"Voodoo People" is a song by British

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroa ...

group the Prodigy, released on 12 September 1994 as the third single from their second studio album, ''

Music for the Jilted Generation ''Music for the Jilted Generation'' is the second studio album by English electronic music group the Prodigy. It was first released in July 1994 by XL Recordings in the United Kingdom and by Mute Records in the United States. Just as on the ...

'' (1994), and as their eighth single overall. It was released as a 12-inch single and in EP format in the United States in 1995 through Mute Records. The guitar riff, based on " Very Ape" by

Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...

, is played by Lance Riddler.

Critical reception

Spence Dookey from the '' Gavin Report'' remarked that "Voodoo People" "unleashes fiery fuzztronics that blaze and smolder amidst autobahn speed chase rhythms and red alert sirens." Columnist James Masterton wrote, "The new single has little of the commercial charm or potential of that last hit ("

No Good (Start the Dance) "No Good (Start the Dance)" is a song by English electronic music group the Prodigy. Written and produced by group member Liam Howlett, it was released on 16 May 1994 as the second single from their second studio album, ''Music for the Jilted Ge ...

"), but its a creditable chart performance nonetheless." Maria Jimenez from '' Music & Media'' complimented it as a "superb break-beat track". Andy Beevers from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' gave it five out of five, adding that "this is one of their most accessible tracks with its rock guitar riffs and flute flurries." Dele Fadele from ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' felt that "Voodoo People" "likens the rave scenario to a black magic ritual. With The Prodigy as witchdoctor, of course." Brad Beatnik from the '' RM'' Dance Update wrote, "It's a sort of Jethro Tull-goes-hardcore and the result is a brilliant slice of uncompromising yet defiantly commercial

techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...

." Another editor, James Hamilton, described it as "psychedelic guitar and flute prodded flurrying tribal techno".

Music videos

The original

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

for "Voodoo People", directed by Walter Stern and Russell Curtis, was filmed on location in Saint Lucia and featured

Leeroy Thornhill Leeroy Thornhill (born 8 October 1968) is a British electronic music artist and formerly a rave dancer and occasionally keyboardist for the British electronic group the Prodigy. Thornhill's live performances throughout the 1990s included his un ...

as a voodoo priest. This version included scenes featuring real

witch doctor A witch doctor (also spelled witch-doctor) was originally a type of healer who treated ailments believed to be caused by witchcraft. The term is now more commonly used to refer to healers, particularly in regions which use traditional healing ...

s, but these were cut because of problems with television censorship. A number of other more graphic versions of the video are available, one of them appearing in the Prodigy's ''Electronic Punks'' documentary.

Remixes and covers

The British release included a remix by

the Chemical Brothers The Chemical Brothers are an English electronic music duo formed by Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons in Manchester in 1989. They were pioneers (along with the Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, the Crystal Method, and other acts) in bringing the big beat gen ...

. The song has been covered by

Refused Refused (also known as the Refused) is a Swedish hardcore punk band originating from Umeå and formed in 1991. Refused is composed of vocalist Dennis Lyxzén, guitarist Kristofer Steen, drummer David Sandström, and bassist Magnus Flagge. G ...

and British funk band 6ix Toys as well remixed by

Pendulum A pendulum is a weight suspended from a pivot so that it can swing freely. When a pendulum is displaced sideways from its resting, equilibrium position, it is subject to a restoring force due to gravity that will accelerate it back toward th ...

(see Voodoo People (Pendulum Remix)) and other known and less known artists such as Eskimo, Alvaro and Shayning. Croatian

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G ...

duo

2Cellos 2CELLOS (stylized 2CΞLLOS) were a Croatian cellist duo, consisting of classically trained cellists Luka Šulić and Stjepan Hauser. Signed to Sony Masterworks since 2011, they released six albums. They played instrumental arrangements of wel ...

have recorded an instrumental version for their album '' In2ition'' and have been performing it live on their subsequent tour.

Track listing

UK 12-inch vinyl US 12-inch vinyl Benelux CD single CD single North American EP

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{The Chemical Brothers The Prodigy songs 1994 singles XL Recordings singles Songs written by Liam Howlett Music videos directed by Walter Stern 1994 songs Number-one singles in Finland