Jungle Funk is a

drum and bass Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-ba ...

group formed by

Vinx De'Jon Parrette Vinx De'Jon Parrette (born 15 December 1957), known professionally as Vinx, is a percussionist, singer, songwriter, and former athlete. Biography Early life and career Vinx attended Kansas State University on a track scholarship. In 1977, he was ...

, Will Calhoun and Doug Wimbish. Beginning in 1996, they performed over one-hundred and fifty shows throughout Europe and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. The trio performed a complex hybrid of R&B,

, dub,

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

, and soul music, buttressed by sampling and

electronic percussion Electronic drums is a modern electronic musical instrument, primarily designed to serve as an alternative to an acoustic drum kit. Electronic drums consist of an electronic sound module which produces the synthesized or sampled percussion sound ...

. In 1998, they released their eponymously titled debut album '' Jungle Funk'', which consisted of a recording of their live performance in Austria.

History

After Living Colour first dissolved in 1995, bassist Doug Wimbish and drummer Will Calhoun were still interested in working together. Vinx had previously played

Afropop African popular music (also styled Afropop, Afro-pop or Afro pop), like African traditional music, is vast and varied. Most contemporary genres of African popular music build on cross-pollination with western popular music. Many genres of po ...

and jazz with

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

, and Meshell Ndegeocello and

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-eart ...

. Together they formed Jungle Funk in 1996 and began performed live around Europe. In 1998 they were signed to German music label ESC Records, who issued their only album '' Jungle Funk''. The live album was recorded in April and featured guest appearances by musicians Pete Holdsworth,

Keith LeBlanc Keith LeBlanc is an American drummer and record producer, and is a member of the bands Little Axe and Tackhead. His record " No Sell Out" was one of the first sample-based releases. The song was a success, charting at No. 60 on the UK Singl ...

and Skip McDonald. They received critical acclaim for their ability to employ complex digital loops, sampling and

in a live setting, free of overdubs. Music author Chris Jisi said, "the innovative trio combines state-of-the-art technology, quality songs, and serious musicianship, all with a club-savvy dance sensibility. The resulting shows and eponymous live album are collages of high-energy drum 'n' bass and hip-hop grooves, smooth, passionate vocals, and heady sonic improvisation." The members have since become involved in other projects, with Doug and Will returning to Living Colour and Vinx touring as a solo act. In 2013, the band regrouped and began touring regularly again. In 2014, they began issuing newly recorded studio material through ReverbNation.

Discography

;Albums *'' Jungle Funk'' (ESC, 1998)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jungle Funk American drum and bass musical groups American funk musical groups American contemporary R&B musical groups American soul musical groups Musical groups established in 1996