It's sad to think of a world without enigmatic Prodigy founding member and frontman Keith Flint, and yet here we are, staring the tragic fact in the face. On Monday, police reported the death at 49 of the dance punk legend.
Keith Flint, whose final album with The Prodigy is last year's No Tourists, was found dead at his home in Dunmow, Essex this Morning (4 March). The cause of death is purported to be suicide by bandmate Liam Howlett.
On Twitter, Liam Howlett wrote: "It is with deepest shock and sadness that we can confirm the death of our brother and best friend Keith Flint. A true pioneer, innovator and legend. He will be forever missed. We thank you for respecting the privacy of all concerned at this time."
On Instagram, he added: "I can’t believe I’m saying this but our brother Keith took his own life over the weekend..."
Forming in 1990 at the height of 'e' culture and free parties, the band earned acclaim on the underground, before breaking into the mainstream with their second album Music for the Jilted Generation, which stands the test of time with incredible singles such as 'Voodoo People'.
Two years, later they went into the stratosphere with 'Firestarter' and have remained there ever since, orbiting in a level of acclaim reserved for the greats in pop and dance music such as Bowie, Radiohead, Nirvana, and The Chemical Brothers. Their influence is omnipresent and their appeal cross-generational. To attempt to quantify their influence is nigh-on impossible and we've all likely very personal reasons why they mean so much as a band.
For us, The Prodigy, led by Flint, have have been the ultimate role models: free-thinking, eclectic, uncompromising in their punk creative process and fashion, and a reminder for us to be at our hedonistic best. They remind us to embrace people of all backgrounds and character, and move with uninhibited expression under the canvas of an arena roof or festival sky. Flint was the architect of a lot of this as dancer and vocalist. He was the ultimate rabble-rouser and second to none in ensuring the might of the Prodigy live shows: he punctured the limit of expectations. His body may have left us but his spirit undoubtedly will live on and be remembered forever.
Here's a selection of Gigwise writers' favourite Prodigy tracks:
'Voodoo People'
This is my favourite from the 1994 Music For The Jilted Generation album. Opening with the deafening sound of a tropical jungle, the sample gives way to a 174bpm beat that gets your heart going. And that synth motif that runs through the heart of it is the embodiment of 90s dance culture in Britain; no one sound can make you want to rave more. Check out the visceral energy with which they perform it below. And the crowd's reaction seems proper. (Cai Trefor)
'Out Of Space'
"I'm gon' send him to outer space / To find another race": you can hear the rest of the track already, right? Catchy as hell, it's always the best party track and the soundtrack to many late nights and for me was something to put on my iRiver juxbox player to help ease the pain out of the walk to school in my teens, offering the aural equivalent of a sunny world, contrasting the drizzly Welsh skies. The decision to sample the classic reggae track 'Chase The Devil' by Max Romeo as one of the main parts of the song is one of music's great moments. Check out a young Keith Flint speaking candidly on set for the video to this 1992 hit below. (Cai Trefor)
'Their Law'
It's no wonder The Prodigy titled their 'Best Of' album after this menacing cut from the Music For The Jilted Generation album. It keeps you hooked throughout the nine minutes with its blend of heavy metal guitars, proto-industrial drums and euphoric synth hooks. Just look at how epic this one goes live below. It's watching clips like this that helps it sink in just how much Flint will be missed. The level of complete devotion to his role as frontman will never be questioned. (Cai Trefor)
'Invaders Must Die'
In 2009, an updated, guitar-tinged Prodigy yelled earnestly into the face of another generation. On the same album that spawned Now That's What I Call Music contributor 'Omen', album opener 'Invaders Must Die' stretched out its feelers and yanked its listeners in. Commuting to my first journalistic internship, the incorporation made me feel as though I could take on anyone and anything. (Jessie Atkinson)
'Breathe'
The ultimate song to run and get loose to, the crazed Breathe had everything: menacing riff, rumbling drum-advance and hoarsely whispered demands. Just one of ten perfect songs on 1997's The Fat of the Land, this one was my mum's favourite, so we would regularly have a dance to it when I was four. Proof that it worked in dining rooms as much as it did in dance clubs...(Jessie Atkinson)
'Firestarter'
The Prodigy's most famous song, also from The Fat of the Land, 'Firestarter' helped the world's teenagers to frighten the shit out of their parents: its sinister vocals and driving punk/dance energy enough to make it the band's first number one. As its accompanying video proved, Keith Flint's vocal and visceral physical performance took The Prodigy to iconic heights, cementing their place in the annals of music history with a reputation for the brilliant and the bezerk. (Jessie Atkinson)
'Spitfire'
There is something about the way 'Spitfire' blares into existence, accompanied by ethereal female vocals that evokes images of smoke, bullets, and bloody determination. It’s all broken teeth and copper at the back of your throat; a stranger's perfume and bruised knuckles.
Is it The Prodigy's most lyrically-brilliant song? No...but it doesn’t want to be. This is a song for fighting to, a song for taking on the world to, even in the full realisation that it’s going to chew you up and spit you back out again. This is the song you want playing when you enter a room fist first. (Jess Brooks)
'Warrior's Dance'
Invaders Must Die marked a triumphant and admittedly unexpected return for The Prodigy, who failed to reach the usual deity status on their previous album Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned. 'Warrior’s Dance' was one of many stand-alone tracks on the 2009 opus, nestled shyly between quintessential tracks like ‘Omen’ and the eponymous track. An eerie air-raid reminiscent siren eases you into the five-minute piece, before the endearing teenage angst of first-decade Prodigy is re-housed in an impeccably mastered, nu-rave record without trying shoddily to recapture past glories, as could have been so easy for them. There’s a reason the band’s festival was named after this song. (Anna Smith)
'Smack My Bitch Up'
1997 techno phenomenon, ‘Smack My Bitch Up,’ furthered the wildness and frenzy that The Prodigy had to offer. Whilst this track was controversially-titled and lyrically-problematic, the group's stapled aesthetic avoided any clapback. Shortly following the release of ‘Breathe,’ ‘Smack My Bitch Up,’ delivered chopped and screwed beats onto a distorted rave album. With a vocal feature from Shahin Badar, this cut progressed more and more by the second – the harmonic, yet almost hypnotising delivery on top of the bassy electronica is what helped evolve this single so well. Forming as one of the most authentic, memorable brit-electronica bands, I think it’s fair to say Keith Flint: you’ll be missed. (Laviea Thomas)
'Narayan'
It’s almost impossible to pick just one track from a back catalogue that’s as brimming with classics as The Prodigy’s - but I think that 'Narayan' could be their crowning moment. Maybe not as anthemic as some of the big hitters, this track skulks and bamboozles it’s way through it’s 9-minute run-time. I remember The Fat of the Land being one of the first albums that I bought with my own money after seeing multi-mohawk’d Keith Flint rushing around a tunnel in the 'Firestarter' video. I found Keith’s frantic performances on tracks like 'Breathe' and 'Serial Thrilla' to be particular highlights on the album.
This made today's news even more heartbreaking: he was a local hero for me and an innovator that bridged the gap between rave and punk culture. He will never be forgotten as a result of the massive impact that he and his bandmates made on the music scene. I will be celebrating his life and legacy by blaring their back catalogue. (Joe Connell)
'Omen'
The summer before leaving for university was a mad one. I had my first boyfriend, he had his first car, and together we spent the weeks before the inevitable university break-up speeding down country roads around south Manchester. One day, after a Maccy D's top up, we blasted 'Omen' and smashed out a journey that should have taken at least twelve minutes in under the four that it took the song to run.
For that reason alone, 'Omen' will always feel like a thrill ride; sheer adrenaline and the pit of my stomach dropping as he takes that one corner too fast. But isn’t that what we want in our Prodigy tracks? Danger and ecstasy, the sweetness of a beat dropping in your chest as you flail and scream. Omen always delivers. (Jess Brooks)
