The Prodigy discuss their return to the stage after the passing of Keith Flint

It has been over 5 years since Keith Flint passed, forever altering the course of The Prodigy. Now the iconic music group is performing at Reading & Leeds for the first time since the tragic moment.

It is impossible to sum up the importance of Keith Flint to The Prodigy and electronic music as a whole. The energetic frontman provided the voice and image of the group’s legendary music and defined their live sets alongside fellow vocalist Maxim. Following Flint’s passing, the group needed time to deal with the tragic event and decide how to push forward without his presence. Ahead of their return to Reading & Leeds, Liam Howlett talked with NME about the group’s process and conversations after Flint’s death.

“After losing Keith we couldn’t even think or talk about the band. I think it was two years after his death that me and Maxim started bringing it up. ‘Could we play live again? Did we even want to? Why? How?’ All that shit. We realised the only possible real way to know how we would feel was to do it: get back on stage and do a bunch of gigs,” Howlett continued in the interview. “It was so hard to walk onto that stage without our brother, but we really felt the crowd with us. Those gigs were highly emotionally charged, but we came out the other end with our answer.”

-Liam Howlett

For The Prodigy, Reading & Leeds have also been a home having supported the group since their 1994 debut, Jilted, and look to maintain the same hunger and energy that earned them their loyal following 30 years ago. Remarking on the group’s first sets at the iconic festivals without Flint, Howlett stated, “There’s only one plan and that is to get on stage and proceed to tear the place apart.” Beyond the live performances, the producer stated the group is beginning to write again, with Howlett saying, “Playing live fuels the music for me. It’s always been that way. If I have too much time off, I start getting distracted and wandering off course. I like to keep it on edge and moving.”

The Prodigy will play on Friday, August 23rd at the Chevron Stage at Reading and August 24th at the Leeds Festival.