Junglist Underground History

NORTH LONDON

You can’t talk about the history of Jungle without talking about North London. From the very beginning, artists and labels like Top Buzz, Noise Factory, Congo Natty, and Kemet Records were setting the blueprint. When Jungle music was pushed out of the West End, venues like Club U.N. and Roller Express were key to keeping the scene alive.

East LONDON

Going all the way back to the early Acid House days the combination of the number of warehouse spaces and tower blocks made East London the perfect location for the rave
scene to develop.

By 1991 the Hardcore scene was thriving and the seeds of Jungle had already been sown, bringing together people from all walks of life. From this community came Pirate Radio Stations, DJs, MCs, Promoters, Record Shops, Labels and a whole tribe of Ravers.

Broadcasting from Nightingale and Holly Street tower blocks, Pirate Radio Stations like Kool FM, Weekend Rush FM and Eruption FM were at the centre of the movement, spreading the culture far and wide.

west END

It might be hard to believe now but there was a time when the West End played host to some of the biggest Jungle events the scene has ever known. With venues like Cafe de Paris, Raw Club, Limelights and Samantha’s playing host to nights like Thunder & Joy, Stush and Ah… London Sumting. Voodoo Magic at Hippodrome was legendary! And who could forget Kool FM’s 3rd birthday at The Astoria when the police had to close down Tottenham Court Road because far too many people turned up. The West End was also an important destination for pro and bedroom DJs alike with record shops such as Blackmarket, Unity and Razor Records supplying the latest beats on streets.

WEst LONDON

West London has a different vibe to East and that is reflected in it’s contributions to the scene. A broad church of legends laid the foundations of a variety of different sounds, from Alex Reece to No U Turn Records and General Levy, and events like The Harder They Come at the Bridge Park Complex among many others making sure that West London is firmly rooted in the history of Jungle.

OUT OF TOWN AND THE M25

100’s of hours of research has ensured that over 80% of the names on this map are correct in their location, or no more than 5 miles from where they grew up, lived, held at least one event, broadcast from, etc. The remaining 20% are too important to the scene not to be represented and are typically from areas where the sound was exploding or the home counties.

in memory of…

To those Junglists who sadly are no longer with us, their music and talent will live on forever through the records they created and sets they performed on. The scene is far richer for them being a part of it, so to Skibadee, Kemistry, Diane Charlemagne, Stevie Hyper D, MC Ruff, Tenor Fly, Marcus Intalex (Da Intalex) and Tango, thank you and Rest In Eternal Peace.