The Prodigy - Brixton Academy
It's difficult not to be a little in awe of The Prodigy.
We've missed the supports and the longest cloakroom queue in the world threatens to rob us of the headliners, too. Luckily, as we squeeze through the rammed Brixton Academy crowd, we're in the front rows in perfect time for dance/rave/punk/whatever heroes, The Prodigy to arrive.
The venue explodes to the pounding beats of new number 'World's On Fire', fired out by Liam Howlett from behind his imposing 'control centre'. All attention is drawn towards Maxim and Keith Flint though; the MC's stalk the stage, everything about their appearance and demeanour predatory. The crowd lap it all up as songs old and new assault them; favourites such as 'Breathe' get the crowd bouncing up, down and into each other, classics like 'Out Of Space' serve to teach the Skins generation what a rave really is, and - most inspiring of all - the new tracks are nothing short of devastating. Clearly proud of their next album, 'Comanche' is delivered with more gusto and percussive force than a track on programmed beats should ever be. And in recent single 'Invaders Must Die', The Prodigy have their best track in years. Proving that a dance crossover act does not need crunching guitar to be accepted; the carnage that ensues is proof that there's nothing heavier in London all night. We can't help but laugh when that muppet from Dr. Who is reeled out ('Mickey' stars in the 'Invaders Must Die' video) only to be met with indifference and confusion. It's of no consequence, however, the crowd are too busy smashing into each other with wild abandon.
Impressive as it is, though, there are flaws. The sound is a mess, with a lot of samples lost in the din and their love of enough bass to shatter ribcages. And as a guitar leads us into a rapturously received 'Firestarter', you can’t help but feel that Flint’s admission that "It's why i'm f*cking here!" is repeated from venue to venue.
That said, it's difficult not to be a little in awe of The Prodigy; their catalogue is so strong that you get tune after excellent tune (or 'choon' if you will): 'Voodoo People', 'Warrior Dance', 'Their Law', even the cautiously received Always Outnumbered... track 'Spitfire' is undeniably powerful. And with the strength of new material as good as 'Omen' and thundering closer 'Take me To The Hospital', things will only get better. The set is over far too quickly, with tracks like 'Everybody's In The Place' and 'Poison' sadly absent, but we're still left dirty, exhausted and more thoroughly rocked than we could be by the majority of actual 'rock' acts around at the moment - Dance music has never been so heavy, or so impressive. Invaders Must Die is not far away. Be ready.
Phillip May
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