"As the '90 wore on and the rave scene broke into the mainstream, a succession of techno bands would rise up the charts both in the U.K. and America. Few, however, experienced the unparalleled cross-over success of The Prodigy, a band that offered just enough sugar to make drum 'n' bass go down easy on the public.While many electronic artists, whether in the dance scene or more experimental IDM acts, don't really have a stage presence, The Prodigy had Keith Flint, whose angry vocals, spiked hair and jangling multiple piercings gave listeners a face and persona to attach to the heavy beats of the group's music. But the genius behind the music was really producer Liam Howlett, a longtime member of the rave scene that had grown up on hip-hop and dance music. His samples and beats made the band a sensation in their native U.K., though his contribution was sometimes overlooked early in the band's career because of his behind the scenes work.Howlett formed the group with Flint and Leeroy Thornhill in 1990. Their first big single, ""Charly,"" sampled a children's PSA, kicking off a rash of rave songs that were built on samples from children's shows. The group would release Experience in 1992, going gold and earning the rave scene more mainstream exposure. But it was 1995's Music for a Jilted Generation that saw them riding high on the British music charts and beginning to earn exposure in the U.S. When ""Firestarter"" hit the airwaves in the U.S. the next year, the band was hailed as leaders in the techno scene. The Fat of the Land, their 1997 follow-up, would peak at number one on the Billboard 200, a testament to their success at making drum 'n' bass commercially viable.Howlett would release a solo mix album, The Dirtchamber Sessions Vol. 1, in 1999, and then stay quiet until emerging--again, solo--for 2004's Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned."
