The Prodigy always been one of those bands that just gets it right when it comes to mashing electronic stuff with rock attitude. These Essex lads came outta the rave scene in the early 90s and by the time Fat of the Land dropped in ’97, they were ready to show the world what proper big beat could sound like.
The album kicks off with “Smack My Bitch Up” and man, what a way to start things off. Yeah, I know all about the controversy and the BBC bans and all that nonsense, but honestly, if you can’t hear past the title to appreciate that filthy groove and those mental breakbeats, you’re missing the point. The track builds from this hypnotic loop into full-on drum and bass madness, it’s like being hit by a freight train made of synthesizers. The controversy was mostly about the music video anyway, and the band always said it meant “doing anything intensely”. Still gets the blood pumping after all these years.
“Breathe” is where things get really interesting though, this is my favorite track on the whole album. It’s got that industrial rock thing going on but sitting on top of these massive breakbeats. The way they mixed in those weird household sounds with Keith Flint’s snarling vocals, it’s like someone took a Terminator soundtrack and fed it through a drum and bass filter. Proper catchy too, which is something a lot of electronic acts struggle with.
“Firestarter” was their big breakthrough single and you can see why. It’s angry, it’s in your face, and it’s got this punk rock energy that somehow works perfectly with the electronic foundation. Keith Flint really comes alive on this one, the man was born to be a frontman even if he looked like he escaped from a cartoon.
The middle section gets a bit experimental with tracks like “Diesel Power” featuring Kool Keith. It’s got this eerie metallic groove that just dares you to stand still. “Mindfields” is another hidden gem, proper dubstep production before dubstep was even a thing, all rising action and heavy dance club vibes. “Narayan” with Crispian Mills is this weird pre-millennium anxiety trip that somehow captures the whole late 90s mood perfectly.
“Fuel My Fire” is their cover of L7 and it works better than it has any right to. Taking a punk song and giving it the full Prodigy treatment – more proof these guys knew how to take influences from everywhere and make them their own.
As a whole album, Fat of the Land is just mental. It’s loud, it’s aggressive, but there’s actual depth hiding in all that chaos. This isn’t just dance music for the club, it works at home, in the car, wherever you need some proper energy. The production is tight, every track hits different, and it never gets boring even after 25+ years.
Sure, some of the middle tracks like “Funky Shit” and “Serial Thrilla” are more about the groove than memorable songwriting, but they keep the energy flowing. And “Climbatize” at the end brings things down with some trance-y elements that show these guys had more range than just breakbeat madness.
This album basically invented big beat as a proper genre and showed that electronic music could be just as aggressive and exciting as any rock album. It went to number one in 16 countries and sold over 10 million copies worldwide, not bad for a bunch of ravers from Essex. Even got nominated for a Grammy, though they lost to Radiohead’s OK Computer, which is fair enough really.
The fact that this thing still sounds fresh and dangerous today says everything you need to know. It’s not just nostalgia, these tracks still work because they captured something real about that whole late 90s energy. Essential listening for anyone who wants to understand how electronic music broke into the mainstream.