''Experience'' (also known as ''The Prodigy Experience'') is the debut

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by English

electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...

group

the Prodigy The Prodigy are an English electronic music band formed in Braintree, Essex, in 1990 by producer, keyboardist, and songwriter Liam Howlett. The original line-up also featured Rapping, MC and vocalist Maxim (musician), Maxim, dancer and occasi ...

. It was released on 28 September 1992 by

XL Recordings XL Recordings is a British independent record label founded in 1989 by Tim Palmer and Nick Halkes. It has been run and co-owned by Richard Russell since 1996. It forms part of the Beggars Group. It releases an average of six albums a year. T ...

Album information

Liam Howlett Liam Paul Paris Howlett (born 21 August 1971) is an English record producer, musician, DJ, songwriter, co-founder and leader of the British electronic band the Prodigy. Early years Liam Paul Paris Howlett was born on 21 August 1971 in Braint ...

was the sole composer; of the additional three members at that time, only

Maxim Reality Keith Andrew Palmer (born 21 March 1967), better known by his stage name Maxim (previously Maxim Reality), is a British musician, known for being a vocalist of electronic music band The Prodigy. Pre-Prodigy history Keith Andrew Palmer was born ...

actually contributed to the album, performing the vocals on the last track. A wide variety of artists in the breakbeat hardcore scene in the early 1990s are given respect and namechecked in the sleeve notes of the album, including SL2,

Carl Cox Carl Andrew Cox (born 29 July 1962) is a British house and techno club DJ, radio DJ, motorsport team owner and record producer. He is based in Frankston, Victoria, Australia. Cox has won and been nominated for numerous awards. He has perfor ...

Moby Richard Melville Hall (September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, disc jockey, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "amo ...

, Tim Westwood, Orbital and

Aphex Twin Richard David James (born 18 August 1971), known professionally as Aphex Twin, is a British musician, composer and DJ active in electronic music since 1988. His idiosyncratic work has drawn on many styles, including techno, ambient music, ambi ...

. ''Experience'' peaked at No. 12 in the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

and went on to achieve platinum status in that country. It was later licensed to

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...

for release in the United States.

Reception

From contemporary reviews, Kris Needs of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' declared that "the time-pod to enable future generations to get a handle on what happened in 1992, The Prodigy's debut album will be a much safer bet to illustrate the Rave Phenomenon than any half-assed "40 Bowel-Erupting Rave Greats" compilation. If only to show what killed it, some would say." ''Experience'' received very positive reviews upon its release.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

gave the album 5 out of 5 stars, saying that it "shows the Prodigy near the peak of their game from the get go" and stating that "almost every song sounds like a potential chart topper". Tom Ewing of ''

Freaky Trigger ''Freaky Trigger'' is an Internet publication and e-zine that focuses on popular culture with topics varying from music to cinema. It was founded by the music critic Tom Ewing in 1999 and features Pete Baran and Mark Sinker as editors. From 2 ...

'' commended the album as "four-minute-warnings, ..hyperactive ravey blasts which boasted genuine irreverence rather than learned attitude."

credited ''Experience'' with changing his perception about dance albums; previously he felt that "dance albums had always failed ..because they didn't work over the full length of the record. Mostly they were singles collections which was exactly what I didn't want to do," and noted that ''Experience'' "impressed me because they'd managed to create a full listening experience which encompassed various styles. This was the kind of vision I had for my debut album."''Moby < Replay - The Life and Times'' by Martin James (Pg. 70)

Track listing

Notes

* Tracks "Wind It Up", "Hyperspeed (G-Force Part 2)" and "Charly" have been removed from streaming services, most likely due to sampling rights issues.

Personnel

– production, keyboards, synthesizers, sampling, programming,

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

– vocals on "Death of the Prodigy Dancers (Live)" * Simone – vocals on "Music Reach (1/2/3/4)", "Ruff in the Jungle Bizness" and "Rip Up the Sound System" (non-album song) * Alex Garland – artwork

Charts

Weekly charts

Certifications

References

Sources

External links

* {{Authority control The Prodigy albums 1992 debut albums Rave albums XL Recordings albums Breakbeat hardcore albums Albums produced by Liam Howlett