Romford, UK · techno · progressive-house

Underworld

2 upcoming festivals ↓

Karl Hyde's stream-of-consciousness vocals over Rick Smith's builds — 'Born Slippy' was only ever the doorway into a much stranger catalogue.

Karl Hyde and Rick Smith first played together in the late 1970s in a Cardiff band called the Screen Gemz, then formed Freur with other members, signing to CBS and releasing the album Doot-Doot in 1983 before the label shelved their follow-up and the band split in 1986.

In 1987 Hyde and Smith formed Underworld with several of the same musicians, taking the name from a 1985 horror film that Freur had scored. Signed to Sire Records, the band released Underneath the Radar in 1988 and Change the Weather in 1989, then broke up in 1990 after a debt-laden stadium tour opening for Eurythmics.

Darren Emerson joined in the early 1990s once Hyde and Smith had relocated to Romford, and the trio signed to Junior Boys Own, releasing music as Lemon Interupt and Steppin' Razor before readopting the Underworld name. Emerson was part of the group through Dubnobasswithmyheadman, Second Toughest in the Infants and Beaucoup Fish, after which Hyde and Smith continued as a duo.

Their music runs from long, patiently built progressive house and techno tracks to ambient and more song-shaped material, with Hyde layering fragmented, half-spoken lyrics drawn partly from overheard conversations and answering-machine recordings over the top.

"Born Slippy .NUXX" became widely known through its use in Trainspotting, while an earlier track, "Cowgirl," appeared in the 1995 film Hackers. Smith later served as music director for the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics.

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technoprogressive-house