Chemical Brothers Profile

Formed:1989  in Manchester, England

Electronica mainstay the Chemical Brothers - Ed Simmons and Tom Rowlands - met at the University of Mancheter in a history course, though they were originally from London and Oxfordshire, respectively. Before they decided to work together, Tom was in a group, Aerial, while they had an interest in house, techno and hip-hop in common. They formed Dust Brothers in 1992 and released a single, 'Song To The Siren', via local independent label, Eastern Block Records, which led them to sign Junior Boy's Own Records in 1993.

By the time that the pair released the second EP, '14th Century Sky', which yielded a hit with 'Chemical Beats', they began remixing tracks by the likes of Primal Scream, Charlatans, Prodigy and Leftfield/John Lydon. They also became popular as DJ at the club they ran in London, the Sunday Social, and signed to Virgin Records in early 1995 as the Chemical Brothers, threatened by the U.S. group of the same name.

The first fruit of the deal were the single, 'Leave Home' and their first LP, 'Exit Planet Dust' on the label's imprint, Freestyle Dust. Showcasing the duo's trademark sound of heavy guitar riffs, breakbeats and analogue noise, the album featured voices of the Charlatans' Tim Burgess and Beth Orton. In 1997, 'Setting Sun', featuring Oasis' Noel Gallagher on vocal, brought Chemical Brothers to the top of the UK charts. Their second album, 'Dig Your Own Hole' became a massive hit and was nominated for Mercury and BRIT awards. The album also included a number one single, 'Block Rockin' Beats', which received a Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental. Along with their contemporaries, Prodigy and Underworld, they broke the boundary of rock/pop and electronica/dance.

Between '98 and '02, the Chemical Brothers' output was astonishing; they recorded and remixed albums regularly, toured worldwide and made guest appearances on a plenty of albums. Among the many hits from the period were 'Let Forever Be', 'Out Of Control', 'Galaxy Bounce' (offered to the soundtrack, 'Tomb Raider') and 'It Began In Afrika', and such albums as 'Brothers Gonna Work It Out' ('98), 'Surrender' ('99) and 'Come With Us' ('02).

Their latest single, 'Golden Path', featuring the Flaming Lips, came out in the fall of '03, followed by their first career-spanning hits collection, 'Singles 93-03 Collection'.