One of the major abiding musical memories of the late 1990s for many wasn’t so much five Mancunians ripping off Beatles’ songs, but Keith Flint of The Prodigy, growling “I’m a Firestarter/Twisted Firestarter” while all kinds of electronic battery was let loose. The Essex Crew may no longer be the media folk devils of “Firestarter” and “Smack My Bitch Up” but they still pack a mighty punch and No Tourists, their first album since 2015’s The Day Is My Enemy and their seventh in all, is ample proof that Liam, Keith and Maxim have no intentions of sitting on their laurels anytime yet.
Rocking a rawer but no less fierce sound than The Day Is My Enemy, No Tourists brings breakbeats, rave energy, electro punk and hip hop to the fore and doesn’t let up from the first beat to the last. “Need Some1” opens proceedings with hard beats and squally synths, while “Light Up The Sky” sees hype-man Maxim bellowing the orders over the industrial sound of urban warfare. “Fight Fire With Fire” with its relentless beats features American hip-hoppers Ho99o9, while “Champions Of London” is loud and lairy with in your face, hardcore beats and a muscular bassline, as well as Keith Flint snarling “Civil unrest/Grab a bullet-proof vest”. If you were under the impression that after 28 years together, The Prodigy might be ready for some low energy ambient soundscapes, you are sorely mistaken and no doubt relieved. No Tourists is sharp and to the point, with no time for even the briefest of quiet contemplation within the sonic rioting.
2018 has already seen surprisingly good releases from original ravers Orbital and The Orb. With No Tourists and its firestorm of beats and aggression, The Prodigy have produced another thrilling antidote to the corporate shills of the EDM scene.
