The Prodigy: when punk meets electronica

Published by Mason Oldridge, 17 June 2025

What we’re dealing with here is a total lack of respect for the law. Born out of the 90s rave scene, The Prodigy are an electronic band with its primary lineup consisting of punk frontman Keith Flint, producer Liam Howlett and secondary vocalist Maxim. Their journey encompasses seven studio albums, plenty of controversy, a tragedy and yet hope for the future, so let’s take a look back at what happens when punk meets electronica.

The band released their debut album Experience in 1992. Debut single Charly samples the Charley Says public information shorts from the 70s and subsequently influenced the toytown techno subgenre, while Out of Space combines reggae with rave music. The record also contains singles from that period Everybody in the Place, double A-side Fire/Jericho plus Wind It Up, and closes with Death of the Prodigy Dancers, the first song of theirs to include vocals from a main band member.

Follow-up Music for the Jilted Generation came in 1994 and is an expansion on their sound as well as progressive for dance music at the time. As primarily heard on track Their Law featuring Pop Will Eat Itself, it is a statement against the criminalisation of the rave scene, though Howlett later rejected its politicised nature. The album consists of rave, techno and breakbeat heard on singles One Love, No Good (Start the Dance), Poison and Voodoo People, with the latter built upon guitar riffs.

Third album The Fat of the Land, released in 1997, is their best-selling record and can be considered as the band’s magnum opus. It can be seen as a departure from their rave origins as it embraces a new heavier electronica sound and introduces the first vocal contributions from Flint. It is also notable for its crab artwork. Lead single Firestarter is arguably their signature song and is defined by its opening bars and leading punk vocals by Flint, the latter of which is also utilised on second single Breathe, along with sound effects. Third single and opening track Smack My Bitch Up slaps from its symbol-smashing first drop, though attracted disapproval from The National Organization for Women, citing misogynistic lyrics, although the band later clarified a wider and more vague meaning of “doing anything intensely”. Diesel Power is one of the heaviest on the album and features a rap by Kool Keith, while Narayan is a haunting track with vocals from Crispian Mills and based around the Hindu deity Narayana.

In 2002, they released standalone single Baby’s Got a Temper. Following a verse-and-chorus template, the track blends rock and electronic music and features a disturbing music video. It received criticism for its reference to rohypnol, also known as the date rape drug, and was disowned by Howlett.

Fourth album Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned was released in 2004 and features no vocal contributions from Flint or Maxim in a purposeful new approach. Opening track Spitfire is undoubtedly their heaviest track and drops an epic boom with screaming vocals from Juliette Lewis, lead single Girls is a heavy techno offering, while Hotride is based upon Up, Up and Away (In My Beautiful Balloon) and also sees Lewis lending her aggressive rock tone. Outside of the singles, Memphis Bells utilises bell sound effects, The Way It Is samples Michael Jackson’s Thriller and Shoot Down features vocals from Liam Gallagher.

Invaders Must Die is the fifth album, released in 2009, and opens with the titular track and lead single, an almost drum-and-bass offering. Omen includes glockenspiel sounds and the instrument can be seen played by an ominous young girl in the music video, Warrior’s Dance opens to sirens and features a weighted drum beat, whereas Take Me to the Hospital incorporates breakbeats whilst remaining in the album’s new style. Elsewhere, World’s on Fire inspired the name of their 2011 live album.

After multiple years of production, The Day Is My Enemy was released as the sixth album in 2015 with all three band members having worked closely on the new project. The record opens to the title track, which features a drum corps and introduces the darker and violent energy that fuels the tracklist, while lead single Nasty has a music video starring the fox from the artwork. Other singles include Wild Frontier, Wall of Death and Ibiza, the latter being a collaboration with post-punk band Sleaford Mods and criticises the common practice of pre-programmed DJ sets on the white island.

Despite initially rejecting ideas of a new album in favour of the quicker produced EP format, the band released seventh album No Tourists in 2018. Lead single Need Some1 kicks things off, a short and snappy single with glass smashing sound effects. Fight Fire with Fire excels as Ho99o9 bring hip hop energy to the track and We Live Forever features techno sounds reminiscent of their early work, while other singles Light Up the Sky and Timebomb Zone utilise high-pitch vocals. There is arguably less variation between tracks on this effort, making the title track stand out due to its more sinister backing.

In 2019, the music world was shook when Keith Flint was found dead in a suspected suicide. A fan-led campaign to get Firestarter to number one in the charts in his memory followed and several tributes from fellow musicians commenting on his kind demeanour poured in. In 2020, Howlett stated The Prodigy would continue. They returned to live performances in 2022 but little was heard regarding new music releases, despite hints and speculation. In 2025, The Prodigy finally confirmed a new album is coming.

As their (sort of) hiatus appears to be coming to an end, there is much excitement regarding new music. There will no doubt be a hole felt by Flint’s absence. After all, he was the one who brought the punk to the electronica. Amid the electronic music landscape, The Prodigy remained unique as Flint provided punk style vocals and dancing. Still, with Howlett as producer and Maxim as a vocalist and stage performer, there’s surely some more bangers left to come from these ‘lectronic legends.