There was a brief time, back in the mid-late 90s, when electronica acts started experimenting with harder-edged sounds and more aggressive rhythms, which often led to some explosively awesome results. And nobody did that better than The Prodigy, led by Liam Howlett and the late great Keith Flint, who often brought a distinctly frenetic punk-rock energy to the band’s epic stage shows. Indeed, the band typically incorporated live instrumentation into their sets, which only served to heighten the combustible raw energy that characterized their performances and made them right at home alongside metal bands and other hardcore acts, often winning over fans of those genres in the process. Check out this classic performance of “Firestarter” from the Phoenix Festival in 1996, and it’s easy to see why. R.I.P. Keith.
