The Prodigy have been reduced to a trio. Leeroy Thornhill announced that he is leaving the band to follow solo pursuits under the moniker Flightcrank. While Thornhill, who primarily served as a dancer in Prodigy, had done production outside the band during his tenure, his departure is final according to Prodigy management. "He's left to get on with his own career, basically," a source at the group's management said.

The departure comes as Prodigy are in the midst of recording their next album with the working title "Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned." While the management source wouldn't confirm whether or not Thornhill plays any role in the album's development, she claimed that the "It's still being recorded. Everything's going ahead as normal; it's just that Leeroy's not there anymore."

"Leeroy's departure from the band is obviously not going to affect the music," Prodigy mastermind Liam Howlett said in a statement. "We are both into different things and moving in different directions but I respect him and whish him good luck with that he does."

During his nearly decade-long stint as a member of Prodigy, Thornhill had done some solo work under the name of the Longman, including the release of The Longman EP in 1996. As Flightcrank he offered up a remix of a Dr. Doom (a.k.a. Kool Keith) single for "Leave Me Alone" last summer.

"I wish to concentrate fully on my own music as Flightcrank, and I wish the band all the best for the future," Thornhill said in a statement of his own.

There is no definitive word yet about any further projects from Flightcrank, and sources at Maverick Records, the Prodigy's U.S. label, claim that the first album has yet to be scheduled.

ANDREW DANSBY
(April 5, 2000)