The Prodigy are a successful English electronic music group formed by Liam Howlett in 1990 in Braintree, Essex, England. Along with Fatboy Slim, The Chemical Brothers and The Crystal Method, as well as other acts they are pioneers of the big beat electronic dance genre which achieved mainstream popularity in the 1990s and 2000s, and are known for high-quality live performances. They have sold over 17 million records worldwide which is unequalled in dance music history.[1]
Their music consists of various styles ranging from rave, hardcore, industrial and breakbeat in the early 1990s to electronic rock with punk vocal elements in later times. The current band members include Liam Howlett (composer/keyboards), Keith Flint (dancer/vocalist) and Maxim Reality (MC/vocalist). Leeroy Thornhill (dancer/very occasional live keyboards) was a member of the band from 1990 to 2000, as was a female dancer/vocalist called Sharky who left the band during their early period. The Prodigy first emerged on the underground rave scene in the early 1990s, and have since then achieved immense popularity and worldwide renown. Some of their most popular songs include "Charly", "Out of Space", "No Good (Start the Dance)", "Voodoo People", "Firestarter", "Breathe", "Smack My Bitch Up", "Omen" & "Warrior's Dance."
The name displayed on album covers changed from "The Prodigy" to "Prodigy" between Music for the Jilted Generation and The Fat of the Land in 1997 and back again with the release of Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned in 2004. However, Howlett has stated that the title has always been "The Prodigy". The change was made only to fit within the displayed logo, according to Howlett.
The Prodigy began with an initial 10-track demo by Liam Howlett, put together on a Roland W-30 music workstation in Essex, England. XL Recordings picked up the demo after Howlett played several tracks to XL boss Nick Halkes in a meeting and an initial 12" pressing of "What Evil Lurks" was released in February 1991. There are some few thousand bootlegs of this release; the original should have "the exchange" carved in the vinyl around the centre of the single. The Prodigy's name was a moniker Liam had chosen as a tribute to his first analogue synthesiser, the Moog Prodigy.
The Prodigy's first public performance (with Howlett augmented by dancers Keith Flint and Leeroy Thornhill) was at the Four Aces in Dalston, London (then home to "Club Labrynth"). "Charly", released six months later, became a huge hit in the rave scene at the time, largely due to the popularity of AA-side track Your Love which was arguably more popular within the scene at the time. The release reached #3 in the UK Singles Chart, catapulting the band into the wider public attention. The Kaos Theory compilation series featured "G Force (Energy Flow)" from their third single "Everybody in the Place".
Discography
Studio albums
* 1992: Experience
* 1994: Music for the Jilted Generation
* 1997: The Fat of the Land
* 2004: Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned
* 2009: Invaders Must Die
EPs
* 1991: What Evil Lurks
* 1995: Voodoo People
* 2002: Baby's Got a Temper
* 2004: Hotride
* 2009: Lost Beats
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Subject: _The Prodigy_ 
Wed Aug 05, 2009 2:48 pm
