It’s the hottest day in British history… and fans have decided to spend it here, in the O2 Victoria Warehouse. Crammed shoulder to shoulder, people are sweating before anyone even takes to the stage. Will we even be able to handle the heat during the set? On an evening where everyone feels a little bit like a dog locked in a too-warm car? But that’s the risk fans are willing to make; the return of The Prodigy is monumental, and nobody wants to miss out. Serving as the first run of shows since Keith Flint’s passing in 2019, the night is sure to be a raucous celebration of the legend – we’re braving the heat for Flinty, goddamnit!
Supporting DJ Jaguar Skills warms up (ahem) the crowd effortlessly with a slew of crisp DNB. Fans are quickly easing into the flow of the evening, letting their bodies move despite the high temperatures. The set serves as a reality check: yes, we’re going to sweat tonight… we are going to sweat a lot. We’re talking swimming pool levels of moisture. And, as Jaguar Skills stands behind his decks in his signature mask, committed to his mysterious persona despite the temperatures, it’s only fair that we aren’t afraid of a little perspiration. Time to come to terms with the looming sweat-fest now, or we’re going to be in for a nasty shock!
And, like a flipped switch, the inhibitions are suddenly out the window. By the time The Prodigy take to the stage, everyone is like an uncaged animal – opening track ‘Breathe’ immediately welcoming in a wave of lobbed pints and feral movement. Every moment feels electric, everyone well and truly thriving in the wall of gritty EDM and pulsing lights.
While Flint’s absence is of course the elephant in the room, Maxim’s command of the crowd is staggeringly powerful and captures a slightly different flavour than the usual duo would muster up. The evening doesn’t try to be a strange copy-and-paste of the Flint-Maxim duo, nor does it try to out-do the pair’s previous performances – it instead honours the power of their years together and celebrates it. A goosebump-inducing moment comes in the form of Flint’s outline dancing in the sky during ‘Firestarter’ – while some tracks can be tackled by Maxim alone, it’s impossible not to have the Firestarter himself present when the track hits.
However, the evening doesn’t want to drown in sentiment – it wants to drown out the pain in the sea of sweltering bodies. Sweaty arms fly during iconic tracks like ‘Light Up The Sky’ and ‘No Good (Start the Dance)’, everyone desperate to cry along to the hypnotic beat. ‘Smack My Bitch Up’ serves as a particularly cathartic scream along, everyone easily able to screech and bounce around to the repeating two-line anthem. By the time ‘Out Of Space’ closes the set, and everyone is giddy on endorphins, The Prodigy have proved exactly why they’re still the EDM juggernauts they always have been. Dialing up the heat on the hottest day in recorded history is an impressive achievement – and it serves to prove that The Prodigy remain the definitive firestarters.
Words: Emily Swingle
