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Jungle Fever

Èesky

answers by Proko
 
Jungle Fever
 
Can you introduce your band?
 
Jungle Fever are Chris on the drum kit, Alex on bass, Aris and Marios taking care of the guitars and Proko delivering the vocals. We are all about 21-23, living in Athens, the capital city of Hellas. We don’t have have permanent, regular jobs yet. Some of us are studying, or supposed to be, also doing day jobs here and there and one of us in doing his national service in the greek army at the moment.
 
Can you say something about bands history?
 
As it written on the myspace profile... The band was formed in 2008, at a time when the Athens scene lay dormant and the only band that were still proudly flying the Oi! flag were BootStroke. The original Jungle Fever line up was completed only a couple of days before our first gig, with Marios joining the ranks of Chris on drums, Alex on bass guitar, Aris on guitar and Proko on vocals. Since then, the band has gone through trial and error but has eventually found its style and sound. We 've done gigs in Athens, Thessaloniki and Agrinio with most of the active greek bands and have also supported bands like the Last Resort, Drongos For Europe, Dun 2 Def, The Partisans, BootStroke and Riot Squad.”
 
It all started as a fun project really. Initially we never thought we d be a real band. But I guess most ‘real’ bands started like that. At least in our scene. We ‘re not musicians. Just some lads trying to express themselves through their music and lyrics. And, if you ask me, this is what makes real music real.
 
Jungle Fever
 
Have somebody from your band experiences with playing in some other band?
 
Yes, Alex used to play in an Oi! band from Rhodes called Oi!AskimOi! and Aris in a streetpunk band from Athens called Human Battle.
 
How bands influense you? Your music sounds like japanese or spanish bands. Do you listen Sledgehammer, Jin-Rai, Aggressive Combat or some else?
 
Never heard of the bands you mention, never really listened to any Japanese Oi! band in my life. I ‘ve heard there is quite a big scene in Asia, especially the Philippines/Malaysia etc, but I didn’t know about Japan. Do we sound similar?
 
Bands that have influenced us eh? Well, to begin with, it all goes back to the godfathers of Oi!, Cockney Rejects, the 4Skins, Sparrer and Sham, The Last Resort you know, the granddads. We have a strong sense of tradition. They have influenced everybody involved in Oi! in one way or another, anyway. But the one band that definitely stands out and has influenced us in particular I believe is Condemned 84.
 
Oh and I m not that much into Spanish Oi! either. Nor is any one else from the band, although I m sure there are quite a few good bands over there. Personally because I want to understand the lyrics and I don’t speak spanish. So I think most of our influences come from England.
 
Besides the various bands that have influenced us, the main driving force in the band is our own experiences, memories and life in our hometown. We won’t sing about something just because it is a standard Oi! or punk rock or skinhead theme etc. Our only aim is to express what we have ‘inside’. The way we feel.
 
How many concerts and with which bands did you play?
 
We ‘ve played 8 gigs so far. For the time being we are a bit idle because one of our guitarists is in the greek army doing his national service. Until August. After that we ‘ll start going full steam ahead. We ‘ve played with our brothers from BootStroke several times, we also played with the Last Resort, Drongos for Europe, Riot Squad, the Last Resort, the Oppressed, Dun 2 Def, the Partisans, and several other greek bands like Omichli, Archidia, Human Battle, The Knux, Xat Trik, Delirio, BMW Rockers 57 and Bad Movies.
 
What was your best and worst gig?
 
Best gig was the one in a small rural village on the outskirts of Agrinio, a small city about 4-5 hours from Athens. Our first gig and the gig with The Last Resort were quite memorable too. The worst gig? Hmmm we haven’t done a very bad gig so far. We ‘ve enjoyed most of our gigs.
 
Jungle Fever
 
Can you say something about scene in your area? Can you recommend us some bands?
 
The Oi! scene in Athens is not as big as we would want it to be, but then again it is better to have quality over quantity. It has its ups and downs from period to period. People come and go, with freshcuts trying to prove themselves, some moving on to other things and others maturing enough to discover the ‘way of life’. The main problem is that people tend to be quite close minded, politically correct, following a certain set of rules of conduct within the punk rock, Oi! etc scene. It is hard to go against the establishment and be yourself. Both generally in society and within the punk rock world. Anything different is hunted down. Intolerance. Sometimes reality is harsh and too complex and most people are annoyed by this. They prefer to have a simpler view of the world. Oi! was too real in the 80’s and it is too real for today’s standards too. This is the essence of Oi! music everywhere. And that is why neither will it ever be big nor will it ever die out completely.
 
Do you know something about Czech scene?
 
No, I have no idea what’s going on there mate! I ‘ve only heard of a band called Pilsner Oi!quel. They must be Czech if I m not mistaken.
 
Can you say something about a) Bootstroke b) Soberphobia c) Skinheads history in Greece ?
 
a) BootStroke and Jungle Fever are a band of brothers. We ‘ve known each other for quite a long time, even before our band was formed. Lots of common memories, BootStroke, the Skinhead Unity Crew (S.U.C.), 77-82 Crew... mutual support right from the beginning. A scene of its own within the general punk rock, Oi! etc scene in our country. Different mentality, ties that stretch way back in time, a sense of belonging. We ‘ve played with BootStroke most of our gigs, we hang out together, they have helped us right from the start, when everybody else was laughing at the idea. They are the godfathers of Oi! in our country, determined and lasting through time. They ‘ve taken blows from everybody and still keep the faith, traditional to the bone. That is what makes them special.
 
b) Soberphobia live quite far away from us, outside Athens, they come from Piraeus. We don’t see them that often but they are all top geezers. The one I know better personally is the vocalist, Panagiotis, one of the old and respected faces. They are in the same vein with BootStroke, the S.U.C., the 77-82 crew. Too bad they are not playing that much now. If I remember correctly they have uploaded their album online and it is free to download from their myspace. Worth paying them a visit.
 
c) Skinheads first appeared in our country in the 80’s too but I wasn’t there so don’t ask me :) I do not like recycling rumours and stuff I ‘ve only heard and not lived myself. As far as I ‘m concerned, I do not care that much about the past and I m certainly not trying to live up to anything or imitate anyone. Our skinhead times start with the S.U.C., the gigs, the parties, the good and the bad times. But I would like to stress that skinhead life in Athens is quite different from other parts of our country. Athens is the metropolis, a concrete jungle. “Sacrifices made, the price is paid every day... But this is the life we lead, it is our choice for which we bleed” as the song goes..
 
Do you have some current and old time TOP10?
 
If you mean songs then I guess my personal top ten Oi! list is the following:
 
10. Let the lager decide - On File
09. King of the Jungle - The Last Resort
08. Clockwork Skinhead - The 4Skins
 07. Strength of the Nation - Superyob
06. My saving grace - Templars
05. Sorry - The 4Skins
04. We will never die - Condemned 84
03. These four walls - Templars
02. Ena Peisma - BootStroke
01. Ti einai afto - BootStroke
 
Jungle Fever
 
You have made new split album with Bootstroke. Are you satisfied with it? Can you say something about this CD?
 
Yes, we ‘re quite satisfied with the new split CD! We ‘re proud to say that it has captured the ‘Athens feeling’ 100% ! It was the first time we ever tried to record our songs and to be honest with you, there were times that we believed it would never be finished :) But we made it. We have matured as a band through the process. BootStroke and Jungle Fever are the Pride of Athens!
 
What are your opinions on tattoo? Do you have some tattooes?
 
Tattoos are quite nice and quite misunderstood generally in society. At least in this country. People might think you are a thug or a nutter etc.. You know the story. Personally I like them a lot and especially the traditional style. I don’t have any tattoos but most of the other band members do have several. For some reason, I ‘ve always had this notion in the back of my mind that tattoos are something like medals. They must be won. They must mean something and not just be decorative. A tattoo is something very personal. Some people might get them to look harder etc but I ve never felt the need to do this nor have I ever been intimidated by someone’s tats. Just focus on the person itself.
 
Can you recommend to us some webs or blogs about street music from you country?
 
www.radioi.gr is a good one with online Oi! radio streaming
 
www.myspace.com/sucathens
 
www.myspace.com/7782teampunkrock
 
Can you say something about life in your area?
 
Typical big city life. Frantic biorythms, financial crisis at the moment, lots of concrete, very little open space and trees, parks etc, weekly strikes, strong family bonds though, traffic and pollution...
 
Do you have some favourite films and books?
 
Books: The catcher in the rye, Cockney Reject, The lord of the Rings, Watchmen, 1984 and Burning Britain.
 
Films: Every mob-gangster film, Guy Richie films, Old Spaghetti western movies, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Walk the line, V for Vendetta, Die Welle, Football factory and the rest of the hooligan movies, Clockwork Orange,This is England, The long Good Friday, Harry Brown, The Sopranos and Bronson.
 
Jungle Fever
 
Do you have some hobbies beside music?
 
Some of us do kick boxing, Gym etc.
 
Some future plans?
 
Playing abroad in Europe and releasing our own full length album in early 2011
 
Last comments?
 
Thanks a lot for the interest, keep up the good work with the website! Oi! is real music and it is not for everyone! Take it or leave it! and Keep the Faith! Cheers from Athens! Proko