New York – Up until their recent NYC shows, I had no idea what London-based electronic soul band Jungle looked like. I don’t think it was any coincidence that Jungle didn’t include images of the actual band in any of their media. Not knowing who the artists were behind it, the music spoke for itself, and proved to be strong enough to build a buzz surrounding that alone. Then, at their sold out show at Knitting Factory, this band of regular-looking indie white dudes takes the stage and bust these beats out. And the crowd got down.

With the mystery of who the Jungle was revealed, their performance took over as the most exciting aspect, just like it should. All the members were musically ambidextrous and swapped between every instrument on stage. Bass and guitars were passed over, synths shifted, two men on percussion, harmonies all the time. They weren’t messing around with their gear either – it looked like they brought their whole studio on the road, right down to the pop filters on their microphones, so the sound was ace. Even the rig of hanging glass bottles looked completely legit. There was a girl adding another layer of vocals on the end of the stage, where she seemed to be more removed from the group, away from the repartee between the other members. She did her part though, and the whole band had energy from the get, immediately dropping those beats and creating a funky dance party atmosphere that felt the roots of old school funk and hip hop but with a youthful electronic pop to make you move both feet.

They played dance number after dance number, including singles “The Heat” and “Platoon.” At the end of their set it was just an all-out disco funk soul pop jam with everyone on stage and off getting down. Jungle is a band that grew up quick out of mystery, and is poised to keep growing with these bass lines, beats, and falsetto vocals with an undeniable groove. They just wrapped their US part of the tour, but are going to stay busy earnin’ with more Europe dates through May.

Brooklyn electronic R&B pop trio Wet opened, with minimalist mid-90s skating rink beats, gentle guitar lines, and singer Kelly Zutrau’s vocals spreading across telling tales of love and not love. Her voice made me think of a cross between Lizzy Plapinger of MS MR and Elizabeth Powell of Land of Talk. “No Lie” was a standout track from the performance, with the repeating refrain of “The time I have wasted / but I’ve had enough / you put me on and on and on and on / time to give it up” getting stronger with each loop until it clicks: this band is really good. Check their Facebook for more dates around and out of town.