When British band The Prodigy hit the mainstream music industry in 1990, it had an amazing rave style all its own.
Members of the band performed songs in multiple genres, from a more mainstream rock ‘n’ roll feel to an “out there” electronic rave style of music. But after the release of five albums, this promising “Electropunk” band has stumbled into mediocrity.
The band’s fifth album “Invaders Must Die” is a little underwhelming. For a band that prides itself on breaking new ground, there is a lot of the same old sound on this album — although that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The album has an incredibly retro feel to it.
The band members themselves admit that they were going for a more retro vibe, saying on their Web site that “the old-school rave anthems still rock hard — and are every bit as iconic to their generation as punk was to the nation’s 40-somethings.”
The album starts off slowly, with no real hook, and it takes almost half the album to really find its stride.
The title track “Invaders Must Die” does start the album off quite well, but can leave the listener wanting a bit more, as it almost always feels like it’s just about to really get started.
Everything on this album sounds the same.
They all have the same rave beat and techno synthesizers in them. They all make you picture a party where people are dropping acid and dancing with glow sticks.
But that doesn’t mean that these songs are bad. None of them are bad.
They won’t make anyone want to change the station or stop dancing. There just isn’t a whole lot of good here either.
The album does have one song that is slightly better than the rest. One of the few non rave style songs “Run with the Wolves” is the CD’s best. But the band had a bit of help on creating this standout track.
Nirvana drummer and Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl collaborated with the band, helping by recording a drumbeat that really makes this track stand out.
Bottom line: If you’re into a rave techno style of music, you are going to love this album, but you are also in for a lot of the same kinds of songs.
If the word “Electropunk” doesn’t sound good, you may want to stay away from this one.
The album hits iTunes today.
Reach the reporter at tkuipers@asu.edu.
