring myself to offer you a download. Sabrina Johnston, who sang the original I Wanna Sing hopefully isn’t too ashamed of this somehow-anthem that honestly teared up the dance floors.

Discogs

Skanna – Until The Night Is The Morning

Think this was the third or fourth vinyl I ever bought. Bagged it from the long-shutdown record store on the top floor of the Halesowen (Birmingham way) Cornbow, and I liked the artwork. Anyway, lovely dark string stabs on the intro, followed by a 4-on-the-floor break that gets you in the mood, and then the most crackers of snares erupt into a stormer of a tune. I remember my sister saying that it was weird how drums could sound so mad. Listen further on and you’ll find some good elements in vocals, rave synths and arpeggio pads that overall compliment this solid release.

Oh yeah – true story: my aunty and my nan loved this track.

Discogs

Daaaarksiiiiide…

Bass Ballistics – BBC EP

Waffling on about my earlier purchases of jungle vinyl-goodness, this leads me onto my first ever one: Some time in 1993 and I had a few quid in me pocket (cheers mom!), caught the peasant-carrier bus to West Bromwich town centre and in the record shop (again, shut down yonks ago) there happened to be an old school friend working behind the counter, where I uttered the ultimate words, “You got any ‘ardcore?”

The whole EP does not disappoint and for me identifies the point of when the dark jungle sound was really breaking through. Lots going on in the tracks with some very clever programming, you can download every track below as they’re all great.

What was also an epiphany in my life as to why I should love this music so much is because the very first time I went to Pandemonium down The ‘Tute (and met these very dodgy brother characters from the other side of Birmingham… who I’m still friends with a quarter of a century later), guess what the first tune I heard was as I stepped onto the dance floor? Yup, this one. Cuz DJ Ratty was caning it.

Discogs

The first one

Omni Trio – Renegade Snares (Rob’s Reconstruction Mix)

Yes, the Foul Play remix is THE anthem of anthems, but truth be told that piano don’t ‘arf get on my tits. However, this little beauty, kindly left behind by a former lodger’s hasty departure, is IMO the best mix of all of them in my collection [download]. Listen for the warm strings overlaying the beat when it rolls in fully at 1:12 and check out the extra “naa-naa-naa” bonus vocal at 2:15. Amen? Of course.

Discogs

Take me up

Sky Cutter – Blue Notes

Going into the more obscure vinyl I had, I had this little red 10-incher (fnarr-fnaar, gnuff-gnuff) that was a nice surprise in 1996 when the scene was turning all tech-steppy and, in my opinion, shit. A sort of amateurish attempt at an atmospheric intro with some weird siren FX that roll into a bog-standard break for the era, but bear with it as the amens are just round the corner with a decent unusual B-line, which makes one very happy.

Discogs

Wi-wi-wi-wi-wi-wi-wi

Next week, we’ll delve into some of my rarer white label vinyl which today sells for silly money 😦

DJ Swipez – Continuous Mix Download

I’ll start with a few gems to whet your appetite…

Flytronix – Shine A Rewind (DJ Harmony Remix)

Tight production (as were all the Moving Shadow releases) on a neat 10″ vinyl. My mate bought me the digital version a few years later on iTunes (cheers Dick!). That water drop FX at 0:33 has been chopped into the mix by me for the last 20+ years . This is my YouTube video by the way, as nobody else has ever uploaded this essential tune.

Discogs

Shine on

Natural Forces – The Bassline Tune

Solid release that I was of the opinion that all Jungle should have been like this. Only found out this year that the artist was ironically Simon ‘Bassline’ Smith.

Discogs

Wind & Fire

Bombsquad – Freebase (D.O.P.E. Remix 2)

Absolute gem. It was one of the first ten vinyls I bought but didn’t tend to play it a lot, which is something I regret. The A side is perfect 1993 Darkcore which is very atmospheric and introduces a reverse bassline that wasn’t heard on another track until the (IMO iffy) Dred Bass was released 18 months later, hence why I think the tune is ahead of it’s time. Produced by the excellent D.O.P.E. artists (Defenders Of Planet Earth), the beat on the A side [Remix 1] was a bit weak for me (but good enough for Top Buzz, etc.), so here’s the B side. Still dark with those breathy pads, and some weird filter on the main break. Ooh, it’s filthy! Quite rare this, last copy sold for £80.

Discogs

Ruggedness

Concept 2 – Soon Come

Personal favourite of mine – hard, fast, eerie and a brilliant example of the 1995 scene when the breaks were getting REALLY heavy. Concept 2 also go by the name Origin Unknown, aka Andy C and Ant Miles of Ram Records

Discogs

Not too early

DJ Crystl – Your Destiny

Total, complete, darkness. Haunting synths which create a unique anti-snowflake atmosphere with teasing chopped in amens before they roll in properly after a good two and a half minutes. I usually mix in the intro with the hats but if you actually listen to them they add to the overall creepiness. Complete genius as far as dark jungle goes. When interviewed years later, Crystl said that this was his favourite track that he produced. Sweet Dreamz on the flip is loved by a lot of people. Not my bag, horses for courses, etc. Apologies in advance for the Youtube vid edited by those raggamuffins (I can’t say arseholes) at Hardcore Junglism.

Discogs

Own some Darkness

Deep Blue – The Helicopter Tune (Fantasy #2)

I acknowledge that Deep Blue’s Helicopter Tune was a groundbreaking anthem, but I never really quite got it. The Sesame Street break didn’t work for me at all and the bassline was so-so generic but somehow it all came together with that intro. The copy I bought happened to be the last one in MC Lenni’s shop, and that was his personal vinyl. I’ll always respect him for that. Got home and played the flip-side tracks and I wasn’t impressed at all.

Fast forward 25+ years and go to exactly 3:01 on Fantasy #2, listen to the tune slow down then speed up again until the break kicks in again; simply sublime. Still drop this in sets. Tune.

Discogs

Rotor blades

Q Project – Night Moves (Alliance Remix)

Yeah, the A side’s Champion Sound remix has a special place in my heart (as well as in every set I mix), but the flip-side Night Moves see-liiiiiightly overshadows it; sounds like typical beats & bass Jungle fare until about a minute in when the glorious pads kick through, as well as three different compositions of these throughout the track so all in all, good value. Crisp, fast, and well produced.

Discogs

Why isn’t this already on your hard drive?

International Rude Boyz – Drum Programme (Remix)

Nice little anthem on 10″ that actually took me five years to get hold (mainly because I called it ‘The Submarine Tune’ for ages). Standard Formation Records stuff of the ’93 era but it’s got it all: Sonar-sounding bleeps (hence my nickname for it), multi-layered breaks, high pitched off-key strings and an Exorcist sample to boot: “Who will be with you in time… IN TIIIME” There’s also that weird scratch FX thingy on the intro break that I just bloody love and have felt genuinely sad when I haven’t chopped it into the mix. I may post the original track at a later date as I still debate with myself on a weekly basis which is the better mix. I could also be anal about the misspelled title, but I’ll let it pass as this happened a lot in those glorious years, as they were obviously very excited about getting releases pressed and such, nothing to do with what they were smoking. Overall, it’s just funkin’ catchy, ain’t it?

Discogs

In Time

DJ Crystl – Meditation

Another tune that evaded me for years on wax, again my fault: I got it mixed up with this earlier Dee Jay Recordings release . When I did eventually buy it, God it was worth it. I may have even cried a little when I got home to spin it. First heard this off my tits on the platform, main dance floor, The Institute, Digbeth, Christmas Eve 1993. DJ SS played it from start to finish and I remember it like yesterday, it had such a profound effect on me. Dreamy (organ-ey??) intro pads, wicked bass, chopped amen intros and that haunting vocal. That is all.

Discogs

Yoga

The reason this blog has come about is I created a Whatsapp group for my old raving buddies and in early May 2019 I was asked if I could give a link to all of my Jungle tunes. That ain’t ever gonna happen, nor on here either, so I decided to post a tune a day with a link and description. I’ve decided recently this isn’t fair as it would clog up their phones (I do tend to go on a bit) and it’s probably crappier reading about a tune in a smartphone text format. So this blog is something I’ve always wanted to do, an education rather than an mpfree download-fest. I’ve been a member on the more popular (and unpopular) jungle/hardcore forums from about a decade ago, but these are short-lived and people talking to other people on the internet: man, they don’t half fall out. Hopefully this is a little more permanent so you and your friends can enjoy it, rather than troll it; any mistakes are mine and mine alone! I also tend to class breakbeat hardcore/drum & bass as ‘Jungle’ from 1993 to about 1998… ish. The music is taken from my personal digital collection, and I didn’t collect labels’ entire back catalogue for the sake of it; indeed there are some B sides without the A sides unavailable as ALL of my tunes are tracks that I like and have a fair shout at a spin on my digital decks every so often. Basically, there’s no (what I would class) rubbish in my Jungle collection. I’m more Amen-driven, beat-orientated rather than a nice melody (someone once commented how could I prefer a hi hat over a bleepy riff?!), although I am a sucker for orchestral pads and strings. Each track I am passionate about. I think about listening to it, dancing to it, mixing it, how it was made, the atmosphere it creates and get a good general feel for the track on all levels. Some haven’t aged well and sound like they were made in some teenage kid’s bedroom (this happened, a lot), yet some still sound fresh today: Helicopter Tune, anyone? Some tracks you may not know, some you may have forgotten about, and others that’ll be just blatant anthems that you’re all sick of hearing. But anthems are anthems because they’re, like, anthems, aren’t they?

A little about me – I was born in Birmingham, UK in the mid-seventies so was a little too young to be going to the Acid Warehouse parties in the late eighties but I did like the speed and sound of the Hardcore music; I found it almost tribal. When the 4-beats gave way to the more intricate rolling breaks, I was hooked. Forever. I started buying vinyl around the start of 1993, became a regular raver down at The Institute in Digbeth, Birmingham for the excellent Pandemonium on a Friday night, as well as a few dodgy nights out at the infamous Paloma’s Quest nights down the road in Wolverhampton on a Saturday. I then got my first set of decks (courtesy of a loan from my Dad) and after hundreds of hours practising, an awful lot of demo tapes delivered via snail-mail, landline (remember them?) phone calls to several promoters, I finally got to play in some clubs with my name on the flyer and everything. Not one penny did I get, nor did I want payment. This was, and still is, a love of mine. I discovered very quickly that there were a huge amount of better talented DJs out there with more access to the producers and studios for more exclusive releases, and by then the scene was going all jump-up & tech-steppy and I lost interest and turned to commercial Trance (Soh-reeeeeee). By the turn of the century I’d sold my decks (and beloved vinyl) and then Flashback popped up, getting headline DJs to spin their old wax from about 91 to 94 at events and I fell in love with it all over again. Ten years later I’m downloading, begging, ripping and actually buying old Jungle mp3s, always trying to find a better quality in WAV or flac format, then just stopped; I looked at my Jungle folder one day and it had 2,728 tracks in it, (none of them nasty YouTube rips, all genuine) that’s quite enough – although I do acknowledge that there are hundreds of people with collections much more vast than that – but, more importantly, there are no wants. Well, maybe two, but there’ll be a separate post about them. Over the past 2 years I’ve basically been tidying up my collection, sorting, tagging, uploading and basically streamlining. What, I’ve got that mega-rare white label that only 100 were pressed of, and I’ve got a 124 megabyte WAV copy of it, even though the tune’s utter tosh? Recycle Bin. Oh yeah, along the way in the analogue and digital eras, I can confess that more than one girlfriend has given me the ultimatum: “the decks or me”. Although I’ve screamed this in my head many times, occasionally it has been known to fall out of my mouth: “please don’t ask me that”…

I’ll have to get into the nitty gritty about downloads that I’ll be providing for every tune (yeah, you read that right!) – if there’s an artist or label who owns the music and you want the download taken down, get in touch and I’ll delete it immediately, but I will keep the descriptive text for the track(s), as it merits it.

Welcome. Thanks for taking the time to read this – it’s a blog that started with the older Jungle tracks released (and some unreleased) back in the 1990s when the scene was mostly underground. The last few years it’s blossomed into championing the exciting newer Jungle which captures the sound and vibe of the ’90s produced by talented up and coming artists. Any material owned by the artist/s may get in touch and it will be immediately removed.

There’s Discogs links, YouTube videos, a fair bit of waffle and opinion, a touch of profanity, humour, maybe some pretty pictures, a few personal ravin’ memories – and a ton of music. Let’s Go.

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