The Prodigy's Liam Howlett on playing Coachella after Keith Flint's death — "It was like jumping off a building"

When the Prodigy archetypal played Coachella successful 2002, they were outlaws. The brash physics group’s 1997 LP “The Fat of The Land” had topped charts successful the U.S. and heralded the mainstreaming of underground rave culture, which would morph into the EDM roar present a decennary later. They were MTV staples for grimy videos similar “Breathe” and “Firestarter,” wherever the dual-mohawked singer/dancer Keith Flint skulked astir an bare subway tunnel, sneering successful kohl eyeliner and an American emblem sweater.

Liam Howlett, the Prodigy’s founder, recalled his band’s debut astatine Coachella arsenic “a existent British invasion. It was rather a antithetic festival backmost then,” helium said. “I retrieve it being rather escaped and unregulated.”

Twenty-three years later, there’s a caller yearning for that era, erstwhile creation euphony embodied tech-juiced libertinism and invention. When we spell to the club, we privation to perceive those nine classics, aft all.

Prodigy old-heads and Gen Z revivalists volition get to perceive them (the band’s present a duo, with singer-dancer Maxim and different touring musicians) connected Friday astatine 10:05 p.m. successful the Mojave tent. Howlett spoke to The Times astir recovering from Flint’s decease astatine 49 successful 2019, Gen Z’s longing for a antithetic epoch of rave and if A.I. has immoderate spot successful the modern raver’s toolkit.

It indispensable beryllium cathartic to beryllium backmost playing large festivals aft Keith Flint’s death. Is it affectional being up determination without him?

Right aft Keith passed away, we conscionable didn’t cognize what to do. We didn’t adjacent talk astir thing for years. Finally we conscionable hung retired and 1 of america said, “I deliberation I’m up for it.” We talked astir gigs — Should we? Could we? We ended up with the aforesaid answer, which was fundamentally that the lone mode to find retired is to get immoderate gigs successful tiny venues. It gave america the answers we needed.

Man, it was f— conscionable highly emotional. I’ve ne'er felt truthful affected conscionable due to the fact that the crowds were wholly with us. It was similar jumping disconnected a building. We conscionable didn’t cognize what the f— was gonna happen. This is wherefore we had to bash it. I’ll ne'er hide the feeling, similar the assemblage gave america the answers we needed to transportation on.

But I volition accidental that america carrying connected isn’t a Keith tribute show. We privation to grant him, and we volition proceed to bash that, due to the fact that Keith is much than conscionable a idiosyncratic they saw connected stage. Even though helium wasn’t a musician, helium was specified an important idiosyncratic successful the workplace arsenic a right-hand man. When I’m penning euphony now, helium inactive survives successful my mind, and that’s a beauteous thing, you know. That’s knowing we’ve got much to give. Because that’s erstwhile I’ll stop, erstwhile I’ve got thing much to give.

Keith Flint and Maxim of the Prodigy execute unrecorded connected signifier astatine O2 Academy Brixton successful 2017.

(Simone Joyner / Getty Images)

There is simply a caller longing for raves of yore — there’s a crushed Charli XCX is singing astir wanting to perceive the nine classics. As idiosyncratic who pioneered that era, what are young radical yearning for there?

The nighttime is simply a telephone to these kids. Electronic euphony ever is there. I deliberation it’s because, basically, popular producers usage physics euphony and they dip into that erstwhile they’re making popular records. We see ourselves connected the harder extremity of physics music, and we’re rather axenic successful what we what we do, adjacent though it’s rather mixed up. It’s a operation of culture-clashing British influences and American hip-hop, but it’s physics euphony that has ever had its place, particularly successful Europe and England.

When I was increasing up, I was precise lucky, due to the fact that I grew up successful 3 large taste movements. I missed punk due to the fact that I was excessively young, but two-tone ska, I got into that large time. Then hip-hop came implicit to beryllium different monolithic thing, and past I discovered rave culture. I privation my lad could acquisition astatine slightest thing similar those movements. He’s lacking a spot now, and I deliberation the blasted wholly lies successful societal media. Things aren’t allowed to simmer connected the underground, they don’t get the accidental to unrecorded determination agelong capable for it to grow. They’re exposed afloat to the nationalist consecutive away. I deliberation that’s the crushed wherefore cultures aren’t longer-lasting.

Plus, you benignant of request to acquisition it successful the close carnal setting, and not conscionable connected your phone.

Going retired to raves successful London and astir the U.K., we were lasting adjacent to dependable systems that were shaking your full assemblage to recognize what euphony tin do. While you’re flipping done phones and looking astatine videos, if you don’t besides acquisition it lasting adjacent to a sub-bass, you haven’t experienced what frequencies tin bash to people. I was precise privileged arsenic good to person that ingrained into maine precise young.

Dance euphony has ever been unfastened to caller technology, but the Prodigy’s euphony was ever precise handmade. Does A.I. person immoderate spot successful nine euphony today, oregon is that antiart?

I’m funny successful immoderate technology, but I deliberation it’s truthful unsafe to trust connected thing similar that, thing that takes immoderate benignant of creativity distant from the person. I deliberation alternatively of being acrophobic of it, I judge that an creator tin beryllium successful the studio, and if A.I. could beryllium utilized to radiance a airy oregon assistance unlock an idea, past I deliberation that’s a bully thing. As acold arsenic relying connected it to produce, we don’t privation to instrumentality the creativity distant from a person. But I’m funny what the affirmative things astir it are, similar however tin it assistance amended people.

Your past medium came retired successful 2018, though you person caller euphony coming soon. Dance euphony is evolving faster than ever successful the modern era. Do large statement-piece albums similar “The Fat of the Land” inactive consciousness imaginable today?

You person to onslaught it successful antithetic ways. Obviously, penning has taken clip due to the fact that of the full situation. As acold arsenic penning caller songs, I’m not definite whether it’s going to beryllium successful the signifier of an medium oregon what it is, due to the fact that we privation to beryllium capable to merchandise euphony quickly. Releasing an medium conscionable seems excessively drawn retired to me. So we’re trying to deliberation of different ways of doing it truthful radical tin get the euphony quicker. As soon arsenic we’re blessed with a tune, I privation it retired there.

Obviously, the satellite is changing each the time, determination are antithetic ways of getting euphony to people. That interests me, due to the fact that betwixt the clip I decorativeness a opus and the clip it comes out, that play is excessively long. But I ne'er fto thing beryllium released until it’s astatine a definite standard. My son’s successful a set and helium conscionable sticks worldly up consecutive away, and I’m jealous. We privation to find the close equilibrium of that.

Does your aged euphony resonate with him?

He’s successful a guitar band, truthful there’s thing physics astir what he’s doing. That’s a prime helium made due to the fact that helium knows helium can’t bushed his dad. [Laughs] It’s precise difficult, I think, for guitar bands now, but he’s good. Man, we were determination once. It’s comic to spot it each again done my son’s eyes.

The Prodigy was the embodiment of a subcultural set that got huge. In an epoch erstwhile everything is accessible and chewed up online truthful quickly, however bash you sphere that sensibility today?

From a young age, the euphony I liked was not affable music. It’s ever thing that was weird, oregon had a spot much anger, an cognition oregon depth. We’re not a governmental band, but we are a set of the people, we are an escapist band. I went backmost to a tiny workplace — fundamentally similar a bedroom. I tin bash everything, I tin premix successful here. The dependable of my past grounds sounds amended than the erstwhile record, which was mixed successful a large studio. I’ve gone backmost to DIY. Too overmuch instrumentality tin measurement you down, and with constricted equipment, your encephalon has to fig retired ways to bash worldly and beryllium creative.

In this room, it’s a messiness with loads of weird devices everywhere. I’m not an creator that likes to look astatine a machine screen. I enactment the machine connected arsenic a portion machine, property record, play for an hour, past halt and perceive to what I’ve got. Something bully happens erstwhile you’re playing that large done a existent system.