2022.07.19 – O2 Victoria Warehouse, Manchester, England

Date: 19th July 2022
Event: The Prodigy Concert
Venue: O2 Victoria Warehouse
City: Manchester
Country: England
Support: Jaguar Skills

Tracklist:
1. Breathe
2. Omen
3. Wild Frontier
4. Light Up The Sky
5. Climabtize
6. Everybody In The Place
7. Voodoo People
8. Firestarter
9. Roadblox
10. Their Law
11. Break and Enter (2005 Edit [Fill])
12. No Good (Start The Dance)
13. Poison
14. Get Your Fight On
15. Need Someone
16. Smack My Bitch Up
Encore:
17. Take Me To The Hospital
18. Invaders Must Die
19. We Live Forever
20. Out Of Space

Extra info:
Review by Rhys Grover, www.flickofthefinger.co.uk:
The Band Are Currently On Their First Tour Without Keith Flint
One of the hottest gigs I’ve ever been to, but also one of the best
The Prodigy have a reputation as an incredible live band, and as a titan of their genre, their gig in Manchester tonight further confirmed this. I never got the chance to see The Prodigy perform with Keith Flint fronting the band, however Maxim took it in his stride and his incredible presence was a sight to behold. The Prodigy have always been one of the tightest bands around, and each member has always been as important as the rest, as they powered through their set, you could feel the onstage connections between everyone on stage, like one big family.
It might have been the hottest day ever recorded in the UK, but that was never going to stop proceedings. The crowd had got down early, the atmosphere was bouncing well before they were due on stage and the venue was doing all it could to look after the crowd. When the band did take to the stage, you felt the energy in the room peak and it didn’t slope off anytime throughout the night. The band have been playing a pretty similar setlist throughout the tour, and the opening three of ‘Breathe’, ‘Omen’ and ‘Wild Frontier’, which are some of their biggest and most popular tracks, so it was always going to be a high energy start to the evening when you start pulling out the big guns from the get go. The rest of the set was made up of some of their biggest and best tracks, with the likes of ‘Voodoo People’, ‘Firestarter’ and ‘Climbatize’ all featuring before the main set was wrapped with the incredible ‘Smack My Bitch Up’ before the band left to come back for a four track encore.
Not only was each band member captivating as they threw themselves around the stage, but the light show that was being put on was a sight to behold all on its own. Lazers, strobes and spotlights danced across the stage, with a backdrop of flashing lights for that little bit extra. Every corner of the stage was lit up like a bonfire at some point or other during their energetic set, but the real pièce de résistance came during their biggest number ‘Firestarter’. A laser outline of Keith Flint was thrown up behind the stage, and it was a moving and uplifting moment to see the iconic outline of Keith cast up with the band during the song that brought him such a great amount of fame.
Throughout the night, despite the incredible temperature, the crowd were giving it their all, and the band were lapping it up. Guitarist Rob Holliday was throwing himself around the stage, pumping the crowd with every movement, Maxim was living for the energy in the room, and whilst Liam Howlett was remaining pretty stationary due to the restrictions of the synthesisers, he took any opportunity to get the crowd cheering and reacting to the band.

Review by Philip Goddard, www.weshootmusic.com:
The Prodigy didn’t really affect me until the second album ‘Music for the Jilted Generation’. My mate Wayne would blast it out in his Yellow Escort Van, which had a Military Grade sound system in it.
It wasn’t really the Dance Beats that won me over it was the fact that the tunes were brilliantly composed and as a Photographer they lit up my imagination. Tonight I was here to see the other side, the Experience of The Prodigy Live.
Because I was shooting pics I knew they were going to be very difficult to photograph with strobes etc. They played Breathe while I was in the pit which was a bit of a buzz. Because they mix a lot of the tunes I was just getting little tasters at times, when I was putting my bag in the cloakroom I heard Climbatize beginning and I rushed, never happened.
I know tonight marked 25 years since Fat of the Land so I knew a few gems were coming. Firestarter was played with no keith but I was gobsmacked when I saw him in the lasers, sent a shiver that one. What a great tribute.
Probably my biggest tune I wanted to hear was Their Law, to experience the intense bass it produces. Was absolutely epic, the crowd went mad when they heard the guitar riff at the beginning.
Most of my favourite Jilted Generation songs were played, not in full at times but enough. Break and Enter, No Good (start to dance) and Poison.
The live version of Diesel Power was really good. Later on Smack My Bitch Up sent the could wild before a short break. I decided to go then as I had a journey and had work in the morning.
I had a great night, I wasn’t expecting people just like me there. It didn’t really dawn on me till I was there that The Prodigy were around 30 years. Omg. I really wanted to be near the front, my mind is willing but my body hasn’t the bus fare.
As for The Prodigy without Keith, it won’t be the same but they are still amazing.

Review by Billy Seagrave, www.allmusicmagazine.com:
As the UK baked in record breaking temperatures, Billy Seagrave, made his way to Manchester’s , for an evening of Electro rock Punk, from the masters of techno dance fusion, , who are currently on their first tour since the untimely and tragic loss of the enigmatic frontman .
Since announcing earlier this year, Electronic Dance titans The Prodigy were embarking on a live tour for the first time since Keith’s death, there has been a real buzz, the shows are to celebrate the release of the iconic album ”, which is now 25 years old with over 10 million sales, as the rumour mill went into overdrive, have they got a new front man, will they be able to pull off not having Keith in the front roll, will the new stuff come over as good as the classics, well we are about to find out.
The support slot tonight is DJ Jaguar Skills, who (ironically given the weather), has been tasked with warming up the crowd, which he more than admirably did, with a great blend of dance, funk, techno bangers that helped built the atmosphere.
As I enter the pit the outside temperature at 9.05pm is 34 degrees, instantly the heat in the venue hits you, and fair play to the venue staff who are constantly passing out water to whoever needs it. As the lights dim, an air raid siren screams out and the crowd explodes in anticipation of tonight’s onslaught. Making their way on stage. Liam Howlett comes centre stage arms aloft and grinning like a Cheshire cat in response of the welcome they are receiving from the crowd. Taking his place behind his decks and joined guitarist Rob Holliday guitar aloft and drummer Liam Crabtree, they are finally joined by frontman Maxim, “Are you ready Manchester”? “Manchester are you ready”? the crowd’s response was loud and clear, their ready.
As the unmistakeable notes of “Breathe” hit the audience with a systematic barrage of lasers and strobes, it was as if someone had opened the gates of hell for the party to begin, “Omen is”, keeps the pace and temperature rising, getting around the pit trying to capture the magic, the power and the intensity on the stage, I can feel the crowd behind me, letting it all go, you can feel the heat my clothes are soaked, whether you like it or not, you are part of the experience.
Playing Tracks from the bands’ recent albums “The Day Is My Enemy” and “No Tourists”, fit into the set list flawlessly and are well appreciated from the insane crowd. If you have never been to see The Prodigy live, the only way I can explain the experience is you don’t come to watch and sing a few songs, you are here to participate, you don’t have a choice, the band bring you into hyperdrive, you reply by embracing the energy coming from the stage.
As a reprise of “Omen”, makes way for a touchingly poignant moment of the evening; Green lights and Lasers emit from the stage and cover every corner of the venue. “Firestarter”, brings the biggest and loudest cheer of the night. Projected on stage is the outline of Keith and those unmistakeable dance moves from the video, made the track as iconic as it was. The track is mainly played as an instrumental, Maxim stood centre stage, screaming to the crowd “He’s still here. He’s still fucking here. He’s in this room tonight, in your vibes. His presence is here.” embracing and savouring every moment the crowd show their warm appreciation, to one of their lost heroes.
This tour coincides with the 25th anniversary of The Fat of The Land and, while they haul out all the big hitters from that ground-breaking album, they also stud the set with gems from throughout their career. “Their Law”, sounds massive, bolstered by live guitarist Rob Holliday, and is sadly no less relevant as, more than a quarter of a century on, another Tory government has just passed laws impacting the rights to protest. “No Good (Start the Dance)”, causes a frenzy and “Smack My Bitch Up”, pushes the dial to eleven.
The encore nudges to the present, with, “Take Me to The Hospital”, along with, “Invaders Must Die”, that once again brought the venue to another level. “We Live Forever”, is the penultimate track, and brings things almost to a close with an entirely suitable sentiment and high-energy breakdown. Leaving only an instrumental version “Out of Space”, to close things on a night of high heat and performance a sweat-soaked musical barrage that not only laid tribute to the past but pointed firmly to the future. On tonight’s performance The Prodigy is still a tour de-force and quite comfortably headline many a festival.

Review by Harry Hodgson, www.soundspheremag.com:
Electronic Dance titans The Prodigy announced earlier this year that they were going to be embarking on their first live tour since the tragic death of band member Keith Flint. It was described as being a celebration of 25 years since the group’s iconic album The Fat Of The Land was released. After a few shows around the country, the 19th of July saw the band hitting up Manchester on one of, if not, the hottest days of the year.
DJ, Jaguar Skills opened up for them with a set that got the hot and sweaty crowd riled up for the main act. His set mainly consisted of drum and bass and breakbeats however, the inclusions of metal acts, including Rage Against The Machine and System Of A Down as well as hip -hop such as Dizzee Rascal and Wu Tang Clan went down an absolute storm with the crowd. After over an hour of heart-racing, blood-pumping music, Jaguar Skills left the stage to the sound of ‘Teenage Kicks’ by The Undertones and the crowd stood in excitement for the main event.
After a while The Prodigy (Maxim, Rob Holliday, Leo Crabtree, Liam Howlett) walked onto the stage to riotous applause from the crowd. It was as if everyone had instantly forgotten about how hot they were, and consequently, were ready for the gig of a lifetime. Frontman Maxim asked the crowd if they were ready, and after what felt like minutes of silence the opening guitar lick of their smash hit ‘Breathe’ was released into the venue. As soon as the drums kicked in the crowd went insane with a level of energy that didn’t falter at all throughout the hour-plus set.
As the set progressed, the venue lit up with green lasers, and suddenly at the top of the stage an etching of a silhouette of the late great Keith Flint was projected and ‘Firestarter’ erupted in the building. The crowd’s response was deafening as people were screaming Keith’s lyrics at the top of their lungs. It was a beautiful moment in the set. Following the song’s ending the crowd started chanting “Keith” and frontman Maxim exclaimed “he’s still here!” over and over. It was a deeply emotional moment to be a part of.
The night continued with simply banger after banger. Highlights for me included the songs from 1995’s Music For The Jilted Generation whether it was ‘Break and Enter’, ‘No Good (Start The Dance)’ or the fan favourite ‘Voodoo People’. As well as this, newer songs such as ‘Need Some1’ worked incredibly well in the set as a sort of breather with its slower tempo in comparison to the breakbeats in earlier songs.
The Prodigy put on not only one of the loudest shows I have ever attended but one of the best. The setlist was all-killer no-filler and the band were on top form. I’d like to give special mention to frontman Maxim who kept the crowd riled up all night and didn’t miss a beat.
It’s sad to see the band without the icon that is Keith Flint, but it is admirable and nice to see the band continue on whilst still paying respect to him. The Prodigy whilst being 30-plus years in, continue to be one of the most electrifying live acts on the planet.

Poster: