若要列出90年代最具影响力的电子乐团，相信Underworld将是任何人不会忽视的名字。继承了些许第一代Underworld吉他乐队的气质并将其熔化于无休止重复的4/4拍techno律动中，低调，颓废却澎湃有力，时而亦升华入一股天籁之境，Underworld的世界是如此的迷人。大事记Underworld的历史可以回溯到80年代早期，主唱Karl Hyde和吉他手Rick Smith组建了一只乐队Freur，投身于当年轰轰烈烈的新浪潮运动中。经过83年的《Doot-Doot》和85年的《Get Us Out of Here》两张不成功的专辑之后，Freur也分崩离析。为Debbie Harry和Prince做了两年演出吉他手后，Hyde重回伦敦找到Smith，组建了industrial-funk风格的第一代 Underworld。一切依然不顺利，1988年的《Underneath the Radar》和1989年的《Change the Weather》虽曾掀起一点小小的波澜，随后还是很快销声匿迹。第一代Underworld也宣告终结。1990年，Darren Emerson，17岁，白天在一家证券交易所打工，晚上则摇身一变成为一名techno DJ。Emerson经朋友的介绍与急于寻找一名DJ合作的Rick Smith相识，随后Rick又说服了Hyde归队，于是第二代Underworld宣告成立。1992年，他们先是以Lemon Interrupt为化名发表了两张单曲《Dirty/Minneapolis》和《Bigmouth/Eclipse》并取得一些成绩。1993年，经典单曲《Rez》和《MMM…Skycraper I Love You》回到Underworld名下发表，随后的1994年一月便是首张专辑《dubnobasswithmyheadman》。《dub…》得到了英国媒体的极高评价，Melody Maker甚至称之为Primal Scream的《Screamadelica》以来最棒的专辑，然而其销量却只能算差强人意，Underworld依然是在半红不黑中打混。不似当时的英伦吉他乐队正热衷于的将电子元素融入rock或pop音乐之中，Underworld反其道行之，以techno的节奏与音乐构架为依托，配合Hyde带着浓重电子音效的梦呓式吟唱与Smith的时隐时现吉他，构筑出一套rock化的progressive techno配方。开场曲《Dark & Long》和长达13分钟的大作《MMM…Skycraper I Love You》便是这种风格的典型，亦是专辑中最优秀的作品。Underworld的音乐构造亦符合音乐现场表演的需求，他们巡回的足迹遍布了英伦、欧洲，以至日本。1995年，《dub…》被唱片公司TVT拿到美国发行，同年亦发表了单曲《Born Slippy》，成为日后Underworld事业转折点的Nuxx混音版便收录其中。96年初，第二张专辑《secondtoughestintheinfants》出版，不仅在乐评界大获喝彩，销量也一改前作的不振命运。一切更要感谢1996年5月上映的《Trainspotting（迷幻列车）》这部可谓有史以来最成功的英国电影于全球的走红，《Born Slippy（Nuxx）》作为电影结尾高潮处的点睛之笔给观众留下了深刻的印象。电影上映一个月来，《Born Slippy(Nuxx)》成为英国俱乐部每天晚上必要播放的曲目，所有人都在期待着它的再版发行，Radio One电台DJ Pete Tong甚至放出话在《Born Slippy》再版之前他会在每次节目中都播放这首曲子。公众的期望很快在7月变成了现实。by John BushUnderworld became one of the most crucial electronic acts of the 1990s via an intriguing synthesis of old and new. The trios two-man frontline, vocalist Karl Hyde and guitarist Rick Smith, had been recording together since the early-80s new wave explosion; after two unsuccessful albums released as Underworld during the late 80s, the pair finally hit it big when they recruited Darren Emerson, a young DJ hipped to the sound of techno and trance. Traditional pop song forms were jettisoned in favor of Hydes heavily treated vocals, barely there whispering, and surreal wordplay, stretched out over the urban breakbeat trance ripped out by Emerson and co. while Smiths cascade of guitar-shard effects provided a bluesy foil to the stark music. All in all, the decision to go pop was hardly a concession to the mainstream. The first Underworld album by the trio, Dubnobasswithmyheadman, appeared in late 1993 to a flurry of critical acclaim; the trio then gained U.S. distribution for the album with TVT. Second Toughest in the Infants, the groups sophomore LP, updated their sound slightly and received more praise than the debut. Unlike the first, the LP also sold well, thanks in part to the non-album single Born Slippy, featured on the soundtrack to the seminal film Trainspotting.The roots of Underworld go back to the dawn of the 1980s, when Hyde and Smith formed a new wave band called Freur. The group released Doot-Doot in 1983 and Get Us out of Here two years later, but later disintegrated. Hyde worked on guitar sessions for Debbie Harry and Prince, then reunited with Smith in 1988 to form an industrial-funk band called Underworld. The pair earned an American contract with Sire and released their debut album, Underneath the Radar, in 1988. Change the Weather followed one year later, even though little attention had been paid to the first. By the end of the decade, Underworld had disappeared also.As they had several years earlier, Hyde and Smith shed their skin yet again, recruiting hotshot DJ Darren Emerson and renaming themselves Lemon Interrupt. In 1992, the trio debuted with two singles, Dirty/Minneapolis and Bigmouth/Eclipse, both released on Junior Boys Own Records. After they reverted back to Underworld, 1993s Rez and MMM...Skyscraper I Love You caused a minor sensation in the dance community. Instead of adding small elements of techno to a basically pop or rock formula (as many bands had attempted with varying success), Underworld treated techno as the dominant force. Their debut album, Dubnobasswithmyheadman, was praised by many critics upon release later in 1993 and crossed over to the British pop charts. Hyde, Smith, and Emerson impressed many at their concert dates as well; the trio apparently relished playing live, touring Great Britain twice plus Japan, Europe, and the annual summer-festival circuit, where their Glastonbury appearance became the stuff of legend.Dubnobasswithmyheadman was released in the U.S. in 1995 after being licensed to TVT Records. During the rest of the year, Underworld were relatively quiet, releasing only the single Born Slippy. Finally, Second Toughest in the Infants appeared in early 1996 to much critical praise. The trio gained no small amount of commercial success later in the year when Born Slippy was featured on the soundtrack to Trainspotting, the controversial Scottish film that earned praise from critics all over the globe. Underworld also remained busy with Tomato — their own graphic-design company responsible for commercials from such high-profile clients as Nike, Sony, Adidas, and Pepsi — and remixing work for Depeche Mode, Björk, St. Etienne, Sven Väth, Simply Red, and Leftfield. Emerson continued to DJ on a regular basis, releasing mix albums for Mixmag! and Deconstruction. Though Underworlds 1999 LP Beaucoup Fish was initially a disappointment, critically and commercially, the band continued to tour the world. The live album Everything, Everything followed in 2000, after which Emerson left to continue his DJ career. A Hundred Days Off, Underworlds first LP as a duo since 1989, was released in mid-2002. One year later, the stopgap compilation 1992-2002 appeared.By 2005, the duo had officially been joined by one of Britains most respected DJs, Darren Price (although he contributed to A Hundred Days Off), and his work also appeared on a series of online-only EPs Underworld released during 2005 and 2006. They also recorded new material for the soundtrack of the Anthony Minghella film Breaking and Entering. Their first proper full-length since 2002, Oblivion with Bells, appeared in 2007.