By Megan Foulk, Co-Deputy Music Editor
Ten years since their bedroom-pop birth, Jungle’s sunset-swathed tour for fourth studio album Volcano proved there’s no chance of a dance music extinction anytime soon. Bouncing from start to finish, the London born duo-turned-trio hosted the party everyone wants an invite for.
Touching down in South Wales after huge shows in Ibiza and Marrakech, playing Cardiff's Utilita probably felt reminiscent of setting up kitchen decks for a jelly-shot-fuelled house party circa 2002. No less fun though, I may as well have been in Amnesia (Ibiza's so-called temple for electronic music) if it wasn't for the post-gig cold weather shock and painfully slow train journey back to Bristol.
With Jungle not expected on stage until almost 22:00, writer and producer Mood Talk (aka Jamie Lloyd Taylor) had to put in a shift to keep the crowd at the perfect level.
Having toured and collaborated with Jungle in the past (a close friend of the band's founding members Josh Lloyd-Watson and Tom McFarland) the DJ seemed perfectly at home on stage and managed to bottle the evening's anticipation despite the awkward low lighting and steady audience arrival.
It wasn't until the red curtains were drawn that the magic really happened though. Opening with 'Busy Earnin'', third single from their debut self-titled album, the high-octane track was the exact energy injection the night needed. A nostalgic tip-of-the-hat to everything the band have achieved in the last decade, the fanfare style intro appeased the crowd perfectly.
Wasting no time on retrospection however, the arena was soon flooded with sunset colours, echoing the backdrop of fourth studio album –Volcano. Plunging into lead single 'Candle Flame', it wasn’t difficult to imagine how the tour must have been received on the sweaty dance floors of Spain and Morocco.
Featuring American rapper Erik the Architect, the orange-toned light show was interspersed with huge projections of the rapper in an ABBA-Voyage-esque display, reminding the audience of Jungle's vast collaboration catalogue.
Returning a few songs later with my personal favourite from the album, ‘I’ve Been In Love’, enormous transparent beach balls were launched into the crowd gifting the atmosphere a youthful charm.
Curating a collective fascination that only exists in large crowds, I was reminded hazily of some of my first festival experiences. Compounded further by some snippets of conversation overheard on the packed train home: 'mate the left side were really hogging all the balls honestly', the childish playfulness of it all was infectiously fun.
Treating the audience with the first live performance of new single 'Let's Go Back', (released just a day prior), there was plenty of chance for newest official member of the band, Lydia Kitto, to showcase the elevation female vocals provide. First collaborating with the duo back in 2021, Kitto's co-writing on Volcano has proved lucrative in Jungle's evolving sound.
Easily one of the most vibrant gigs I’ve attended, the only complaint was of the show's duration. On stage for only one hour and twenty minutes, I couldn’t help but feel the party had ended too early. An easy-going, dance-inducing, addictive night of music regardless, I’d definitely put Jungle top of my list to catch next time they hit the festival circuit. Some music is just served better alongside warm beer and twenty-five degree heat.
Featured Image: Megan FoulkWhat festival do you want to see Jungle at?
