CD Review of Invaders Must Die by Prodigy
Prodigy: Invaders Must Die
Recommended if you like
Pendulum, Atari Teenage Riot,
Meat Beat Manifesto
Label
Take Me to the Hospital/Cooking Vinyl
Prodigy: Invaders Must Die

Reviewed by James B. Eldred

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A
lready Invaders Must Die is being heralded as "the return of Prodigy" in the UK, where in the ‘90s they achieved a level of success and notoriety that few bands only dream of. Like a rave version of the Sex Pistols, they were lauded for their revolutionary sound, while simultaneously being chastised for their outlandish appearances and aggressive music, the most notable being the legendary "Smack My Bitch Up."

But no matter how daring, original and frightening you are, what you do becomes old hat, especially if you take too long to record a new record. The seven-year gap between their breakthrough, The Fat of the Land, and its 2004 follow-up, Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned, was a millennium in the world of dance music, and the fact that it was an overblown mess filled with needless guest appearances and forgettable beats didn't help things, either.

Prodigy

Invaders Must Die is an obvious reaction to that album's painful failure. Original vocalist Keith Flint and Maxim are back, with nary a guest appearance to be found aside from some drumming by Dave Grohl and a production credit by James Rushnet of Does It Offend You, Yeah? on a couple of songs. And while Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned experimented with rap and alternative rock, Invaders Must Die sticks almost completely to the classic hardcore rave sound that the band nearly perfected in the ‘90s.

It's a giant leap backwards, for sure, but it's a damn good one. Sometimes progress, maturity and experimentation are overrated; The Prodigy's best work has always been big dumb dance music, something that's harder to get right than one would think, and it appears that they've finally realized that, beginning with hardcore techno one-two opening punch of the title track and "Omen," two heavy, throbbing, manic pieces of insanity that stand up to the best of the group’s early work. There's a brief downturn with the reggae dancehall-influenced "Thunder" but it's made up for immediately with "Colours," the best rave dance track you're ever going to hear about gang warfare.

The Prodigy's energy has always relied on the sense of fear and danger that their music creates. And while nothing here rivals the intensity and all-around freakishness of "Smack My Bitch Up," they do come close a few times. "Take Me to the Hospital" (which is also the name of the band's new label) is a freak show, with a creepy computer-modified voice repeating the title lyric over a synth riff straight out of 1989. The nightmare is made complete with Keith Flint's unmistakable howl, screaming something about a spider and Dracula. Maxim, the other original Prodigy vocalist, also gets a standout track with "Run with the Wolves," which features Dave Grohl delivering a live drumbeat that rivals any drum 'n' bass in terms of tempo.

The only time Prodigy deviate from the hardcore rave norm is on the final track, "Stand Up," which is an uplifting, big-beat closer that would have fit better on a Fatboy Slim record circa 1998. It's a slight reprieve from the non-stop aggression and fury of the ten tracks that preceded it, but this is Prodigy, dammit; they shouldn't reprieve us from anything. It doesn't work, but it’s the last track, so at least it's easily skippable.

Invaders Must Die isn't groundbreaking by any stretch, but it's a decisive return to form for a band that desperately needed one.

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