Ahead of headlining Break the Block in Dubai next weekend, Team Yalla caught up with Tom McFarland, one half of the iconic sound behind Jungle
Trippy visuals, stellar choreography, a feel-good tune and the feeling of freedom is a rudimentary but accurate summation of the Jungle duo.
From their initial days shrouded in mystique as J and T to embracing the spotlight as Josh Lloyd-Watson and Tom McFarland, the sound producers have had an illustrious decade from their bedroom pop-project in Shepherd’s Bush to headlining Dubai’s underground Break the Block party.
And while this isn’t their first stint in the Gulf, it will be their first gig in Dubai and Tom’s excitement rings through palpably.
“We have been to Saudi Arabia before and are going again for MDLBeast Balad Beast 2024. I love being in the desert, I’ve been to Morocco a lot of times. It’s an amazingly evocative landscape. And, you know, in contrast with the amazing city that has been built there over the last 10-20 years, it’s very exciting. I think it’s gonna be an incredible visual feast,” he says.
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Their affinity for visual treats runs well beyond skin deep, shining through almost every video the duo brings out. Their latest album Volcano, is the realisation of Josh and Tom’s philosophy to create music that delivers an unapologetic good vibe. And the audience is clearly on board, with ‘Back on 74’ already dominating charts and social media feeds.
The intricacy of the choreography and attention to artistic detail, contrary to presumption, is the product of time spent hunkered down in an AirBnb. The venue of course, was selected through the extremely meticulous process of a Google search.
“The internet’s an amazing tool, and we do this before every album. It was just an amazing property, it could have been anything, a studio, a hotel, even a friend’s house,” clarifies Tom with a chuckle.
“We look for amazing spaces that inspire us to feel relaxed, happy, confident, comfortable. That’s a really important aspect of the creative process for us, being in a place that inspires us of being around people that inspire us to create.”
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Straddling the line between commercial popularity and their authentic selves, Jungle isn’t the loudest band on the street. But their enigmatic selves continue to find takers and make them a big deal, with songs ‘Casio’ and ‘Busy Earnin’ finding a place on ardent melophile playlists.
Between attempting to chase that high, taking four years to be sure of their second album to now being unabashed about staying true to themselves in their fourth is where the band’s real story lies.
“We tried to chase that sound and that feeling, and then you realise you can’t, and you go back to the drawing board. I don’t think we ever intend to make music that is, you know, for popularity. I think if you’re doing that as an artist, then you’re not really potentially being true to yourself, or being true to your own artistry. You know, it’s taken us 10 years to get to the place where we are now with songs like ‘Back on 74’ becoming, you know, essentially viral hits on Tiktok and Instagram. And that for us is a really beautiful surprise. But it’s always, you know, we always create with art and the music in mind first,” Tom shares.
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While the admiration and fan following has remained consistent, even exploded in the last decade, most find it hard to place the ‘Jungle’ sound neatly in any one particular genre. And that’s the beauty of it, says Tom.
“it’s hard to explain. We have spent the last 10 years trying to create music that feels very honest to us and it’s whatever sound that ends up being, whatever feeling that evokes. Some of the tracks on the first album feel like you know, sort of classic bedroom indie music. There’s a lot of like, Krautrock from Germany in the 60s influences, a lot of like old school disco. Some songs have much more strong hip-hop connections in terms of their influences.”
He continues, “You know, we grew up listening to a lot of J Dilla. And then there’s also a lot of funk, a lot of soul, which is music that I guess we just enjoyed listening to. It gives us a good feeling, it’s about creating a landscape and a musical world that we can escape into and other people can escape into with us. And that can take on many faces.”
In headlining Break the Block, Dubai can safely expect a night that goes above and beyond to create a multi-sensory experience. With entire Reddit threads dedicated to analysing the story, art, and flow of their music videos, Volcano has emerged as a revelation in the industry, a true testament to the vision of the producer duo.
And in curating a live set, Tom lets us in on the largely different processes between indoor and outdoor concerts.
“I think they’re very different, very different animals. When you’re indoor you are playing to a crowd that is predominantly you know, your own fans. It can be a bit more intimate, it can be a bit more personal. Whereas festival in an outdoor space, you know, there’s a lot of space to fill physically. A lot of people at their festivals especially might not necessarily know who you are. So it’s a really exciting prospect to go and introduce yourself to a lot of new fans and friends and people that you’ve never met before and might not know your music. So yeah, you sort of have to be a little bit more confident, brash, you know, full of energy. And just be willing to accept what what happens on stage that night.”
Bringing a sense of theatre has always come effortlessly to Jungle, both on and off screen. The upcoming festival vibes promise no less than a high-energy, four dimensional experience, and that’s all we needed to know to turn up in crowds.
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