Liam Howlett in CKM about AONO

CKM Magazine August 2004

Liam in CKM magazine (Poland)

Translated by Kedzior

THE LAST ROMANTIC

Liam Howlett, leader of The Prodigy, stopped drinking, taking drugs and sleeping, because he had to record the new album.

CKM: "In 1997 'The Fat of the Land' was released as a single, and then...nothing. It's a bit strange for the group,that ruled the world not long ago. Why have you disappeared?"

L. Howlett: "I was tired. After release of 'The Fat of the Land' we toured all over the world for two years. In 1999 I felt that it was enough. I spent the whole year 2000 on charging the energy. I was having sex, sleeping, waking up and starting drinking over and over again. At last, in 2001 I started working on the new album. But the view from the window of my country house in Essex caused, that it was fucking impossible to concentrate. Complete lack of power. So, I finally moved to Stoke Newington, a dirty district of London. There was a home of drug dillers-Hackney, in nearby. Then everything went smoothly. I worked on my laptop all days, watching the old James Bond movies at the same time."

CKM: "Short question: Sean Connery or Roger Moore?"

L.H.: "Of course - Roger Moore. It is for the sake of memoirs of my childhood. Movies with R. Moore appeared in time of my growing up, so I show sentiment for them. And because drugs destroyed almost my whole memory, I'm trying to take care of those memoirs that have left."

CKM: "It sounds strange, when you're talking about work on the laptop. You, the man who creates sounds, drilling human bodies straight through, working on a small computer in a quiet room?"

L.H.: "It's strange for me, too. I've been always into technology. For many years I've been making music on a trashy keyboard. When I earned enough money, I bought good synthesizers. Soon after, I had the best equipment in the world. However it didn't cause writing of music becoming easier. I changed the ways of working and started making music by using laptop. The whole studio is covered with dust. Now, firts of all, I use my head to create sounds."

CKM: "Did drugs have any influence on writing the new album?"

L.H.: "I don't take any chemistry to change my consciousness. Sometimes I take things that allow me to work harder. Drugs can open you mind, but they can also close your mind for ever. I advise especially against Ecstasy. I tried to write music after taking E. Everything seemed to be cool. But when I heard it while being sober, it was load of shit."

CKM: "Keith and Maxim, your crazy friends with whom you recorded previous albums, don't appear on the newest one. Are you still the band?"

L.H.: "Yes. Keith and Maxim will appear on tour. When I started writing the new material we all met and I told them 'Don't be pissed off, but there's no room for you on this album.' I wanted to go back to the beginning, when I was making music from various samples, beats and unknown vocals. I just wanted to feel the freedom again. Without thinking where the front man should be put."

CKM: "So, if we're talking about front man - Keith's always behaved on stage like a maniac. Weren’t you afraid that he could cause a catastrophe, for example destroy the equipment?"

L.H.: No, but I remember one gig from the past. Some drug addicted bloke jumped on the stage and fell down on all my keyboards. He destroyed everything. I was so pissed off that I stared beating him. The show was interrupted. The guy was taken by the security."

CKM: "Do you remember any bizzare Prodigy fans?"

L.H.: "Once, after our show, Pamela Anderson came to our dressing room. Can you imagine that? Next time the guys from ZZ Top appeared. I couldn't understand how our music could be like by long-beard dudes playing oldskool blues-rock from Texas."

CKM: "You recorded a soundtrack for the movie, but for the unique one. It was a porn movie called "Uranus Experiment".How did it happen?"

L.H. "A couple of years ago, after MTv Music Awards, me and Rob from MAssive Attack went on the party by Donatella Versace.We met a guy there, who said that he'd made the first gravity zero porn movie. He wanted me to write a music to this movie. He hired a special plane, which took actors to the higher level of atmosphere. They were in gravity zero for 3 minutes. It was only time when they could have a sex."

CKM: "Does sex in gravity zero deffers from sex having on earth?"

L.H.: "Rather not. Like always (laugh)"

CKM: "Musicians from French group Air claim, that best test for song (wheter is it good or bad), is if it's cool to have sex while listening to it. Do you have any way to test your music?"

L.H.: "I've never tried to have a sex while listening to my music. But sometimes, when the track is almost ready, I play it to my 12-years old stepdaughter. If she is terrified or pissed, I know it is a good song (laugh)"

CKM: "Do you have any control over the way that music of the Prodigy is used?"

L.H.: "Not much. I'm very pissed when people connect it with the acts of violence or catastrophes. For example, when a shark attacking people or scenes from civil wars are shown on Discovery Channel - there's almost always Prodigy's music in the background. No one has never used our music in creative way. I would like to be surprised. I dream about a romantic movie with Prodigy music as a soundtrack (laugh)."

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