State of Bass: The Origins of Jungle/Drum & Bass

by Martin James

Overview

As UK government legislation, standardised music and bad drugs forced the euphoria of the rave into the darkness, a new underground movement emerged – jungle/drum & bass.

It was the true sound of the beating heart of 1990s UK. A melting pot of Britain's multi-cultural urban hardcore rave distilled via the journey from Jamaica's Tivoli Gardens soundsystem clashes, through the UK's inner city blues parties and onto jazz-funk all-dayers and soul weekenders. The jungle/drum & bass nexus was like nothing else the world had experienced before.

Drawing on interviews with some of the key figures in the early years, State of Bass explores the scene's social, cultural and musical roots via the sonic shifts that charted the journey from deep underground to global phenomenon.

Originally published in 1997, State of Bass: The Origins of Jungle/Drum & Bass extends the original text to include the award of the Mercury Prize to Reprazent and brings new perspectives to the story of the UK's most crucial subterranean scene.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781913231026
Publisher:	Velocity Press
Publication date:	05/20/2020
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	300
Sales rank:	688,437
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

Martin James is an internationally published music critic who has contributed to many of the world's leading music magazines and newspapers. He has written several acclaimed books about electronic music including We Eat Rhythm, the definitive biography of The Prodigy. Martin is Professor of Creative and Cultural Industries at Solent University, Southampton where he lectures on underground electronic music cultures.

Table of Contents

Foreword: By a Guy Called Gerald ix

Introduction: Here Comes the Drumz 1

1 Alia the Junglists: Naming the Sound, Locating the Scene 15

2 Shut Up and Dance: From Sleng Teng to Bleep; Creating the Space for Jungle 25

3 Valley of the Shadows: The Media Blackout and the Rise of Dark 45

4 Armed and Dangerous: Ragga Jungle Takes Control 67

5 Above the Law: The Business, the Committee and the Technology of Total Control 89

6 Shadow Boxing: The Jungle/Drum & Bass Split 99

7 Intelligent Minds of Jungle: The Rise of Ambient Drum & Bass and the Jazz Discovery 121

8 Feel the Sunshine: Taking on the Mainstream 137

9 Mutant Revisited: Return to the Darkside 159

10 The World is a Ghetto: Celebrity, the International Growth of Drum & Bass and the Jump-Up Reaction 173

11 Reprazent to Saturnz Return: Awards, Plaudits and the Album Dilemma 197

12 Brand Nu Funk: The Breakbeat Continuum 215

Sources 219

Editorial Reviews

“The best book so far on the evolution of drum & bass.” —Sheryl Garratt, Adventures in Wonderland: A Decade of Club Culture

"...an in-depth examination of Jungle's roots, history, plus a recommended listening guide." —MUZIK

"One of 20 essential 20th Century music books." —Select Magazine

"Essential reading for anyone who is interested not only in the jungle scene... but in dance in general, in the music industry as a whole or even British society and its infrastructures." —DJ

From the Publisher