''Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned'' is the fourth studio album by the electronic act The Prodigy. It was released in the UK on 23 August 2004 by XL Recordings, and in the US on 15 September 2004 by Mute Records/Maverick Records. It is the first The Prodigy studio album after 1997's ''The Fat of the Land''. Its title is a play on words of the title to the Walter Mosely novel ''Always Outnumbered, Always Outgunned''. This album was created almost entirely using Propellerhead Reason software, with the mastering being done on Pro Tools. - Wikipedia

Whatever you say about Liam Howlett, you have to respect how self-aware and appreciative he is of his success. Since the early days of Charly, Howlett has grabbed for the lowest common denominator like few in the electronic dance music underground ever dared, and he realized early on that criticism didn't bother him. After all, as the Sex Pistols once declared, the only notes that really count are the ones that come in wads, and Howlett's peculiar mixture of commercial savvy, undeniable musical vision and general shamelessness did help his Prodigy project pull off the Great Electronica Swindle of 1997 in the form of a $10 million recording contract from Madonna. Howlett's thick skinned, unapologetic embrace of modern-rock banality must be a wonder even to him; as Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned, the Prodigy's first artist LP since the 1997 rock-techno watershed The Fat of the Land, reminds us, it's also his lone saving grace.

Why? Well, moronic modern rock anthems like "Spitfire" and "Wake Up Call" will hardly inspire deep thoughts from the masses. But that doesn't mean just any moron can cannily synthesize the money-making aggro from hip-hop, punk, techno and rock, reheat it for a second album and still make it sound viable enough to continue to polarize listeners. And now that Howlett's ditched his frontpeople, the Prodigy can cast celebrities like Princess Superstar ("Girls"), Kool Keith ("Get Up Get Off") and Juliette Lewis ("Hotride") to take the edge off the macho posturing. Formulaic? One-dimensional? Sure. But as long as people listen to Howard Stern, drive SUVs and eat McDonald's, there will be a place in the world for the Prodigy. And we'll all just have to cope with Howlett's talent the best we can.