Punk rock, world obscurities, and “deranged” mix CD’s from Keiji Yamabe’s Los Apson? record shop in Koenji, Tokyo. The best record shops in the world are much more […]
Watch: Jungle Fever, a journey to the underworld of London drum & bass circa 1994
When it tore through London before taking over the world in the early 1990s, the jungle/drum ‘n bass scene was unlike any other in the world.
Harnessing samplers, speed, ragga, breakbeats, hip hop, and old reggae, soul, and R&B records, producer-DJs including Shy FX, LTJ Bukem, Grooverider, Ed Rush, and hundreds of others forged an entirely new sound and genre, one that went viral before the internet made it easy to do so.
Because it was born in Britain, in 1994 the BBC sent producers and a camera crew into the city’s jungle scene to explain it to its viewership. The result is a fascinating portal into the world, even if the buttoned-up narrator’s tone makes it sound like he’s working on a nature documentary.
The 30-minute doc also features some killer footage of London record shops of the time, as well as a revelatory glimpse at dubplate culture. Watch it below.
