JUNGLE // O2 ACADEMY, LEEDS
As part of their extensive world tour and on the back of their most recent album release ‘For Ever’ Jungle called into an absolutely packed O2 in Leeds to deliver an absolute stormer of the set to a crowd who clearly in the mood to have a good time on Saturday night!
JUNGLE PERFORMING AT LEEDS O2 ACADEMY - 16.02.2019
PICTURE BY: JOHN MCEVOY PHOTOGRAPHY
★★★★★
Support was provided by London born ‘Georgia’ and before I go any further, I have to make an apology as due to a traffic incident on the way to the gig we were delayed and only managed to catch the last 10 minutes of her set. However, from what I did see the two-piece band made up of keyboards and Georgia on drums sounded very promising. The closing minutes of her set showcased a funky, synth heavy dance workout which was well received by the crowd. Her current single ‘Started Out’ is currently on the Radio 1 A list and is attracting a lot of attention, and in the short time that I caught her set, I can say that this girl is a name to look out for in the future. The good news as far as I’m concerned is that she will be back in Leeds on the 20th May at the Hyde Park Book Club, and I will look forward to seeing a complete set from this promising artist.
Jungle are known as a soul/dance/funk collective fronted by lifelong friends Tom McFarland and Josh Lloyd-Watson (known as J & T). They started the band back in 2013 and during the last few years they have worked with various people. On stage the band are now a seven-piece delivering what has been described as a kind of 70’s funk soul style with what I can safely say is some of the most stunning live harmonies and vocals you are likely to come across. They’ve released 2 albums, ‘Jungle’ back in 2014 and ‘For Ever’ in September 2018 and along the way have become known as one of the best live acts around, which based on the performance I’ve just witnessed is well deserved.
The venue was absolutely rammed and complete sell out as Jungle took to the stage, and went straight into ‘Smile’ from the current album. The thunderous drum heavy beat with their spectacular vocals set the tone for the evening with the crowd instantly bouncing around. With J & T front and centre on keyboards the remaining 5 members, (2 on vocals, percussion, drums and guitar) were of the highest calibre and such was the collective quality of this band, you would have genuinely struggled to tell the difference between the recorded and live versions from the set.
From there it was straight into ‘Heavy, California’ from their current album, a funky keyboard heavy workout with wonderful backing vocals from Rudi Salmon and Andro Cowperthwaite who perfectly complimented the joint lead vocals of J&T.
By this time the crowd were well and truly warmed up and ‘Happy Man’ with it’s deep soul groove was the cue for the party to be taken to the next level. It’s clear that over the last few years they have perfected their stage craft and whilst delivering music of the highest quality, their light show, was for me, whilst not being overly complicated was also one of the most effective I’ve seen in a while. I hope the shots below do it justice.
‘Beat 54’ with it’s laid back grooves was immediately reminiscent of a 70’s ‘Average White band’ and gave everyone a chance to get their breath back. Check out the Krystal Klear remix of this track, it’s a killer!
Mid set things slowed down with ‘Cherry’, ‘Lucky I got what I want’, ‘Platoon’ and ‘Crumbler’, which again featured their distinctive vocals and mellow laid-back groove.
The tempo picked up when the band delivered ‘Casio’ with its mid-tempo west coast funk vibe with handclaps. Everyone like a handclap, don’t they? ‘House in LA’ and ‘Drops’ brought their set to a resounding close however this crowd tonight was going nowhere. They wanted the party to continue.
Jungle of course obliged and delivered possible their biggest tune to date, ‘Busy Earnin’ from their debut album and this was delivered as if their life depended on it. Helped by the crowd singing along and the dazzling light show this showcased just what this band is all about and how good they are. Sadly, the night was brought to a close with ‘Time’ which featured a nice shuffle funk vibe and for the last time tonight allowed the whole band to show just why they have garnered critical praise for their albums/singles and the stunning live show they are now delivering throughout the world.
They are currently touring, well just about everywhere you can think of globally (US, Australia, South America and Europe), they will be back on these shores in the summer for a couple of festival appearances. I would really urge you to catch on of their shows, it really is an aural and visual treat and I guarantee that you be dancing!!
SETLIST: | JUNGLE : O2 ACADEMY, LEEDS - 16.02.2019
Smile
Heavy, California
The Heat
Julia
Happy Man
Beat 54 (All Good Now)
Cherry
Pray
Lucky I Got What I Want
Platoon
Crumbler
Lemonade Lake
Casio
House in L. A.
Drops
ENCORE:
Busy Earnin’
Time