Prodigy/Dizzee Rascal - Glasgow SECC - 04.07.09
Posted by Chris Crowing on 04.16.2009
Veteran techno heads turned firestarting crossover act hits Glasgow on the comeback trail - did it rock, or did it not?
Yet again, I'll throw my hands up and admit that I missed a chunk of the support act - in this case the darling of the UK urban scene - Dizzee Rascal. From what I caught of his set, I was quite impressed, while freely admitting that his style of music isn't my cup of tea.
That said, I had to appreciate the smoothness of his verbal delivery and the undoubted quality (and sheer volume) of his beats, and I'm sure I caught some quality eighties samples in there that actually made me feel distressingly old.
That would be a theme of the evening, as the main event on this night was the Prodigy - who headlined the first 'big' gig I was ever at (T in the Park 1997 when I was a mere 15 years old) and made a lasting impression.
When your live experience has been limited to folk and indie gigs in tiny pubs smaller than your living room, suddenly being right at the front of a 50'000 strong crowd to witness one of the most immediate and visceral acts of the time at the peak of their powers was a defining experience. I went from anticipation to terror and onto exhilaration and exhaustion during that set. I nearly lost a shoe and walked away, back up the hill to my tent utterly knackered and having just discovered as lifelong addiction.
Nearly twelve years on, the Prodigy had a lot to live up to...
Since that definitive experience, fuelled by the stunning The Fat of the Land and Music for the Jilted Generation albums, the Prodigy have been less than prolific and not quite impressive, releasing terrible "Baby's Got a Temper" single and the so-so Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned album a few years back before going on hiatus.
Earlier this year, they released their comeback record Invaders Must Die and it went straight in at no.1 in the UK amid a mild frenzy of publicity, which as is usual passed me by almost entirely. While I was interested in the new record, I was hardly peeing myself to obtain it and I have not yet gotten round to buying or downloading the album, so I was going into the gig unaware of the band's new material and not too impressed by their previous release.
Was a set full of songs from The Fat of the Land and ...Jilted... and some even older tunes like "Charly" and "Wind it Up" too much to ask for?
No, as it turns out!
I'm unable to do a song by song recounting of the show as I was too busy dancing, while trying to keep my phone and wallet in my pockets and not get swept away from my girl to be so anally attentive, but I'll do my best to convey the feeling of the show.
The first part of the set was loaded with tracks from the seminal ...Jilted Generation LP and classics like "Their Law," "Poison" and "No Good" as well as the awesome "Breathe" from Fat of the Land got the arena moving like gigantic shivering mass of arms, legs and glowsticks.
Material which I can only assume is new (as I didn't recognize it) came next and I have to say I'm impressed. One tune came across as being a being the Prodigy's attempt at Depeche Mode with a soaring Dave Gahan style chorus, mixed in with a crushing classic Prodigy verse. Nice!
The rest of the new material on display came across in two different camps.
Firstly was the Prodigy taking Mindless Self Indulgence or Pendulum's currently pervasive spin on the electronic crossover genre, ripping out all the pretentious weak Emo-ness of it, and adding some trademark weight to the beats and throwing vocals by turns visceral and catchy into the mix.
Secondly were a few tracks that sounded like the old school techno and acid house that trademarked their debut album The Prodigy Experience but with some ultra-modern breakcore beats thrown into the mix. The results are interesting to say the least.
I got what I was looking for when the tunes from Fat of the Land came in with "Smack Your Bitch Up" and "Diesel Power" getting huge responses - although "Firestarter" was greeted in a strangely muted fashion, especially given it was the bands first #1 single and their biggest hit.
The show closed with a massive, bouncing singalong to the classically stupid "Out of Space" and while the Prodigy didn't take me to another dimension this time, they proved they are still a potent live force.
Highlights: All the classics from ...Jilted... with "No Good" and "Poison" proving to have stood the test of time better than you might expect.
Lowlights: A strangely aggressive crowd. We call them 'neds' in Scotland. I had more hassle from yobs at this show than I have had in years or attending punk and metal gigs - isn't dance music meant to be all about the love? Also, they didn't play "Charly" which is always a blast to hear.
Slainte Chris Crowing
The 411: The Prodigy have a raft of arena slaying dance-rock classics, and given Liam Howlett's proficiency as the music master, they were always going to be an impressive aural experience while Maxim and Keith continue to prowl the stage like the demagogues with the hundred yard stare and whip the crowd into a frenzy. Always an impressive show, but nothing new to report here and it lacks the power and snap it once had.
