Fans of jungle and garage have recently discovered London girl group Overjoyd. Tony Cummings talked to them.

Overjoyd

Christendom has been making its first tentative moves into jungle and it's been a female trio from London who've spearheaded the movement. The searing jungle mixes of the group's "Real Love" have been making many a sanctified deejay swoon and now garage mixes of the same hot tune are also beginning to seep out into clubland. So who are Overjoyd? The group consists of three young Londoners Doreen Blair, Janine Cross and Jenise Wynter. Two attend the New Testament Church Of God in Willesden while the other attends the Church Of God Of Prophecy in Hitchin.

Responsible for bringing the group together was the band's administrator Richard White, better known as deejay the Vinyl Preacher. Said the group's Janine, "Richard had heard us sing around church and in the choir. He had this idea to do something different and pioneering in gospel music and in 1995 we got together and started working together."

Richard took up the story, "They were originally asked to do a showcase for RENK Records at the Camden Palace. A week after they did that they were phoned and asked to come in the studio and record 'Real Love'. Incidentally, Overjoyd will be back at Camden Palace at the end of July."

The tune, written by Janine, was produced by Michele Chiabarini who has previously worked with such hitmakers as Black Box. The girls are happy with "Real Love" but wait to see where it will lead. "Whether it will eventually mean us going into music full time we don't know. We'll just have to cross that bridge when we come to it." I asked Doreen what the group's ambitions are. "Above all to get a strong message out there about who Jesus is."

Despite all the secular interest in Overjoyd and the group have already recorded another song "Follow The Vibe" with Kiss FM London's Bobby and Steve (Zoo Experience), the group have no intention in deserting their church-based following. "Most of the gigs Overjoyd have done so far have been in Christian nightclubs and before a Christian audience. There's a lot more acceptance for the type of music that Overjoyd are doing in Christian circles. People are coming to understand that if gospel music isn't to be going to the already converted it's got to have the production values of today's music," said Richard. Amen to that.