Pop Quiz: Prodigy

Pop Quiz: Prodigy

Aidin Vaziri | In the seven years since the last Prodigy album, the 8.5 million- selling "The Fat of the Land," Liam Howlett fired his band mates, battled writer's block and trashed a half-completed album in 2002 after the commercial failure of its date-rape drug championing first single, "Baby's Got a Temper." And that was before he recruited guest vocalists like Oasis' Liam Gallagher and actress Juliette Lewis for a completely new album. The result, called "Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned," out this week, has already topped the British charts. But what happened to the guy with the funny Mohawk?



Liam Howlett of Prodigy
Q: Did the thought cross your mind that it might be a bad idea to get rid of vocalist Keith Flint, the only guy anyone actually recognizes out of the Prodigy?
A: Keith's still a friend. You have to sometimes strip things to basics. Things can only go so far before you can't take them any further for them to be exciting. Keith's actual lyrics that he was writing at that time were really personal to him. They were too introverted for Prodigy. This record wasn't about Keith's personal s -- .
Q: He wasn't writing enough about inciting arson or taking Rohypnol for your tastes?
A: No, the general upness of Prodigy was not reflected in Keith's lyrics. "Baby's Got a Temper" was very introverted. It was a thing he was involved in, like the recreational side of that drug. That was not suited to the band. I just wanted to strip all that s -- away. It was kind of brave, but it felt right.
Q: But there's nothing good like that on this record.