The Prodigy - Cork, Dublin and Belfast June 28, 29 and 30, 2023

[StoutAndAle]

One of the lads that I work with was at the Cork show last night - he's in a cruel way today naturally.

He said that it was a good gig. He also ended up at a house party drinking with a load of kids until 0600hrs this morning. So I'm not sure how much faith I'd have in his review.

I live near enough the venue and I couldn't hear it at all last night but, oddly, I can hear the utter shite they're playing at the Marquee series loud and clear even though it's miles away from my house.

[mickO)))]

Last night was brilliant. Crowd was crazy and Dublin even got a mention on the facebook page this morning no mention of Cork though. First time in that venue and I was so happy when I saw a tent was setup for the show because I hate outdoor gigs especially when it is a band you really like.

I knew from the videos online of the shows last year it was still going to be good without Keith but definitely even better than I expected and probably one of the best times I have ever seen them.

I felt a bit bad myself when I woke up this morning but was fine after 20 minutes. The people sitting beside us on the bus were still talking pills on the way home which was rotten.

Can't wait now for Belfast but going to take it easier than last night as I can't remember a good bit of the Prodigy's set because of how much I drank. We got there early as well and got pit passes so were right up the front.

[Airneanach]

The Cork show was great, though it did feel slightly like a warm up given it didn't sell out, took place almost entirely in daylight and the crowd were late arriving.

They got a decent crowd in the end though - bearing in mind they were also doing Dublin and Chemical Brothers happened in the same venue a week prior - and it only took until about halfway through Breathe in the opener until there was a big pit that stayed for the whole thing.

They do play very short shows. A lot of the tunes like Everybody in the Place and Out of Space were just minute/minute and a half cuts in between other tunes.

You know what you're getting though. A battering of hits and a chance to pay tribute to Keef.

[mickO)))]

Dublin ended up selling out which I didn't know until after. Belfast was even better than Dublin weird crowd at it though lots of the short blue haired types. I actually really enjoyed it despite it being fully outdoor.

Going to Berlin for a lads weekend at the start of December and they are playing the day before we go home so will be going to see them again hopefully they change setlist up a bit for that tour. I would love to hear Rhythm of life and more stuff from Experience. The new song they played sounds good.

[Airneanach]

Dublin ended up selling out which I didn't know until after. Belfast was even better than Dublin weird crowd at it though lots of the short blue haired types. I actually really enjoyed it despite it being fully outdoor.

Going to Berlin for a lads weekend at the start of December and they are playing the day before we go home so will be going to see them again hopefully they change setlist up a bit for that tour. I would love to hear Rhythm of life and more stuff from Experience. The new song they played sounds good.

Experience is mental still. I totally get that they only came into their own with the mass crossover shtick where they sounded heavier than most bands that proclaimed to be heavy whilst still sounding like something you'd hear at the furthest flung tent at a rave, but the kiddy rave stuff on Experience in a way is still way more intense and industrial than anything that followed.

[open face surgery]

Both of the first 2 albums are amazing in their own right.

[Airneanach]

The way Break and Enter just layers up and builds gets me every time.

Experience + Jilted over Fat of the Land any day. I thought Invaders Must Die was a decent palette of all their different sounds over the years. The two later ones after that I had no interest in. Just felt like Howlett done them all on his Macbook. Very digital and overly compressed attempts at rave throwback.

[ochoill]

Yeah Experience and Jilted are top class albums, some good tracks throughout the rest of their stuff but nothing comes close to them for me.

[mickO)))]

Fat of the land will always be number 1 for me. Got the tape as a child about a week after it was released. It was one of the first albums I ever owned and to this day is the only piece of music I have owned over the years on tape, CD and vinyl. I was in the cubs and I bought the tape from one of the older lads who was in the scouts on a camping trip to England.

Always out numbered is the only album I don't really like and it was just after that came out when I first saw them live in the point. Last week was my first time seeing them live since No Tourists was released I think the songs from that album come across very well live and the material isn't too far removed from the experience or it is at least the closest thing we will get to that type of stuff these days.

[open face surgery]

Fat of the Land never did it for me. Too much vocals. Bought the Breathe single on tape when it came out. Was out a good bit before FotL, if I remember correctly. Used to be glued to 2tv on Sundays to see the video as well.

Fully agree on Break and Enter. Unreal start to an album. Jilted Generation was on constant doing pills as a teenager.

Red Hot Chili Pipers played in the venue I work in a while back. Had an album called Music for the Kilted Generation. Got a laugh out of that.

[mishima]

Fat of the land will always be number 1 for me. Got the tape as a child about a week after it was released. It was one of the first albums I ever owned and to this day is the only piece of music I have owned over the years on tape, CD and vinyl. I was in the cubs and I bought the tape from one of the older lads who was in the scouts on a camping trip to England.

Always out numbered is the only album I don't really like and it was just after that came out when I first saw them live in the point. Last week was my first time seeing them live since No Tourists was released I think the songs from that album come across very well live and the material isn't too far removed from the experience or it is at least the closest thing we will get to that type of stuff these days.

Got the Fat of the Land for my 15th birthday. Still absolutely fucking love it. They were the first band I was properly obsessed with. Jilted is deadly as well, though I didn't own my own copy for a good few years.
Saw them live in 2003/4 in the Olympia and they were cracking.

[astfgyl]

Fat of the Land never did it for me. Too much vocals. Bought the Breathe single on tape when it came out. Was out a good bit before FotL, if I remember correctly. Used to be glued to 2tv on Sundays to see the video as well.

Fully agree on Break and Enter. Unreal start to an album. Jilted Generation was on constant doing pills as a teenager.

Red Hot Chili Pipers played in the venue I work in a while back. Had an album called Music for the Kilted Generation. Got a laugh out of that.

Too much vocals is exactly what I get from it as well. Pity they didn't let the tunes breathe a little bit more. MFTJG and Experience are where it's at with these lads and from the albums that came after I only really like a couple of tunes here and there. Know a good few lads who've seen them the last few years and the reports are always that the gigs are great all the same.

Anyone really into the later albums at all around here?

[mickO)))]

Saw them live in 2003/4 in the Olympia and they were cracking.

I remember that show in the Olympia think it was 04. I was suppose to go to that but from what I remember either it sold out straight away or the people I was going with delayed on getting tickets then by the time they were ready it was sold out.

Anyone really into the later albums at all around here?

Invaders and No Tourists are great albums. The day is my enemy is good but definitely the worst out of the last 3.

An interview with Leeroy came up on my youtube feed last night from 2018. He was saying the change to a more rock sound is why he left the band because he was fed up of dancing to the same few songs night after night and the more they went in the rock direction the less opportunity he had to dance to something new. He thinks the band are stuck between a rock and a hard place now because if they go back on the rock stuff they will alienate a lot of fans but at the same time what they have become is not what they originally set out to be.

He said Liam keeps asking him to re-join but he doesn't want to. He came back for one show in 2015 he asked Liam could he dance to a few of Keith's songs but again he was just given No good and Out of space. He was supposed to do a few more shows after this but decided not to after that first one. I am surprised he is still able to dance as he is in his 50's now and dancing the way they do is hard enough for someone young never mind a lad in his 50's.

Personally I would love if Leeroy came back as seeing him dancing on stage would really add to the live experience and I never got to see the band while he was still with them. By that time Keith had stopped dancing too he just use to run around the stage and spin around from time to time.

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

Jilted Generation was on constant doing pills as a teenager.

Same here except I was in my 20s before I started getting experienced, so to speak. Jilted Generation just is the soundtrack to pills for me.

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

Since ye're talking about newer albums though; I stopped paying attention when Fat Of The Land came out. Just didn't really dig it, not what I was looking for from The Prodigy. But any of the albums later than that worth a listen, given my reason for stopping listening in the first place?