Volcano (Jungle album)

"Palm Trees (song)" redirects here. For similarly titled works, see Palm tree (disambiguation).

Volcano is the fourth album by British electronic band Jungle, released on 11 August 2023 through Caiola Records and AWAL.^[2] It was preceded by the singles "Candle Flame",^[6] "Dominoes", "I've Been in Love"^[7] and "Back on 74".^[5] The album includes collaborations with Erick the Architect, Channel Tres, Roots Manuva, Mood Talk and Bas.^[1] The band simultaneously released a full-length film of the same name for members of their fan club.^[8] To support the album, they went on tour in Europe and North America throughout 2023 and Australia in 2024.^[9]

Volcano
Studio album by Jungle
Released	11 August 2023 (2023-08-11)
Studio	Studio B, Metropolis (London)[1]
Length	44:34
Label	Caiola AWAL
Producer	Josh Lloyd Mood Talk
Jungle chronology
Loving in Stereo (2021) Volcano (2023)
Singles from Volcano
"Candle Flame" Released: 28 March 2023[2] "Dominoes" Released: 23 May 2023[3] "I've Been in Love" Released: 20 June 2023[4] "Back on 74" Released: 28 July 2023[5]

Background and recording

The band wrote the album on the tour for their previous album, Loving in Stereo (2021), and began recording it in an Airbnb rental in Los Angeles before returning to Studio B of Metropolis Studios in London.^[1] Josh Lloyd called it "the most honest record [the band has] made", also saying: "We've always had this soul side and this love for soul music, so it's always been a little bit more song-based. The new record is just an extension of that journey". Lloyd also stated that Jungle's music is "now getting to this place where it sounds freer, and more off the cuff than it's ever done" and the "energy" on Volcano is "very quick and explosive and not so tame".^[10]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	81/100[11]
Review scores
Source	Rating
Clash	8/10[12]
DIY	[13]
Far Out	[14]
The Guardian	[15]
The Line of Best Fit	8/10[16]
The Independent	[17]
The Standard	[18]
NME	[19]

Volcano received a score of 81 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic based on eight critics' reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".^[11] Robin Murray of Clash stated that "at times, Jungle's soulful appeal is worth placing alongside Sault, and that's no mean feat", calling it a "focussed, unified return" that "doffs its cap to some supreme influences, while also allowing Jungle to expand, and evolve".^[12] Ed Lawson of DIY found it to be "more breezy bops than all-out summer smashes, but nevertheless extremely rich and warm in sound".^[13] Reviewing the album for The Line of Best Fit, characterised it as "an eclectic mix of disco, soul and the ever-progressing infusions of hip-hop" that "explor[es] a whole new sphere of genres, eras and musical styles" and "place[s] Jungle at their peak of most progressive yet".^[16]

Thomas Smith of NME wrote that "genres, scenes and sounds are whizzed together and go down like a sickly-sweet cocktail at a hazy happy hour in the heights of summer" on the album, but that the duo's "hesitancy" to let their audience know more about them "does something of a disservice to the soul music they worship and lift from here".^[19] Mojo stated that the album "continues where 2021's Loving in Stereo left off",^[11] and Uncut felt that "the result sees them maintain high energy levels while showing off a richer musical palette and a keener sense of flow".^[11]

Track listing

Volcano track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Us Against the World"	Josh Lloyd Thomas McFarland Lydia Kitto	3:27
2.	"Holding On"	Lloyd Kitto Declan Lennon	3:16
3.	"Candle Flame" (featuring Erick the Architect)	Lloyd McFarland Erick Elliott Kitto	2:54
4.	"Dominoes"	Lloyd McFarland Kitto Dave Linden Ben Raleigh	2:57
5.	"I've Been in Love" (featuring Channel Tres)	Lloyd Kitto Sheldon Young	2:49
6.	"Back on 74"	Lloyd McFarland Kitto	3:29
7.	"You Ain't No Celebrity" (featuring Roots Manuva)	Lloyd Kitto Rodney Smith	2:33
8.	"Coming Back"	Lloyd Kitto	3:21
9.	"Don't Play" (featuring Mood Talk)	Lloyd McFarland Larry H. Jordan Kitto Jamie Lloyd-Taylor	3:46
10.	"Every Night"	Lloyd McFarland Kitto	3:05
11.	"Problemz"	Lloyd McFarland Kitto	3:04
12.	"Good at Breaking Hearts" (featuring JNR Williams and 33.3)	Lloyd Kitto Jnr Williams	3:33
13.	"Palm Trees"	Lloyd McFarland Kitto	3:19
14.	"Pretty Little Thing" (featuring Bas)	Lloyd McFarland Abbas Hamad Kitto	3:01
Total length:			44:34

Japanese edition bonus track

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
15.	"Monaco"	Josh Lloyd Thomas McFarland Lydia Kitto	2:38

Notes

• "Dominoes" contains a sample of "Love Is a Hurtin' Thing", written by Ben Raleigh and Dave Linden, and performed by Gloria Ann Taylor.
• "Don't Play" contains a sample of "Faith Is the Key", written by Larry H. Jordan and performed by Enlightment.

Personnel

Jungle

• Josh Lloyd – production, mixing, recording (all tracks); vocals (1–8, 10, 13), bass guitar (1, 2, 5–8, 10–14), drum programming (1–4, 6–8, 10–14), synthesisers (1, 2, 4, 7–14), organ (1, 2, 10, 11, 13), guitar (5, 10); drums, keyboards, percussion (5); art direction, design
• Tom McFarland – additional production (all tracks), vocals (1,4,6,9,10,13), synthesisers (1, 6, 10), organ (1, 10), bells (6), guitar (14)

Additional musicians

• Lydia Kitto – vocals (all tracks), flute (1, 8, 11, 12), bass guitar (2, 3), synthesisers (2, 6, 11–13), organ (2, 11, 13), live drums (2), guitar (3, 6, 11–13), percussion (5, 12), keyboards (5), piano (14)
• Will Fry – congas, extra percussion (1, 10, 13)
• Declan Lennon – bass guitar, synthesisers, organ (2)
• Erick the Architect – vocals (3)
• Channel Tres – vocals (5)
• Roots Manuva – vocals (7)
• Rosie Danvers – string arrangement (11)
• Wired Strings^[a] – strings (11)
• Jnr Williams – vocals (12)
• Bas – vocals (14)

Technical

• Mood Talk – production (9)
• Lydia Kitto – additional production
• Matt Colton – mastering
• Harpaal Sanghera – engineering assistance
• Tucan – mixing (1, 11)

Visuals

• James Moruzzi – design, font, logo design

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for Volcano Chart (2023–2024) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[20] 22 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[21] 25 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[22] 108 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[23] 35 French Albums (SNEP)[24] 56 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[25] 19 Irish Albums (IRMA)[26] 60 Lithuanian Albums (AGATA)[27] 5 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[28] 30 Portuguese Albums (AFP)[29] 18 Scottish Albums (OCC)[30] 4 Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[31] 38 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[32] 8 UK Albums (OCC)[33] 3 UK Independent Albums (OCC)[34] 2 US Billboard 200[35] 165 US Independent Albums (Billboard)[36] 26 US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[37] 17 US Top Dance Albums (Billboard)[38] 3

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for Volcano Chart (2024) Position Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[39] 155 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[40] 88 US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[41] 12

Certifications

Certifications for Volcano

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[42]	Gold	10,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[43]	Gold	7,500‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[44]	Silver	60,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Notes

1. Wired Strings consists of cellist Rosie Danvers, violist Miles Brett, and violinists Zara Benyounes, Stephanie Cavey, Hayley Pomfrett, Sarah Sexton, Elle Stanford, and Jenny Sacha.