The Chemical Brothers are, respectively, Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons. They perform their own music compositions, with electronic components, synthesizers, occasional vocals, and/or analogue equipment melding into a melodic psychedelic soundscape that has reverberated across dance floors around the world.
They released their first single, "Song to the Siren," in 1993. Seven studio albums have followed, with five of those topping the charts in their native U.K. and selling millions of copies worldwide. They have been honored with multiple Grammy Awards.
The Chemicals, as they are known, are at their most free-form in live arenas, where their sound truly envelops. They played to the biggest crowd ever seen at the Glastonbury festival – back in 2000, before the fence went up. They were the first band in over a decade to play at London's Olympia, which was also the location for the cover shot on the band's Surrender album.
Vocal collaborators with the band have ranged from Noel Gallagher to Beth Orton, from The Flaming Lips to Midlake, and from Q-Tip to Hope Sandoval.
The Chemicals' album is 2010's Further, the first single of which was the 12-minute "Escape Velocity." The eight-track album was accompanied by corresponding visuals made exclusively for the release and the summer 2010 live shows in partnership with the band's longtime visuals collaborators Adam Smith and Marcus Lyall, who have created the visual backdrop for every Chemical Brothers gig since their live debut in 1994.
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