The Jungle Giants

The Jungle Giants are an Australian four-piece band, which formed in 2011 in Brisbane, Queensland. The band consists of Sam Hales (Haley) on Vocals/Guitar, Cesira Aitken (Ken) on Lead Guitar, Andrew Dooris on Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals and Keelan Bijker - Drums/Trombone. In 2011, the band were signed by record label Create/Control.^[1] The label has stated that "Brisbane’s The Jungle Giants have been on a roll since their single ‘Mr Polite’ took over the airways and YouTube in 2011. The last 12 months have seen them hit the road playing countless shows across Australia.".^[2] Their first album, 'Learn to Exist' was released independently in August 2013

Biography

All four members of The Jungle Giants attended the same high school in Brisbane. Singer-guitarist Hales, lead Guitarist Aitken and bassist Dooris were in opposing bands in their early years, and it wasn't until university that they came together to create The Jungle Giants. Soon after, Keelan Bijker signed on as drummer.

Lead man Sam Hales spent 6 months working two jobs in order to fund their debut self-titled EP which was released with local producer Yanto Browning in March 2011. The EP contained lead single Mr. Polite which has now reached over 400,000 views on YouTube.^[3]

Fast forward a year and a half and The Jungle Giants released their second EP, "She's A Riot". The five track EP, released via Create/Control on 27 July 2012, drawing on life experiences and telling stories of friendships and relationships in Hales' life.

In late 2012, The Jungle Giants supported Last Dinosaurs' national Satellites tour with Twinsy.

In early 2013, The Jungle Giants toured Australia with Two Door Cinema Club, playing a series of concerts throughout Australia along with The Vaccines.

On 26 January 2013, single "She's A Riot" ranked 83rd on the Triple J Hottest 100, 2012 ranking higher than Two Door Cinema Club and Snakadaktal.^[4]

In May 2013, The Jungle Giants released "I Am What You Want Me To Be", the first new track off their debut album "Learn to Exist", which was released in August 2013. The band also toured Australia to celebrate the release of the single in July 2013, including both headline performances and appearances at Splendour In The Grass 2013 & Spin Off Festival.

On 19 July 2013, The Jungle Giants announced their debut album "Learn To Exist" would be released on 30 August 2013.^[5]

Learn to Exist was released on August 30, 2013 and received positive reception overall. It was a featured album on national radio station triple j in the week leading up to the release.^[6]

The Learn to Exist Album Tour played in all Australian capitial cities and many regional centres from the 3rd of October to the 30th of November,^[7] extending the tour due to popular demand with extra shows in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne ^[8]

In 2014, The Jungle Giants performed on the national Big Day Out touring festival alongside acts such as Arcade Fire and Pearl Jam. They were also announced shortly afterwards to perform on the national regional touring festival Groovin' The Moo in April & May 2014, which includes performances by Dizzee Rascal, Disclosure, and Karnivool. The band additionally announced headline performances as part of the "Tuss Tour" that will take place shortly prior to their Groovin' The Moo performances, performing in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth.^[9]

On March 13, 2014, it was announced that The Jungle Giants will appear at triple j's One Night Stand alongside RUFUS, Illy, Dan Sultan, Violent Soho and the local triple j Unearthed competition winner (Mic Hunt). The event will take place in Mildura, Victoria, on May 17, 2014. The entire event will be broadcast live on triple j.

Band members

• Sam Hales (Haley)- Vocals/Guitar

• Cesira Aitken (Ken) - Lead Guitar

• Andrew Dooris - Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals

• Keelan Bijker - Drums, Trombone

Discography

EPs

• The Jungle Giants (01 Jul 2011)

  Track list

  1. "Mr Polite" 4:15
  2. "No One Needs to Know" 4:27
  3. "All the Wrong Places" 3:26
  4. "Like a Weight" 4:03
  5. "One of These Days" 3:49
• She's a Riot Amplifire (30 July 2012)

  Track list

  1. "She's a Riot" 3:39
  2. "Don't Know What Else to Do" 4:10
  3. "You've Got Something" 3:45
  4. "Way Back When" 4:38
  5. "Back to the Start" 3:51

Albums

• Learn To Exist Amplifire (30 Aug 2013)

  Track list

  1. "Come and Be Alone With Me" 3:06
  2. "I am What You Want Me to Be" 3:24
  3. "Got Nothing to Lose" 3:34
  4. "A Pair of Lovers" 2:56
  5. "Truth May Hurt" 5:37
  6. "Devil's in the Detail" 4:22
  7. "Skin to Bone" 3:34
  8. "She's a Riot" 3:41
  9. "Domesticated Man" 3:07
  10. "Anywhere Else" 4:01
  11. "Home" 3:18
  12. "I'll See You Tomorrow" 3:08 (iTunes Bonus Track)
  13. "Friend of Mine" (bonus track)

Singles

1. "Mr Polite" (15 Jul 2011)
2. "No One Needs to Know" (2011)
3. "Country" (22 Aug 2011)
4. "She's a Riot" (10 Jul 2012)
5. "You've Got Something" (2012)
6. "I am What You Want Me to Be" (05 Aug 2013)
7. "Skin to Bone" (30 Aug 2013)
8. "A Pair of Lovers" (04 Apr 2014)

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Jungle Giants.

• Official website
• The Jungle Giants on Facebook
• The Jungle Giants's channel on YouTube
• The Jungle Giants on Triple J