How to Be a Junglist: The T-shirt Special
Posted on December 17, 2014 3 Comments
With all this body language sharpened by many years of obeying thousands of thunderous demands of the bass, we don’t really need to put print on our clothes to express ourselves, now do we? But here we go and do it anyway, just for junglistic emphasis.
Let’s have a look at the printed t-shirts.
My most favourite JUNGLE top! Oh, what joy, when I found an entire shop in London called JUNGLE. Pretty easy to find some perfect junglistic prints in there, as you can imagine. I had an orange one as well, but it seems to have escaped every single photo ever taken. How weird is that. But then again, weirder things have happened in JUngLEkalenderen. This is Roskilde, the most excellent sunny year of 2005 where Ohoi! was playing.
The JUNGLE t-shirt goes out to meet other t-shirts! Much joy. Tim Driver pretends he feels, you know, whatever, man. Photo courtesy of jonask!
F.U.K.T. bass player Lars behind the decks, appropriately wearing a F.U.K.T. t-shirt in case someone gets their brain whacked out of their skull by all that bass and forgets who he is. This is the Infiltrata party, DNBZone at Culture Box, in 2006.
Look at thiiiiiis! So, I was moving flats, and we are wearing matching JUNGLE t-shirts to rise to the challenge of the hard work ahead. *singing* That’s what friends are foooooooor.
And here we go again. Some months later I was getting ready for the second move, and Svingsen made these t-shirts for the occasion. <3 Jungle Movers Inc.! Whohoooo. Friiiiiiiieeeends.
Some people get a t-shirt, other crazeeeees get the darn thing BURNT INTO THEIR SKIN FOREVER! “The Jungle Monster voice in my head told me to do it”-styleeeeee.
Not one single toss is given in this pic.
Basic and to the point! Nico DeFrost at the Infiltrata party, August 2006. Pic by Miss Popo.
A BIG classic sported by the one like Vitus here! (Jeeeez, where IS this? Is this really how the basement in Culture Box looked back in the day? A blitz sure kills everything dead).
This t-shirt! Most awesome, worn bu Sulu! A deliberate provocation all wrapped up in glitter! Much like the man himself. This is RAW (and it says DUMB).
The one like Kristobal sporting a t-shirt from Dansk Sound Clash Mesterskab 2005. Lion an’ everythin’. Pretty junglistic.
This t-shirt needs some attitude, Laura! On our way to the very hot DNBZone party with Infiltrata.
Is that a pixelated chainsaw on Soulmatic’s t-shirt?
Yes, it is! PIXELATED CHAINSAWS FTW! Soulmatic playing live at Rum’n’Bass , June 2006. Pic by Vitus.
Yes, Chrois! This t-shirt speaketh the truth! (Great move, too). Culture Box, September 2007.
This t-shirt tries to grab everyone’s attention. Hand signs thrown in for extra effect. Difficult crowd, it seems. Tim Driver’s birthday party at Rust, June 2009.
Ssssshh, don’t mention dubstep here. But I am just breaking my own rules and throwing this t-shirt in the mix anyways. We’re warming up to the Caspa party, November 2009. These guys REALLY know how to play Taboo! 😀
Pyro wears a magic t-shirt!!! DNBZone, 2008, the EBK party.
Is that a Sir Mix-A-Lot thing going on there? Never mind, here’s a fine collection of oldskool junglists at Nadsat, enduring the blitz.
And here they are, Chriszka and Mariii on their most excellent and sweaty oldskool London adventures, having a SHORT break before throwing themselves out onto the dancefloor once again. NO WAIT! This is 10 years earlier! June 2004 – the Ohoi! party at Basement. See how nothing changes.
For more body language, revisit How to be a Junglist: The Dancefloor Moves.
For the trip to London: How to be a Junglist: Going to London
Do you remember where you saw the Jungle Movers Inc. t-shirt the first time? YES! It was in Jungle Feelings: The Group Hug Speciaaaaaaaaal!
Did you miss a day of JUngLE? Find the entire calendar here: JUngLEkalenderen.
Blasts from the Past: Jungle Bells 2005
Posted on December 16, 2014 2 Comments
Yipeee, once again we’re boosting the Christmassy vibes with another round of Jungle Bells! – this time we’re time travelling back to Jungle Bells anno 2005. This is December 16th, nine years ago, exactly, today.
Warming up at the Jungle Hut. On the surface look of things we are quite possibly flipping through the photos from Chriszka’s Birthday Bash at Nadsat. But what is REALLY going on? Who knows which devious plans the Jungle Monster is up to. I am oblivious to this at this point, of course. I have no idea. Looking happy, feeling safe.
And here we are. Yup, we should have looked more closely into Mariiii’s eyes back then, I totally see that now.
More people arrive for the warm-up.
That would be my wine glass there on the table. Quite possibly the empty one. And to the… OH MY GOD! Look what has happened! The Jungle Monster has switched skins! It has jumped into poor Claus!
Look at this! Claus feels the burning sensation of the Jungle Monster settling in while Mariii discreetly leaves the room for a bit, inconspicious styleeeee.
“No voices in my heeaaaaad, I’m freeeeee, I’m freeeee, di-da-di-dum!” Mariii enjoys her newly won freedom while we all get ready to leave for Culture Box.
Aaaaaand, arrival at Jungle Bells, Culture Box. That’s a p-r-e-t-t-y junglistic t-shirt you’ve got yourself there, Collins! Also, you are clearly feeling it. 10 points on the Junglistic Scale.
“I’m freeeeee, I’m so freeeee”.
Meanwhile, the new victim of the Jungle Monster hangs out in the front room, putting on a brave face.
Look what it does to people! Everyone in its vicinity is in imminent danger!
Most of the time, things look normal, though. Just think of Mariii. I mean, HOW many episodes before we discovered anything! 13, yes, that’s right!
Maybe we should reevaluate what some of these handsigns actually mean. All things considered. The forces of shapeshifting are strong at this party.
With all this is mind, a pic like this looks like something out of The Devil’s Advocate, all of a sudden! Are these women real? Will scaly skin suddenly appear?
Collins sees an opportunity and decides to check for scaly skin.
Yes, that’s what I mean! The better you look, the more you see! (Using the tagline of the hyper-paranoid masterpiece Glamorama seems so appropriate.)
We just KNOW what kind of devilish hand sign is on its way here.
But back to the innocent jungle vibes of a good dj set. I am clearly feeling it in all kinds of ways.
Casparados has hit the decks. Yipeeee!
And look what happens! FEELING IT!
EVERYONE’S FEEEEEELING IT!
Dj NIS joins the decks. Possibly a massive back-to-back-to-back session going on here, because Drop seems ready to jump in, too.
The horns massive is feeling it!
Feeeeeeling it!
More feeeeeling it all over the place! (This one caught by Miss Popo).
All these feelings. Time for group hugs. You know how it goes with these jungle creatures.
If you need a brush up on the chilling story of the Jungle Monster, check out the Jungle Feelings: The Group Hug Special.
What does it mean, feeling it on the dancefloor? It’s all described in detail (and pictures) in How to be a Junglist: The Dancefloor Moves. For a more personal (and verbal) approach, read my thoughts on dancing and raving and why I love it in How to Be a Junglist: Going to London.
Confused about the hand signs? No worries: The How To Be a Junglist: The Hand Signs Special is at your service.
Did you miss a day of JUngLE? Find every post from every day of the JUngLE Calendar here.
How to be a Junglist: The Dancefloor Moves
Posted on December 15, 2014 14 Comments
Let’s get back to basics today, to what it’s really about: The music and the feelings it gives you. Junglists are going all in in that respect. Nothing beats the energy generated by a dancefloor filled with junglists caught deep in a well-played set, hypnotized by the bass, whipped by the drums. Okay, so things can get upthere on a high quality trance floor, too, that’s for sure! – but jungle, when it’s at its best, has an extra layer. The music in itself also invites to physical outbursts in a different way, which is, well, evident in some of these pics.
Let’s have a look at the moves.
Let’s kick this off with a rarity. Bad scan, good vibe! Thanx for the pic, Mariii (are those glowsticks in your hands? Applaus!)
Here is a classic and yogaesque pic of two junglettes clearly feeling it on the dancefloor. This is from the Jungle Bells party! (see yesterday’s post for details). Photo courtesy of the lovely Miss Popo.
Look at how CRS is totally feeling it in this pic (in a GREEN T-SHIRT <– this one goes out to Garridge Bwoy and Advokatorex who are wonderfully stubborn when discussing things. I know this from myself, but only when I am right).
This is the beginning of Casparados’ set and he has clearly just done something up on those decks that fills me with junglistic joy. I won’t be sitting on that chair sipping bubbles for much longer. My Birthday Bash at Nadsat.
Nico DeFrost is clearly feeling it. Lucy Love approves. Yo Akim is busy, keeping cool.
Something excellent has evidently just happened in the mix. Expressing my feelings here. Advokatorex likes it, too. This will end in a group hug.
Noone feels it like Nufound.
He feels it in many ways. Photo courtesy of Miss Popo.
Nufound, Asmus and Chriszka LOVING it in this photo. We are clearly in the zone! (Photo credit: Miss Popo).
This is what it looks like when a junglist feels it and wants everyone else to feel it, too. Oh, this tune, get up and dance, everyone, now!
This is what it looks like when a junglist succeeds and gets people to join in. Amazing synchronous dancing by Rasmus and Chriszka!
The evil drum’n’bass twins totally feeling it at Rum’n’Bass, June, 2006. A classic pic by Vitus.
And here we go again, feeling it. At Culture Box. Caught by Miss Popo.
Intermezzo: To give you an idea of a tune where your arms just HAVE to go over your head like that, listen to this masterpiece by Bad Company. The sound introduced for the first time at exactly 2.00 just gets me every time. It lifts my heart in that happy/sad-at-the-same-time way, and it HAS to be expressed with the body. Don’t press play in your open office environments, people, the track kicks off quite hard (but the beauty later on is all worth it).
Here we go again, silently feeling it. Kasra at Culture Box, once again caught by Miss Popo.
Intermezzo number 2: To give you an idea of a tune where you just have to silently feel it, listen to this one by Commix. I am choosing this one because the sound I am feeling in particular is so discreet. And quite hard to describe. I tried to anyway, one day after a certain event where I had heard the track for the first time. “Nufie, you remember that tune where it went… blabla… that sound with the… that particular moment…” – something-like-that. Any person interested in electronic music will recognize this situation. And Nufie remembered! And hence, I could buy the track and explore that sound some more. Very grateful, thanks Nufie. Mega jungle geeking FTW! (The particular sound I am talking about is at 0.44).
Feeling the bass at the Kraken party, October 2007. Hand signs, yes yes, you know the drill.
Here, it’s the other way around. The lasers are feeling Thomas!
Mariii silently feeling it at the DNBZone Infiltrata party. Or maybe listening to the voice of the Jungle Demon inside her head. August 2006, Culture Box, photo courtesey of Haywire. No matter what, there’s a lot of that silently-feeling-it-business going on in this pic.
There you are, elegantly dancing away with all your wicked moves, and then you get caught by the camera, frozen in that evil blitz moment forever, and you look retarted instead. Semi-retarded hand signs caught by Miss Popo.
Jungle mosquitoes, caught in amber, forever! Miss Popo to the right, looking for more of those moments where people are feeling it. Dj Rhythmo at Culture Box.
And I think she caught one here! Look at that moment of feeling it immensely in the background. This is a Culture Box, 2008. The magnificent EBK is playing. I had an EBK track on my MySpace for ages. I was very reluctant to begin with when everyone in Denmark started migrating to facebook instead of MySpace. I didn’t like the layout, I missed all the colors, and I especially missed my EBK track.
Extra special bonus: Here’s the EBK track that adorned my MySpace for so long. (Don’t worry, I don’t miss MySpace anymore, peeps).
Tim Driver totally feeling it. Expressing it with a hand sign, but I guess I don’t have to point out this kind of obviousness to you anymore, you are expert observers of the junglist creature by now! Rhythmo at Culture Box, caught by Miss Popo.
Every single thing in this photo is clearly feeling it! Also, I think we needed a photo of a dj, just for variation. Rum’n’Bass, March 2006 at Stengade.
Jungle mosquitoes, blitzed, once again! Front row really into it here. Good move, Pyro! Rhythmo at Culture Box.
More on the moves
I have more thoughts on dancing to jungle, raving as a physical interpretation of the music and why I take it very seriously in How to be a Junglist: Going to London.
For more junglistic body language, check out How to be a Junglist: The Hand Signs Special.
Did you miss a day? Find every post from every day of the JUngLE Calendar here.
Blasts from the Past: Jungle Bells! – the Grooverider Edition
Posted on December 14, 2014 2 Comments
It’s time to oomph the Christmas vibes in this JUngLE Calendar with some proper christmassy time hopping. So finally! It’s here. It’s time for the Jungle Bells! This is seven years ago today, exactly. December 14th, 2007.
The Jungle Bells party was at Culture Box. In my calendar I made this note: “Nis played a TREMENDOUS set!” Followed by a very enthusiastic-looking smiley. This is not a “pics from the dancefloor“ collection, though. This is 30 people or something warming up and cooling down in Svingsen’s Jungle Hut. With a special guest star, sort of. Enjoy.
The warm-up. A weird karrysild moment.
Drop doesn’t like schnapps, apparently.
Does CRS like schnapps, then? Svingsen gives it a go.
Some well-known territory here: A collection of junglistic handsigns. All kinds of body language going on here.
Another one of those time portals seems to have appeared in the floor. Nico DeFrost and CRS discuss the matter. They decide to cover the portal with a pillow and figure it out later. They have a beer to celebrate the pillow idea. Then they forget about it.
You know the drill. Handsign. Drop.
At this point, everything is semi-normal. Bass experts discussing bass stuff.
Semi-normal, apart from a giraffe suddenly crashing the party. He didn’t mingle much, but we gave him a beer and a straw.
But then, this happened…
And so it begins.
For those who don’t know The Grooverider Tale, here is a summary of the events.
If the cartoon was a bit too cryptic for you, here is the story: On November 24th 2007, dj Grooverider was arrested at the airport in Dubai because of a spliff that he had forgotten about in the pocket of his trousers. He was sentenced to four years imprisonment.
Hence, this elaborately decorated poster.
Now, the Free Grooverider poster goes on all sorts of crazy adventures.
Everyone gets involved.
Cracking nuts, solving problems.
Yup.
Grown-ups. Right here.
The adventure peaks.
A massive tune is played! Everyone jumps up and starts raving in the living room! Well, I certainly seem to be enjoying myself.
Tuuuune!
“What’s that pillow doing on the floor?” I ask. Or maybe I’m just thinking it. Then I forget about it.
Yes, yes, you think all this is just fun and games and silliness. A hand-drawn poster circulating in a Jungle Hut somewhere far far away from Dubai. But everything in the universe is connected, people. Everything. And Grooverider was pardoned and released in September 2008. Coincidence? I think not.
We have done our bit, let’s relax!
Missed a post? Revisit every day of the JUngLE Calendar right here: JUngLEkalenderen.
For more Blasts from the Past, check out the magnificent Birthday Bash collection (important time portal details in there!) or the Ohoi! turns 4 collection.
Jungle Feelings: The Group Hug Special
Posted on December 13, 2014 7 Comments
Out of the darkness and into the light: It’s time for a junglistic classic, the enthusiastic group hug. It comes in so many forms. Dig in and get inspired.
Oh! My! Gosh! This is very very rare stuff, people, and very very early days in Copenhagen. A scan from April ’95, before Just Jungle at Eigens Ballroom. We are going all in on the junglistic sportswear here, and whistles ready, haha! 🙂 (And white does look nice and criss in UV lighting).
Junglists out and about! At the opening of Docken, June 2007. Chriszka, Drop, Vitus and Joel. Vitus has a zillion different variants of this look. Check some Blasts from the Past selections for proof. And future ones, hey!
Group hugging at the Kraken party, backstage at Stengade, October 2007.
Magnificent group hugging and warm-up on Bryggen before Infiltrata, Octabass, Nico DeFrost and Haywire playing at Culture Box. Photo snapped by the one like Laura! (I danced myself to shreds at that thing (so much so that I made a note of it in the calendar afterwards), so people must have played really well.) August 2006.
2000F tries to kill himself with a deadly group hug. High level of complexity here, all kinds of dangerous could-go-wrongs. That’s the thrill, right there, group hugging on the edge. This is RAW, August 2009.
Junglists on the move! A very well executed group squeeze for 5 people here. While waiting for the train after hearing dj Hype in Malmö, December 2009.
Junglists on a midnight vibe. New Year’s Eve, 2005/06. Vitus unfolds another and rarer pose here.
Summery vibes, party at Dyssen, July 2008.
A ladies group hug with sound effects, New Year’s Eve 2005 (going on ’06). There is a must-be-told story attached to Svingsen’s t-shirt on the left, but that belongs in another post. Consider this a teaser!
Okay, easy now, chill, we can look relaxed and lady-like too, you know. So here we are, the ladiez, hanging out on… Oh, but wait. NO, WAIT! That’s a RED-EYED JUNGLE MONSTER ON THE LEFT! All this time, hiding inside Mariii! OMG, this explains so many things.
Oh dear, I am just recovering here, trying to adjust to this new world I have just entered. Look how every photo in this series gets an ominous feel to it all of a sudden! So, for now, signing this off with a “very very bright light at the end, so brilliant, it was more brilliant than the sun”. Christmassy starry-eyed variation of the group hug – the pre-hug pose, not too tight, here, because everyone’s hair would catch fire. A fact which Caspar is clearly contemplating at that very moment. Will all these brave, heroic jungle people survive the night? Or will they get killed off, one by one, like in the horror movies? No one knows at this point. Everyone is just happily oblivious to the fact that danger is lurking in their midst, or rather, on the top right!!!
Yup, we are on a darkside tip again, oh dear. But for more feel-good vibes: Revisit the Jungle Feelings: The Love and Kisses Special (and notice the dancefloor group hug at the end. A masterpiece).
If you want to time travel back to the days of the first pic (the sporty one from 1995) read my diary entries from 1994, where I am worried about maybe being the only junglist in Copenhagen: The Jungle Diaries: A Junglist on a Mission.
Did you miss a day of JUngLE? Find every post from every day of the JUngLE Calendar here.
The DIY Test: Is Your Child a Junglist?
Posted on December 12, 2014 10 Comments
Darkside street art at the original Globe Theatre site by the awesome Dan Kitchener. He works super fast, like jungle drums. Oldskool Shakespeare land, witchcraft time tunnels here, Shoreditch, London. Double, Double Toil and Trouble. Fire burn, and caldron bubble.
I like bright and happy things. But when it comes to jungle, I am drawn to the dark sounds, like a hypnotized Duracell rabbit. Today it’s time to explore the darkside tunes. I have made a list of 8 essential ones here. But first: Why do I like them so much?
Reason number 1
First of all, darkside was big when I started listening to jungle in London in 1993 and onwards. This was my first real meeting with electronic music and raves, and the sound was dark back then, so it was sort of the foundation. First love and all that.
Reason number 2
Secondly, I don’t like music that tries to be ingratiating and charming. Like “sexy” r’n’b, for instance, which, to me, is the opposite of sexy. Makes me cringe. With music, and especially with electronic music, I prefer tunes that sound like they don’t give a damn about me being there or not. Like they are force of nature, doing their own thing, allowing me in.
Reason number 3
But here’s the most important (or at least the most interesting) reason: It has always been like this.
Baby steps into darkside territories
When I was about one and a half years old I found my first favourite album. It was a 70s recording of Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves from my parent’s record collection, and it was pure horror. I couldn’t pronounce my own name properly at the time, yet. But I could crawl really fast, and I could locate the record player, and I could say “hear” and I could say “Ali Baba”. And so, I was able to insist on hearing that favourite album. Again and again and again.
The Do It Yourself Test: Is My Child a Darkside Junglist?
So here comes the test, parents. Here is the album (it’s in Danish. SUPER fun 70s style!):
If you don’t recall the Ali Baba story from the 1001 Nights, there are two terrifying main events: A man being cut into 4 pieces – and then sown back together by a shoemaker. And then 40 thieves being boiled alive.
I still remember the song of the shoemaker. And the rhythmic sound of the thieves getting killed one bye one by boiling petroleum, stuck in their barrels.
Yup, that was my favourite album at one and a half. Darkside! Early on, apparently. It’s probably safe to say that I didn’t totally understand all the goings-on, but the weird rhythms and sounds mixed with a sinister vibe clearly hypnotized me.
So play this to your kids, parents. You will find the shoemaker sowing dead Kassim back together at 16.47. And Morgiana pouring boiling hot oil over the 40 thieves at 26.10.
If your kid likes it, you have a darkside junglist on your hands. Congrats!
Darkside Jungle Classics
Oh, and jungle does this horror thing sooooo well. Let’s dive into some darkside masterpieces. And by darkside I mean: Not just jungle and drum’n’bass with ‘dark sounds’ because then this list would be like 20.000 youtube-links long. Real oldskool darkside – with horror samples, monstrous laughs, dread, crying, panic.
Subnation – Scottie
IMMENSE CLASSIC! This tune has it all. The ominous laughs of tiny monsters. Panicky voices. We’re all gonna die here. We’re all gonna die, all of us! And someone who thinks that we’re gonna make it anyway, raver style. We’re not gonna die, we’re gonna get out of here!
Johnny Jungle – Johnny 94 (Origin Unknown Remix)
There are SO many remixes of this tune. This is my absolute favourite. Again, all the ingredients are in place. Panicky voices. Crying. Voices somehow too close and too far away, like in nightmares. Hectic and awesome drums. Screaming. Chilling synths.
Remarc and Lewi – Cape Fear
This tune is so completely over the top. Guns loading. Glass breaking. And what is more chilling than somebody saying “Nobody is gonna hurt you” followed by a scream indicating that somebody clearly did anyway? Nothing!
Remarc and Lewi Cifer – Ricky
I know this is already featured on my 7 favourite jungle tracks of all time list, but no darkside collection can be complete without this mega-classic! For some variation, you can enjoy a bad boy gunshot version of the track here. <– Lots of playing around with the crying and shouting here. Those were the remix days…
Shimon – Predator
Same thing goes for this classic. No darkside collection without Predator! This track turned me into such a sample hunter. For years I couldn’t watch movies without thinking about which sound bits and sentences could be cut out and used for new tracks.
Boogie Times Tribe – Dark Stranger (Q-Bass Remix)
There are so many versions of this track, too, but this remix is my favourite. The original has more direct horror samples: Boogie Times Tribe – The Dark Stranger – and the Origin Unknown Remix is good, too. But the Q-Bass remix is the best.
Brainkillers – Screwface
A wolf howling. Ice cold synths. Music built for adrenaline junkies. Escape, escape, escape, but stay on the dancefloor while you do it.
Remarc – Help Me
REALLY panicky shouting here, like from someone who is clearly already lost. And 1977 Star Wars samples. If you strike me down I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine. Uuuh yes.
Need some relief?
If you need a sonic cuddle after all this darkness, relax with my list of the 7 most romantic jungle tunes ever.
Did you miss a post in JUngLEkalenderen? Find all 12 entries right here.
Awesome samples – where did they go?
Is it just me, or were the selection of film samples and the creative use of the samples better in the 90s? It could be me stuck in the past here, but it seems like it, it really does. The creative use of samples fits better with the jungle soundscapes than the scraped down techsteppy drum’n’bass, sure. Like, there is more room… That could be one explanation. What do you think? If you can share some examples of new tracks with good soundbites from films etc. I would LOVE to hear them! Share in the comments.
How to be a Junglist: The Hand Signs Special
Posted on December 11, 2014 7 Comments
Junglists throw hand signs all over the place. There are many reasons for this phenomenon.
1) The music is loud. 2) Things must be expressed. 3) Words are not enough. 4) YOU heard the mix first! (and everyone should know this). 5) The bass demands that you articulate your feelings with your entire body. 6) You wanna look cool in photos.
Here is a magnificent collection of junglist hand signs.
I might be going for the ‘looking cool’ thing here. Lewis chooses the more discreet approach. This is Dollar$’ Campingvogn Party in 2007.
The most complicated hand sign of the series, thrown by Dr. Disk. Very difficult next level origami style stuff. Is it a bird? We are at Collins’ and Colston’s birthday bash in Vega, Copenhagen 2007.
The hugely complicated origami bird is followed by a true and rare classic, by the one like 2000F. The F! For Frederiksperkers everywhere!
And here it is again, oh my! At the Ohoi! party at Basement, June 4th 2004. Pic courtesy of Vitus!
Donna shows her intense appreciation with a heartfelt two thumbs up on the dancefloor. The basement at the Kraken party at Stengade, Oct. 2007. Tim Driver is playing jungle.
Nico DeFrost showing some hand signs skills behind the decks. Party at Christiania, September 2007.
Here, I am using a live version of the Citadel handsign for “excellent”. Only one hand sign was above this in the Citadel Magazine world: “citadelsk”, with the form of a C. Lots of Citadel Magazine people packed in this photo! Good times! From Chriszka’s Birthday Bash at Nadsat.
This is probably my best mobile shot of the entire year of 2008. Lots of interesting hand signs here. DJ Hype to the right throwing a classic. JKamata lifts this pic to unbelievable heights. We are, of course, at Stengade, Copenhagen.
Another classic, thrown by the one like Dj Breakfast at Bolsjefabrikken, Copenhagen, June 2009.
Lots of hand signs going on here! Backstage at the Kraken party, Stengade, October 2007.
Here’s another complicated one, casually thrown by the one like Sulu, looking all relaxed, indicating that he might have reached lvl. 80 of the Hand Sign Throwing skill tree but doesn’t wanna brag about it as such. Photo courtesy of Vitus.
This is the I Love My Birthday Cake Hand Sign! From the year 2000, people! Cake by the one like Svingsen! In the background, behind the cake, dj Nis is using his well-known ‘I am going to win this discussion and I am not giving up, ever’ hand signs, using the table as extra support. Bonus info: I think this was my first surprise birthday party ever, actually. Afterwards we went to Plasma at Amager Bio. Does anyone remember what that was? A trance party?
A jungle of hand signs! A cosy warm-up for DNBZone, June 2008. And that. right there in the middle, is Pyro smiling, Naajaraq!
I am throwing a ‘junglists can survive anything’ hand sign (or something) here, and Tim Driver totally agrees. Late at night at Roskilde Festival, 2006.
And to round this up in style: Philip & Kristobal going all in on the summer vibe at an outdoor party on Christiania, July 2008.
Big hand sign of appreciation!
I love the memories you are sharing in the Share Your Best Memory Lottery in yesterday’s post, people! Love them! Keep’em coming, I sooooo feel your enthusiasm!
If you want to join in, jump to yesterday’s post (Blasts from the Past: Ohoi! turns 6) and leave your own favourite Ohoi! moment in the comments. The Best Memory Lottery Winner gets two free entrance spots for Ohoi!’s JuleBass at Stengade on Saturday.
I am also very happy that this 24 Day JungLE Calendar was called “probably the world’s best calendar!! ever!! in the history of mankind!!” somewhere on the internet last night. Haha. 🙂 I LOVE the absolutes of that sentence. It’s very junglistic!
More jungle memories
For more jungle memories, check out my own super-youngster diary entries in The Jungle Diaries: A Junglist on a Mission. Early days, personal stuff.
Did you miss one of the posts in the JUngLE Calendar? You can find every post of the past 10 days right here: JUngLE-kalenderen.
(Oh, and if the dj Hype photo in this handsign selection made you laugh, relive the memories of the Hype parties at Stengade in the Dancefloors, moshpits and junglistic crowdsurfing post.)
Blasts from the Past: Ohoi! turns 6
Posted on December 10, 2014 21 Comments
We are going deep underground today, somewhere hidden, where pigs, bottles of rum and graffiti go to die. After a bit of mixing and blending, everything gets reborn in new forms.
This is the 6th anniversary of Ohoi!
There are lots of presents and give-aways in the photos, but do not feel left out. There is a Christmassy Competition after the photos where YOU have the chance to get covered in pressies and spilt rum. In a nice way, of course.
JKamata is sacrificing a masterpiece to the gods of Ragnarok.
Deep underground location here.
Siblings casually hanging out in deep underground location.
Kødreaktoren! Food lasts for hours, viking style.
I got Ohoi! a neon frisbee for their 6th birthday. Hours of techno fun right here. Endless joy.
Hello!
2000F kills the rum bottle.
Nanna in the house, showing off hand sign techniques.
Ronin is a tiny wee bit exhausted because he has just finished a 50 week long clean-up from RAW 2007 and now there’s only two weeks to go until the next one.
Inspekta Scratchit in the house!
Synchronous drinking, one of many skills.
And a birthday song! Notice Copyflex’ graffiti camouflage gear. Seconds later he is gone, blending magically with his surroundings, an invisible warrior in the urban graffiti forest.
2000F and JSL jus’ chillin’ behind the decks.
But the crowd goes maaaaad and can’t leave them alone.
Kristobal showing off his hair.
Liquid and CRS posing in the urban dusk.
If something bad happens, like, if we get stuck on the roof and we suddenly need af fast escape, no problem. These junglettes have everyone covered. We can use their hair as escape routes, Rapunzel-style.
Lewis checks if he is behind schedule. No, everything is fine. 10 receptions etc. etc. down, 7 to go.
Yes, Sofus, yes.
I like the liquified spaghetti legs of the ghosts on your t-shirt, Liquido.
Back when our phones couldn’t do this.
Liquid has one of those amazing Richie Hawtin hair moments.
Look at that quaint oldskool phone.
The cosy deco lights are up.
And then, the competitions begin!
The audience is excited.
Liquid wins the grand prize.
But there is more! Here is Garridge Bwoy, seconds before winning a Kraken vinyl.
Holger won this.
Garridge Bwoy is worried about if winning the Kraken vinyl collides with his high standards and constant critiques of capitalism.
Chriszka and Chrois in the house!
Garridge Bwoy feels better now.
Garridge Bwoy, casually hanging out by the dj booth.
Kristobal showing off his hair part XXVIII.
The rum is slowly starting to kick in for Sofus and Jonas.
TIME FOR PRESENTS! FOR YOU!
If this has gotten you in an Ohoi! mood and you want more, here is your chance!
This Saturday Ohoi! is hosting their annual JuleBass party at Stengade in Copenhagen. Lots of proud traditions here, like bass shaking up the entire building (dj’s on all three floors) and lots of Christmas presents and give-aways from Carharrt, Streetmachine, Bas Under Buen etc. etc.
To get you in the mood, here’s a Bas Under Buen shot (yup, from my Hipstamatic phase).
The Ohoi! crew has done so many parties and pushed and pulled so many Function 1 sound systems up and down everywhere, they don’t even remember how many JuleBass parties they have thrown anymore.
No matter! But it’s the Christmas month and time for friendly nostalgia and reminiscing. Let’s help them relive some of the good memories from Rum’n’Bass, Bas Under Buen, early beginnings at PappaHotel etc. etc.
Here is what you do:
Think of your VERY FIRST or your VERY FAVOURITE Ohoi! moment. Scroll down to the Leave a Reply section at the very bottom of this post. And share your Ohoi! moment in the comments below!
All moments will (apart from adding to the accumulated joy of the universe) enter the competition. Consider it a lottery where your ticket is a shared memory of a party moment! Time to search your brains and your pockets for those unforgettable highlights and half-forgotten, faded pieces of the past.
The winner gets free entrance plus 1 to the JuleBass party at Stengade in Copenhagen on Saturday! There will be tons of all things bass, the strongest rum-spiced glögg in the known universe and extra subwoofers (of course). All relevant info is here.
Join in! Share your Ohoi! moments! Where was it? What did you do? Who played? Do you still have your hearing on both ears?
The winner will be found on Friday.
Did you miss a Blast from the Past in JUngLE-kalenderen?
Missed a post? Revisit som truly rare snaps from 1995 in the Blasts from the Past Jungle Fever IV, or from 2006 (Ohoi! turns 4). Or do some proper time travelling from 1998 to 2010 with Blasts from the Past: The Birthday Bash Edition.
Missed yesterday? Read How to be a Junglist: Going to London. Chriszka and Mariii’s most excellent time machine style jungle adventure.
Want the entire JungLE calendar? Press here.
UPDATE: Thank you for the jungle memories, people! The wheel has spun, the tumbler has trundled and the winner of the lottery has been found. The lucky bass enthusiast has been contacted directly and the name is on the guestlist (plus 1) at Stengade. Enjoy the JuleBass, everyone!
How to be a Junglist: Going to London
Posted on December 9, 2014 14 Comments
How to be a junglist: Chriszka and Mariii’s Excellent Adventure
This one goes out to all the Copenhagen junglists (and junglists everywhere) who miss the proper oldskool jungle sounds so much it’s like a physical longing filled with deep-felt oh but whyyyyyys?! and I want it back! and recurring feelings of having been treated unfairly – like a heartbreak that wasn’t supposed to happen.
What do you do?
Well, here’s what we did, and I highly recommend it. After many months of talking about it, we were like, yes, we are doing this. We are doing it now. We are going to London on a trip specifically dedicated to soothe our jungle longings.
Not for some drum’n’bass thing on Fabric. Jungle and only that. Because there is the most massive and tenacious (bordering on permanent) oldskool jungle revival going on in The Big Smoke. And we wanted in.
We had our eyes on the Ribena Jungle party, and after a small discussion (“It IS quite small…”) the decision was made, and we were ready by our computers, communicating on facebook, ready for the tickets to go on sale.
Seven minutes later the event had sold out. And we were in!
The universe approved of our jungle mission
Shortly afterwards it became very clear that the universe totally approved of our decision. Once the plane tickets were bought for the weekend, new parties started to bubble up in our facebook feeds. One was a Kenny Ken party on the day before the Ribena Jungle one. Needless to say, we bought the tickets in advance. And one was on the same night as the Ribena one, but lots bigger, exclusively dedicated to the sounds of ’95. Just perfect.
And that is not all. By a massive coincidence, or whatever you call the universe’s ways of telling you that you are on the right track, following your heart: The accomodation I had booked turned out to be located two houses away from the secret location of the Ribena Jungle party. A one minute walk! (31 seconds, if you run like a junglist). What are the odds.
First things first. Jungle raves are physically demanding tasks, so you have to make sure you eat properly before diving in. Of course, junglists eat where wild animals roam amongst the tables.
And send you friendly looks of approval.
And then, you’re ready. Arrival at the Kenny Ken party. This deco sends the most amazing mixed signals ever. CLEARLY, this is the right way.
Party pics from an iPhone are never great, but here is one. I only took the time to take three, anyway. I haven’t heard music like that for TOO long, and Kenny Ken’s set was out of this world awesome. And there was double up on happiness: he played two sets (Slipmatt was supposed to be there, but wasn’t).
I haven’t danced like that for I don’t know how long. I was absorbed with every joyous fiber of my being. It’s the ULTIMATE zen experience! You fall out the other end, refreshed, ecstatic, and totally connected with the universe. And completely exhausted.
Intermezzo: The magnificent sonic puzzle
Dancing to electronic music is serious business. Dancing to jungle is very serious business. It has never been just about ‘fun’ for me, but also about the physical challenge and the meditation-like state it delivers when everything comes together: the music selection, the mixing skills of the dj, your own ability to express what you are hearing.
Raving is a joyful, physical interpretation of the music, and there is a lot to express when it comes to jungle. When I get really into it (the warm-up can take a while, like sports) the music opens up like a 3D space, like a magnificent sonic puzzle that I am solving as I go, but with no strain.
The sonic puzzles of jungle are absolutely amazing, like complex cathedrals. High quality trance can deliver similar experiences. If you want to read more about the importance of proper dancing, you can read my interview with the amazing Swedish duo Son Kite right here: Dancing is a very important ritual.
And in case you need a refresher of Kenny Ken’s awesomeness, check out this 60 minute mix of classic and obscure jungle tunes, with “no MC to spoil the long mixes”. 😉
And onwards we go.
The next day, we felt a bit like this. (For the curious: this is from the LEGO exhibition in Shoreditch which I found the time to visit).
But we pulled ourselves together, slowly rebuilding our stamina.
And soon, we were in that proper jungle mood again! (okay, so I could seriously post a gazillion of my shots of the street art of Shoreditch, and I could even do a whole selection of junglist themed ones, but let’s move on.
After a 31 second run, we reached the secret location, and the dancefloor, and then it certainly hit us, the oldskool vibe.
Here’s the host of the night, Uncle Dugs, to the right. Obviously, this is a vinyls only night. OF COURSE! Run Come Follow Friday.
Small place, totally packed, amazing atmosphere. Very soon, the heat got so intense we were literally soaked. Like, swimming pool soaked.
And sooooooo happy. Oldskool jungle tunes, all night. Proper time machine business!
Dugs on the decks with his signature smile. When he played Wardrive by Crystl, we almost flew across the mixing decks. Big enthusiasm. Big rewind.
And then, the one and only Navigator arrived.
By then, the heat had long since reached I-need-a-towel levels.
It was so packed that I was really happy we had been at the Kenny Ken thing the night before. For a proper dancing session, you need som space to move. The Ribena Jungle crowd had to move in unison. We did that very well, though, that’s for sure. Amazing vibes generated, in a room packed with dedicated junglists.
As charismatic as ever, the one like Navi. In 1998 I did an entire paper at university on the “noise” of jungle and its meanings, meticulously transcribing everything that was said through the mikes by Navi, Moose and Five-O at the Roast party in The Astoria in 1994 (attended the party, of course, bought the tapes). Not my best work, the paper, but I give my younger self points for the idea, though. So, with the actual Roast words of Navi from ’94: “As we take you inside the copper setting, easy and warming sounds. Warming up your molecule, seen”.
It might not sound like it just now, but I have always been strongly critical when it comes to mc’ing. Mediocre mc’ing is the worst. That’s why it’s so particularly exhilarating when it’s really good. Shabba D was straight up amazing. Complete crowd control, almost sing-a-long-y.
Ribena Jungle finished at around 2. And then we went to this unbelievable spot. The Backto95 Legends of the Oldskool party at Great Suffolk Street Warehouse. Massive place. My phone had gone to sleep, but fortunately, Mariii’s was still alive and well. Walking down this gigantic hallway, there were four huge arenas to the left. We walked past the house and garage one, straight to the ‘oldskool jungle classics’ arena.
And continued with our raving mission! Up front and go. Part of the lineup at Arch 3 was Nicky Blackmarket, Jumping Jack Frost, Top Buzz and Uncle Dugs again.
The surroundings were like, whoa, but the sound was pretty awful. We are SPOILT with good sound in Copenhagen. Thank you, all you Copenhagen sound geeks with your massive walls of subwoofers, I salute you! Imagine what you could do with this place.
One of my own theories about the massive jungle revival going on in London at the moment is that all the dj’s and mc’s that were there and instrumental in those golden years of everything kickin’ off (’93-’95) – well, their kids are big enough to not need babysitting now, and so the mature grownups finally have the time to dive back into the proper sounds. My other theory is that there is some kind of time machine business going on with some of us. Here’s MC Det on stage, looking exactly the same as back in the day, so there might be some proof here. I will investigate further.
The next day, our shoes felt like this.
But our minds felt like this. Ignore the signs! Follow the smiley! You know you can trust the smiley!
So to sum up, here are some final and easy to-do tips for you starved out Copenhagen junglist with travel inclinations:
1) Watch out for Ribena Jungle parties
Proper time machine business surrounded by likeminded enthusiasts. Yes, it’s difficult to get a ticket. You must be dedicated. Yes, there is a Ribena Jungle party (part 4) at January 1st 2015. (You can check out the atmosphere in this footage from the Ribena Jungle part 2 (this blog post is about Ribena Jungle 3).
2) Watch out for London
You are not alone with your oldskool jungle longings in London. Check out the Moondance New Year’s Eve event for this year, for instance. There are TWO arenas with oldskool jungle. One dedicated to jungle classics. One dedicated to jungle anthems. LOL! Jungle geeks!!! <3 Moondance New year’s Eve on facebook.
3) Check out Uncle Dugs on Rinse
Every Friday from 12 to 15, you can listen to Uncle Dugs on Rinse FM (or podcast later). It’s REALLY good and 100% oldskool jungle: also, it’s like the old pirate radio station days – only you don’t phone in your bigups and greetings, you tweet them. Takes me RIGHT back to my first meetings with jungle pirate stations, whoa! Uncle Dugs on Rinse FM.
More:
If you want more oldskool vibes, you can hear my 7 All Time Favourite Jungle Tracks right here. Or read some troubled thoughts about feeling like the only junglist in Copenhagen in the Jungle Diaries: A Junglist on a Mission.
If you need a shot of “Copenhagen is pretty okay, too, you know”, see the amazing photos from dj Hype’s visits to the Danish capital in Dancefloors, moshpits and junglistic crowdsurfing.
Blasts from the Past: The RAW After After Party
Posted on December 8, 2014 5 Comments
Rare snaps from the RAW After After Party, one Monday evening in August 2007. Get ready for a dj-setup on a caterpillar truck. Chilled-out Copenhagen creativity.
From a junglist point of view, RAW was very dubsteppy that year, but let’s leave it at that and enjoy the sunset.
Islands Brygge at its finest.
A dj set-up with room for cooking. Klaus Boss on the decks.
Cooler pose possible? No.
The sunset gets icecreamed.
RAW is hard work. Ronin shows us how hard.
Dr. Disk, checking out the premises.
DJ 2000F on the decks.
Showing off tan, mainly. Although hand seems to indicate a junglist moment coming up.
Tim Driver and Svingsen, checking out new and old media.
Jonask and Dollar$ in a sunset bass debate.
The food team showing off.
JSL arrives, ready for bungy jumpin’ that truck.
2000F and Klaus Boss on those caterpillar tracks of steel.
One of those sunset moments.
RAW wheels and bike wheels. Hey, wait a minute. Is Lau on a boat?
Cap is stolen. Taken to Canada.
That truck.
Cool cats in the sunset.
And then…
If that wasn’t oldskool enough for you, check out even rarer snaps from 1995 in the Blasts from the Past Jungle Fever IV, or from 2006 (Ohoi! turns 4), or do some proper time travelling from 1998 to 2010 with Blasts from the Past: The Birthday Bash Edition.