FIRESTART MY FLINT UP - or is a splinter from a Prodigy still a prodigy?

Remember The Prodigy's defining album, The Fat Of The Land? This was the album where there was a pretty surprising transformation of this act. If you weren't following the singles or the band, you basically went from a breakbeat/jungle act with more dancers than musicians on stage to a post-industrial heavily pierced and tattooed freakazoid demonstration of anger. The video for Firestarter was one of those moment where you raise an eyebrow and go: duh?

There was a funny story circulating, on how the band had tried to trick Natacha Atlas to guest vocalize on Smack My Bitch Up (the scheme included a renamed cassette demo with some key lyrics obfuscated). Good or bad for Natacha Atlas, she steered clear of those strange british kids.

Anyway, if you remember the vocalist for this album, a strange and imposing figure named Keith Flint, apparently the offspring of an unlikely mating of Gene Simmons and The Green Goblin, you might also remember thinking this: "Gee, what a charismatic singer... Don't I wish he had his own band and played some Ministry type heavy industrial metal!"

You don't remember thinking that? C'mon! Look harder. It's gotta be there, in your synaptic soft drive?

Well, whether you wished for it or not, the album exists. The band's name is Flint(!), and the album is Device 1. Thing is, it was never released. Possibly because the band was dissolved before it was released. But lucky you, there is this amazing blog, The Unheard Music, which specializes in reviving lost albums, unofficial releases and bootlegs: honestly, it's a good thing this blog didn't start too long ago, because I think I've already spent way too much time downloading his amazing archives. Here's Flint. Other key entries include: the banned albums of The Justified Ancients Of Mu Mu, Plone's unreleased second album (a pure gem), and tons more.
As for Flint's failed attempt at rockstardom: look at Ministry. Jourgensen's not doing so great, and if it weren't for the strong anti-Bush current he rode, his latest albums were far from noticeable. You could do worst than listen to Flint's unborn vinyl clone: it's aged well.