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I think the artwork nicely sums up what was going on for me and a lot of my friends at the time. Sad news.
Sad. Memories of bombing along in my old VW camper in the 90s on the way to Santa Pod and Run To The Sun with their music so load the engine could've blown up and all the wheels fallen off and we wouldn't have known about it until we came to a stop.
there’s nothing wrong with that artwork. It’s about the criminal justice bill, which made outside raves illegal.
I know what it's about, I was there dancing at them. Just think it's a terrible bit of art
Very sad about keith. Whenever these happen it's usually 'no comment' and the suspicion is usually (accidental) drug overdose. Odd that they've confirmed suicide publically - all the more so given there seemed to be no impression in public that he was 'troubled'.
Incredibly sad.
I was about to post that I loved that inner sleeve artwork... it kind of summed up the whole rave generation feeling for me. Happy days.
Playing 3 Kilos and welling up. RIP Keith.
Been a fan since I first heard Charly. At the time we were also sampling and mashing around with beats and samples using an Amiga ST plus a few synths (Juno 6 oh how I miss you) and a Roland TR-606 (why did I ever sell you).
But for me the stand out tune, the one that still makes the hairs on the back of my neck tingle even as I write this is Skylined from Jilted Generation. I'm a bit of a sucker for strings and it brings back so many memories of standing in fields.
Remember the Criminal Justice Bill, shows how scared the authorities were at the time, banning groups from assembling and trying to define a form of music purely as having a "repetitive beat" snuck quietly into the Bill going through, seems ridiculous now.
The artwork may seem daft, but it summed things up then, and you have to remember the whole scene was driven by the flyer, all the flyers for the raves were bright and day-glo, with the acid smiley and similar, they weren't works of art but they were part of parcel of it all.
Recently went through a box in my mum's loft full of those tape-packs you used to get, with 6 or 8 cassettes in there and the flyers to go with them, made this middle aged man quite nostalgic for simpler times.
Can still remember 1994, 14 year old, on the train home from town listening to a newly bought Jilted Generation while looking at that artwork.
Then there was the summer holiday to Centre Parks Sherwood Forest that year, fishing for carp by day and 'being sociable' at night. Happy days.
That artwork is awesome. We bought one of the limited edition signed prints that were available a couple of years ago.
Sad day.
My first gig was the Proj in 94, Livingston forum, great night.
Numbnut - I was there too. RIP Keith.
it is very sad
Trying to distill what some of those early tracks meant into words but I just can't do it justice. It just seamed like there was this period of 6-9 months where you could not go to a club or a rave without hearing either charly, everybody, or out of space at least once. Yeah I know he was 'the dancer' back then compared to the later stuff, but I'm sure he put his hand in there somewhere.
rip
At the IoW, it started to rain before The Prodigy came on, and had settled into a fair downpour during their set. When I went back to the arena the following morning it was sodden, huge puddles, straw being put down, mud everywhere, got to the arena and the grass was perfectly dry! Not even damp, I think the crowd were producing so much heat the rain was evaporating and turning to steam and not touching the ground.
Firestarters indeed. Great gig, that, I even got the obligatory random bloke pissing down the back of my leg...
Remember seeing the Firestarter video for the first time, I was on my first snowboarding trip, and thinking WOW this takes things to a new level.
And saw them live supporting Oasis at Knebworth. For all the hype surrounding that gig for Oasis it was Prodigy, for me, who put on a far better show.... remember feeling somewhat disappointed with Oasis.
Love a bit of early prodigy but when I saw them in Plymouth a few years back they were shite, came on late, went through the motions and left after 45mins.
Definitely worth saying on a thread about one of them dying, jam bo. Cheers.
Sad times 🙁
Didn't realise he was only 2 years older than me as the Prodigy seem to have been around forever.
Ever since me and a mate messed about with a car subwoofer, large amplifier and very lucky box tuning resulting in Charly saying 'a little bit of bass' then half his house shaking like crazy, I have been hooked.
One of the only bands that every song has me reaching to turn the volume up.
Absolutely gutted
It makes the premier of Beats last night all the more poignant, set in 1994 to the backdrop of the Criminal Justice Bill.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/culture/film/glasgow-film-festival-review-beats-1-4882772/amp
Ah bollocks.
That artwork and the slogan underneath got me suspended from college, I had the tee shirt of it. 😂
Ro5ey
Member
And saw them live supporting Oasis at Knebworth. For all the hype surrounding that gig for Oasis it was Prodigy, for me, who put on a far better show…. remember feeling somewhat disappointed with Oasis
I was also there and thought exactly the same.
Met him a couple of times through the motorbikes, he just seemed like a really genuine, passionate guy, no slouch on track either... Their Law is causing some harm to my little PC speakers right now.
Apparently I saw them at Reading 98. 🤷♂️ No bloody recollection at all. Apparently I got narked with some blokes pogoing to into people like knobs.
Nope. Not a clue.
Sad day for me too. Saw them a few times but I think the most memorable was when they played Battersea Power Station a few years back. Industrial wasteland was about as perfect as you could get for their sound at the time. Gone but never forgotten.
Gutted. I think it's because the soundtrack of your formative years when you are finding yourself in the world is a little part of your own comfort blanket that you carry through your own life and when something happens like this it has a marked effect.
Ever since me and a mate messed about with a car subwoofer, large amplifier and very lucky box tuning resulting in Charly saying ‘a little bit of bass’ then half his house shaking like crazy, I have been hooked.
Yep same here, this was the one we used to 'test the parents' with, and the woofers, and the stage monitors that filled the boot of my mates car. Prodge were the main part of the soundtrack of my teens, sad day!
For me it was 'Their Law' with PWEI that just about summed them up. I saw PWEI do it back in the day and The Prodigy do it much more recently. Both were amazing. So sad.
Very sad news. My first proper night out as a spotty teenager was seeing them at the Barrowlands in 92 during The Prodigy Experience period. That was an eye opener! Just watched a video of it on YouTube. I wasn't too in to the stuff after that, but he was a maverick and I respect that.
Rest easy.
A sad day indeed and I feel for his Dad who was on my local radio station just last week talking about his famous son. He was very proud of him but was sad that they hadn't got together for a long time.
Saw them at Tic Toc club in Coventry early 90’s (ish!). Main thing I remember apart from them being excellent was they blew all the fuses - in the street!!! Whole area was plunged into darkness 😂
He also owned Team Traction Control. A very successful mortorbike team
Gutted. 1994 Leeds Town and Country. They blew my mind. That simple really.
Keith was in a giant hamster ball for some of it I think...
rip keith flynt
Bad times. Will be spinning experience later. Epoch defining sound and stage shows. Rave on Keith.
Gutted. I think it’s because the soundtrack of your formative years when you are finding yourself in the world is a little part of your own comfort blanket that you carry through your own life and when something happens like this it has a marked effect.
Nicely put.
Not as popular as some, but this was the most frequently repeated track on my Aiwa 🙂
Worldwide FM smashing out a Prodigy mix tape right now. Banging.
I remembered when I left work earlier I still had my music for the jilted generation cd in the car from a few months ago, break and enter as loud as the stereo would go sounded awesome.
I'll never forget the first time I saw the video to smack my bitch up either, not one of their greatest tracks but what an ending.
Definitely not work safe, child safe or the sort of thing to show your nan etc Unless shes into that sort of thing!
Had to quickly edit that as the YouTube video link I originally posted had some boobies in the picture!
And saw them live supporting Oasis at Knebworth. For all the hype surrounding that gig for Oasis it was Prodigy, for me, who put on a far better show…. remember feeling somewhat disappointed with Oasis
Second that. I remember 100k-odd jumping along to The Prodigy. Oasis were very poor in comparison.
Music of my youth as well, Fat of the Land and back to Jilted. Used to get some amount of grief at school for having music too loud. **** 'em and their law!
Odd that they’ve confirmed suicide publically – all the more so given there seemed to be no impression in public that he was ‘troubled’.
If only it was that easy. I only found out my mate was depressed (understatement) a few months before he hung himself off a washing line. Turned out he had been battling deep depression for far longer than the 15 years I knew him.
I'd like to add the paragraph just before slowoldmans quote:
His is a loss which will be felt keenly by people who have little in common with each other beyond that sudden kick to the heart rate at the opening siren of Firestarter, but it is that moment of exhilaration which unites them as human and family in an otherwise uncaring world.
Never a truer word spoken.
Crap. RIP and echoing reports that he was such a decent guy, also heard from others that have met him and said the same.
I'm no raver and have a wide mix of tastes, but aside from the hit stuff, I really got into the albums and would (and still do) listen to them over and over. They have a nice flow to them rather than just random tracks, and it's not all crank up to 11 head banging.
Though this probably got me into them
Jilted was the pinnacle album for me, although outer space is probably thier most defining track for me.
A sad loss, as others have said, experience and jilted are just epic iconic albums. Fat was very good too but they had a tough act to follow.
Ha. I think i am more prodigy than any of you.
Katie has just reminded me that we chose “Smack my bitch up” as the first dance at our wedding party...
Poison.. What a track, that bass drop with a good sound system that doesn't go muddy with sub bass.. Not much comes close to that.
Oh I dunno, my flatmate had a set of Tannoy studio monitors that gave birth to the Spitfire benchmark.
Our neighbours hated us.
Saw them doing live PA’s at raves all over the place, when Keith was all curtains and smiles.
Always a great show.
Very sad.
scud
Member
Remember the Criminal Justice Bill, shows how scared the authorities were at the time, banning groups from assembling and trying to define a form of music purely as having a “repetitive beat” snuck quietly into the Bill going through, seems ridiculous now.
Yeah, I was just doing a "where was I when". I wasn't a raver at all, but the CJA was such obvious bullshit that I got pretty drawn into the anti/protest scene (it crossed over a lot into the punk and metal scene) and I just remember Ricky Warwick from the Almighty playing us Their Law off the back of a big army truck and just going, right, it's not them and us- when right up til that moment being "us" had been pretty important for me. And then for me Pitchshifter (whose guitarist ended up joining the Prodigy funnily enough) and Fear Factory and Dub War and a load of others and then later on Pendulum covering Voodoo (and Metallica, in the same set) and a life of bands that didn't give a shit where everyone said that line was but it all started with the Prodigy and axing the act and **** 'em and their law
One of my best gigs was prodigy back in 94 or 95 at wolves civic hall. It was intense. So hot there was moisture dripping from the ceiling. Epic. Really touched a nerve. He was only here in Oz literally 3 weeks ago and I didn't go as the new album wasn't new enough for me. Regret not going now but who could have predicted this?
Will be having an inpromptu Prodigy session (with headphones) once the kids are in bed tonight.
Go light some fires Mr Firestarter. Enjoy the afterparty.
I saw them at the g-mex in MCR probably around 97 I think. The Foo Fighters supported, before they're made it big. A big section of the crowd were booing the Foo's because the prodge were still perceived as a "dance" band. They were responsible for blurring that line I guess. Seems ridiculous now!
My cousin put Charly on when we were darn sarf one year and that got me into them, I reckon my favorite track of theirs is No Good, Start the Dance.
I was well into ICE in the 90's and my God you could do some damage (to the unsuspecting public / passengers) with a proper set up, especially with the sub-bass stuff.
They blurred the lines as they evolved from rave / dance into rock 'n rave and pretty mainstream and without them there would be so many acts that just don't exist today. I suppose they'll continue, but you never know.
Much like Chester Bennington, he was taken too soon and will be sorely missed by this jilted generation.
aphex2k, theres a new album out now. Get it it's brilliant.
Anyone else suffering with Prodigy induced ringing ears this morning?
I had to run an errand last night so was driving round town with Fat of The Land up at a mind-buggering volume.
Sad news indeed.
Jilted Generation certainly a seminal album throughout the 90's for me... But hey, what a full-on life led - owning a pub/McLaren F1 (the car obviously)/racing team,being with Gail Porter and made a lot of folk happy with a lasting legacy.And to top it off by being to all accounts a decent bloke.
Sir, i doff my cap!
RIP
Seems he will be well missed. Interestingly I was listening to More Music for the Jilted Generation at the weekend, and there one of the extra track I had never heard before. It's not Keith, but it's brilliant.
I'm not huge on their later stuff, but there is always a track or two with the magical Prodigy ingredients - for me it has to have a good tune and be musical. I really like Stand Up on Invader (I think) - love the tune, love the use of chords and love the 303 at then end.
This is the track I found - a fan mash-up called Shut 'Em Up and it is brilliant - I think you can hear how Keith was maybe influenced by Public Enemy / Chuck D to a certain extent as these vocals fit really well. Apologies if already been posted but it's new to me!
Devastating news that I had hoped wasnt true , I saw them back in the Rave days at Ingliston In Edinburgh about 1992 then again in probably 1994. They cut both gigs short as the PA system was shite . I think It was probably keith dancing in the jump suit with the curtain bob hair and beach hat that really got me into going to Raves , That and the disco biscuits. He was Johnny Rotten for the rave era despite Liam being the main talent of the band. Shame like the death of MCA we will never see the Beastie Boys again same goes for Keith and the Prodigy . Lets hope hes up there with some Cali Weed.
Rest In Peace Firestarter...
'When I was a youth I used to burn cali weed in a rizzler-a-rizzler-a-rizzler-a-rizzler-a '
This is the track I found – a fan mash-up called Shut ‘Em Up and it is brilliant – I think you can hear how Keith was maybe influenced by Public Enemy / Chuck D to a certain extent as these vocals fit really well. Apologies if already been posted but it’s new to me!
Seen that before, it's most excellent, also shows the heavy influences on Liam
When I was 17 my mate Toby was the first of us to pass his driving test. He spent £500 and bought a very old Ford Fiesta. He didn't drive it but instead put in in his garage and cleaned/polished it to within an inch of his life. He also fitted the most outrageous sound system I have ever seen or heard. The car was crap, the stereo was phenomenal.
I will always remember the day the car was unveiled. We drove off to a world of independence, hope, opportunity and, more importantly, everyone knows that girls get very excited when boys have cars. Fact. We drove up to the local girls school and loaded up The Fat of the Land. Specifically, we unleashed Diesel Power. The bass was like sonic weapon. I very nearly shat myself. It was, literally, a seismic event that must have been felt for miles around.
To this day I do not understand how our bodies did not explode or how the windows stayed intact. Even more of a mystery was why the girls did not come flocking. We had a car, we had bass, we even threw in a (pretty limp) handbrake turn. What more did they need?
The Fat of the Land was a defining album in my youth.
Fittingly today's Facebook memory was a video of my then 1 year old daughter in her jumperoo raving to Smack My Bitch Up.
Getting old and emotional means when a wee hero off mine heads heavenly I scour youtube for clips to console myself. Check this out . Its from a few years back but he nails the whole scene I think . So priviledged to have lived through the Acid / Rave era .
Rest In Peace Keith , you will be missed .
One thing i always liked about prodigy is they used a lot of guitar in thier songs on jilted which wasn't really the in thing at the time, that really set them apart from a lot of electronic acts.
But that's just one aspect.. A truly unique group of people. And a unique sound.
Yes stanfree,my thoughts exactly,i feel priveledged too,along with many others i bet,that era was one of a kind,the mystique about the whole scene,keith was one of a kind quite literally and a good ambassador for that whole genre of music at the time..
Rave on Keitth!
RIP
For me it was amnesia house 'Book of love '92,brayfield Northants,mahoosive intro for 'Your love'liam kept rewinding the piano rifts on the keys,amazing how i van still think about i was there with 20,000 odd people loving the same thing,awsome!!
Got to admit, this has hit me quite hard. Didn't know the guy, never met him, didn't even know that much about him (though know a lot more now!) beyond being the legendary Prodigy front man, but my god he shaped my youth!
I remember my mate nicking his (rather hot) older sisters Experience tape whilst she was out at work, and the 2 of us (both 12 at the time) dancing around like loons to it. It had only just come out then, and little did I realise just what I was getting into!
FFWD a couple of years, though I was mostly into rock music still at this point, I picked up a copy of Jilted Generation on CD, and the rest is pretty much history! By the time Fat of the Land came out, I was frequently out to clubs and house parties (still underage) raving away, and well on my way to becoming a DJ. To say the Prodigy inspired me is a huge understatement!
I never really got into any of their later stuff, to me they were very much a band of their time (that time being the 90's to me), but I do respect them massively for continuing to push the boundaries rather than just sitting on a fat pay cheque from a bygone era.
Learning of Keith's passing touched a nerve for sure. I have learnt a lot about the guy that I didn't know before, he seemed to be that rarest of celebrities that absolutely nobody seems to have anything negative to say about! Anything and everything you read about the man, he was loved, even by those who didn't know him. James Blunt and Brian May's twitter posts, you can rightly imagine the self styled "Firestarter" might be as easygoing as a 3rd World Dictator, but seemingly he was the total opposite. Reading about his love of motorbikes has struck a chord too, I knew he had an interest in them, I didn't realise quite to what extent... Running his own team (not just financing it) in British Supersport and at the TT, where he actually won races as a team boss, is one thing. Learning that he was actually quite promising racer himself, in 98 he was running an ex John Reynolds BSB spec Ducati fairly competitively himself when he had an accident. He walked away from it, but he said it made him stop and think about priorities, at a time when he was touring a lot off the back of Fat of the Land and had a huge musical career going on, so he took the sensible option and stopped racing, but certainly never lost his love for bikes.
RIP Keith. A massive shame for certain.
This popped up on YT today. Some great stories from BITD, could do with being a couple of hours longer.
I was more of a clubber than a cheesy quaver, but still makes me a bit dewy eyed for that time...
Just saw a post that he ran a 22 min PB at parkrun that very morning, the stuff going on that drove the music must have bitten hard later in the day.
Annie Mac having a tribute show now
@nobeerinthefridge "Eight out of ten people considering suicide give some sign of their intentions. [2] People who talk about suicide, threaten suicide, or call suicide crisis centers are 30 times more likely than average to kill themselves. [3]" according to Mental Health America
We should be listening to our friends more, the onus shouldn't be on the sufferer to ask to talk or for help but for us to offer a bit of kindness
@nobeerinthefridge “Eight out of ten people considering suicide give some sign of their intentions. [2] People who talk about suicide, threaten suicide, or call suicide crisis centers are 30 times more likely than average to kill themselves
I'm not sure I agree with that, having known 2 people that have committed suicide I think it's more likely to be the people you think are ok actually aren't.
In my experience the people who say they are going to do it more than likely won't.
There's a HEAP of tribute mixes around and I've listened to a lot... But this one is worth sharing.
Impressive send off.
:'(
Still feel very blessed to have seen them in '94, a gig at demontfort uni that I will never forget for many reasons. Keep on dancing...x