The Prodigy have laid into the current state of dance music in a vitriolic interview with the Guardian.
“The dance scene has flatlined and we’re the spike,” Maxim told the newspaper’s Ian McQuaid. “Dance music at the moment is so fucking dead,” added Liam Howlett. “Producers are too safe, they rely on being retro. It’s fucking bollocks. There’s no pushing forward any more.”
Discussing their new album The Day Is My Enemy, the band explained that their new song ‘Ibiza’, which features Sleaford Mods’ Jason Williamson attacking superstar DJ culture, was inspired by an experience on the island.
“It’s an attack on these mindless fucking jokers that arrive in their Learjets, pull a USB stick out of their pockets, plug it in and wave their hands in the air to a pre-programmed mix,” said Howlett. “I can’t name names, but our lighting guy pulled out a CD, and said this is blah blah blah’s set, and I’m like, ‘What do you mean?’ Turns out that our lighting guy plays it from the front of house while this DJ is onstage pretending to push buttons.
“Maybe I’m an angry person, but I was infuriated by this laziness. What’s all that shit about? You can’t build a scene around that, it’s never going to last or be credible.”
Howlett also complained that their contribution to Britain’s musical heritage has been overlooked. “It’s a bit of a bold statement, but the Prodigy should be seen as an important cultural band, as important as Oasis or Blur or any of that shit. Britpop was not a culture, as such.”
Hear The Prodigy’s new track ‘Nasty’ below.