Better Living Through Chemistry

Dull and dated. If I were being generous I'd say I'm sure a fully sober middle-aged woman listening to this at 7am is not the target audience, but I found it boring in 1995 too. Just makes me want to listen to the Beastie Boys.

You can almost feel where each song is going before it goes there. Haters may call this "predictable" but I call it a "goddamn good time". [Looks directly at camera to address Haters] Lighten up, Haters, this guy's name is Fatboy. He named himself Fatboy. Were you expecting restraint? Did you think Fatboy was gonna sit down at the control table and slowly, tastefully nibble and sample. This is a feast of repetition. A-

The title is a dead giveaway. This might be OK if you are full of E's but otherwise it's just someone messing about in the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Utter tripe.

Just beats and loops...

Repetitive.

Almost archetypal of Big Beat, Norman Cook proves himself an absolute master of yet another genre. This is the dude from The Housemartins who went on to score Number 1s as Beats International (dub be good to me) and Freak Power (Turn on, tune in, cop out) before defining a (rather large) subset of the 90s UK music scene. Yes - this is repetitive. It's big beat, it's supposed to be. The beats are supported by often near incomprehensible vocal samples. Inevitably in the mainstream club scene, people would attempt to sing along to these vocals, and there was honestly something genuinely lovely about watching towny lads in the 90s, clad in their uniform Ben Sherman shirts, chanting "Gay porn gay porn gay porn" as "Give the po' man a break" spun on the Techniks. It's not Cook's best ever work, but it sure is some of his most influential.

Fun upbeat dance music that isn't awful to listen to while doing other things.

Terrible. I can't believe not one but two fatboy slim albums are on this list. Terrible music and terrible album choice. May god have mercy on the person that decided to put fatboy slim on here.

One of my first ever Amazon.com purchases (back when they had first expanded to selling music in addition to books). I don't even know why I wanted it, but I did. Still slaps top to bottom.

Less annoyingly repetitive than his other album on the list, but still, at 71 minutes, it starts to feel like you’re banging your head against a wall.

I’m not chewing my face off in a club in the 90s, where this music fits in. It’s not really my bag in general and is very out of place in my ‘working from home on a wed morning’ playlist.

Nonsense music that I typically would not listen to but will gladly dance to.

Really enjoyed this. Made me feel like an extra in a rave scene. Good working music. Fun. Easy. Not my genre at all but it clicked with me today for some reason.

Fun! Catchy, energetic dance music. Good for working and staying energized.

Loved it

Sure, it's not the most sophisticated, or the most imaginative example of EDM music, but it won't be out of place in my Tidal library.

Absolutely loving the fuzz on The Weekend Starts Here. The beat on First Down also gets me groooooooooving. The whole album is just a fun groovefest.

I am not a huge electronic music fan but this album kills it. I think I like it better than other electronic music because there is a lot of guitar and other instruments involved. Just kind of seems like my ADHD brain created this music. Chaotic yet peaceful and catchy as well.

I should go back to Fatboy Slim more often. Really takes me back and reminds me of the Jet Set Radio soundtrack

Maybe the best DJ album ever? Not saying a lot cuz DJs are usually much better at producing singles than albums, but still, this is much more musically entertaining than your typical DJ album. I could totally see if from a certain place and time finding this to be the soundtrack of a delightfully misspent youth.

Listened to this like a cloth-eared dunce from my iPhone’s little speaker and that felt right. I’m not a murderer of joy, N Cock has a grasp on fun, and I can live with this and its grand beats for a day. Trois.

Pretty good. Fun beats

Yeah this one is actually listenable. The less aggressive (arrogant? I had the correct adjective in my head right up to the point I started to type) Fatboy Slim record. Enjoyable samples from odd places, the guitar riff in Santa Cruz feels like it should be from some US alternative rock band, it's actually the opening of Love Loves to Love by...Lulu? Going Out of My Head is still a banger, before you knew it Apollo 440 were sampling riffs left right and centre to ape it. Everybody Needs a 303 is funky as all get out. Yes it is nonsense music. Not really sure why I enjoyed this listen far more than the massive one, perhaps because it didn't get played to death at the time. A few slightly boring tracks at the end provided a nice reality check to stop me going wild with my rating, this is a high 3 let's be fair, perfectly enjoyable to listen to.

I definitely appreciate getting two Fatboy Slim albums in this collection, although I'm not sure this is one of his best albums (but it *was* his debut album, which likely explains its inclusion). And I bought this CD a long time ago, so it's equally nice to revisit an album I've enjoyed over the years (even if I haven't listened to it all that much recently). My favorites are the single "Going out of my mind" (with a fun accompanying video), "Give the po'man a break", and one of my all-time favorite Fatboy Slim tracks "Michael Jackson" (which I still find myself humming at times); and a nod to the interesting video to "Everybody needs a 303". A solid debut, but he definitely got more interesting and varied over the course of his future albums.

"I'm really into Fatboy Slim but, like, his *early* stuff" Anyone? Thought not

I can remember buying this album on release because the guy in the record shop told me it was by the 'talented one' from Beats International. An absolutely amazing album, there were only a few artists creating music like this at this time, and even after 30 years it sounds fantastic.

While it might be as famous as his later work, this is still some damn good big beat. 4.5 bumped up to 5.

I’m at a 5. The last time we got Fatboy Slim was 474 days ago; I gave that album a 5 and called it a masterclass in how to make repetition sound compelling. 474 days later, I feel like that is a weirdly dismissive statement that undermines just how fucking tough this style of music is & how impressively this album comes together. This is a masterclass not in repetition, but in how to mesh samples together in a coherent, exciting, and constantly entertaining way. Yes, this is occasionally a repetitive album, but to point that out while you're listening to it leaves a sort of impression that you’re a bystander to the groove as opposed to immersing yourself in it, and that makes you kind of a square. Time is supposed to fly when you’re having fun, and damn it, I had a LOT of fun here. I’m not sure if this is better than “You’ve Come a Long Way Baby”, given that it has been 474 days, but I’ll damned if I don’t feel just as good after listening to this one. When this album is rolling at its highest points, it feels like listening to a DJ having the set of their fucking life. Of course, this album isn’t immune to criticism; this is Fatboy Slim’s first album, after all, so a lot of the tighter refinements that he’d make by that second album just aren’t here. There are points where intros go a little long in a way that tests the patience at points (specifically the first 1:20 or so of “10th & Crenshaw”), or some tracks that go a little long in a way that stalls some of the album’s momentum (namely “The Weekend Starts Here”), at least one track that’s a little too basic (“Punk to Funk”), & one track that just doesn’t have a great sense of progression (“The Sound of Milwaukee"). If I had listened to just the original UK tracklist, this would be a 4.5 that would still be bumped up to a 5. Thank goodness then for the two extra tracks included on the U.S. version of the album; “Michael Jackson” & “Next to Nothing” really bring the energy back after the original last two tracks pull the vibes down just a bit. The punchier, techno-inspired percussion in the former really makes the track, & the vague chaos of all the synths flying around in the latter really works for me, especially as it makes for a more compelling album closer. Granted, those tracks make the album go from 57 minutes to 70 minutes, but I think the trade-off for a more satisfying ending is worth it. There’s not a track I’d cut or replace from the original UK version, even with some of its flaws. I can acknowledge that electronica / plunderphonics stuff isn’t for everyone, so I guess I’m not that surprised by the 2.99 on the site (even if it is a little baffling to me). For my tastes, it’s just really easy to pop headphones in and fully get immersed into this sort of thing. As always, there’s some level of VGM influence that makes this easier to digest for my ears, and I guess that helps far more than I can ever realize. This album is a damn good 5, and subconsciously, it was probably always going to be a 5 the second it popped up. I highly recommend it, and I’m glad it’s on the list.

I already listened, that's good.

I can definitely see why people wouldn't really like this. I loved it front to back.

Fatboy slim really has a penchant for fabricating these punchy tunes that just get me pumped. Everything just seems like such a breakthrough for the time it was created.

Heel vet album. Nog wat ruiger dan zijn latere werk!

Fatboy Slim falls squarely into the epicenter of my musical world. There is no "this is great" or this is OK... it is canon for my music taste universe. Several bands fall within this bandwidth and form the foundation of my inner circle that expands and takes in every other band and style thereafter. It all starts here and everything evolves from it. Thus, there is really no point in candy coating it. For me this is the cats meow.

Loved that breakbeat vibe

Chill vibes beats

Always happy to listen to 90s electronica!

It seems I like this.

I liked this much more than I expected to.

I'm a bit fan of this nonsense, it gets me moving. I'm sure it's not everyone's cup of tea though.

So so good

The production is great. This is a very fun listen.

Genius, and one of his best eras of geniushood

Fun and simple. Maybe not ideal for morning commute, but works in the evening. Im gonna give 5 because throwing a party at Brighton beach is an unmatched vibe, respect.

Chill and groovy electro, good for working

It's always 3am somewhere and the party is just getting started. This memory brings back fond memories of hearing tracks from this album, not knowing who they were by. I remember being completely blown away when I first heard "Going Out Of My Head" Less drugs and more like copious amounts of alcohol fuelled those times for me. To me this album is still exciting 28 years

Great Album!

Right off the bat I like these beats.

Probably the best edm album I've had so far. Not one that is rightly influential yet bland in itself, but one that actually had me bopping the whole way through. A proper feel-good, Bri'ish club night in while home sick after Christmas

Excellent album for studying or working. Chill, expressive vibe throughout the first three tracks.

love this..takes me right back to my clubbing days

Kult!

As much as I enjoy Fatboy Slim and was more than happy to listen to this album (which I have listened to a time or two before), I think that this may be another artist that is overrepresented on the list when there are so many other artist that are absent from it. For my money, just give me You've Come Along Way, Baby as the one that I must hear before I die.

Very fun, very groovy. Any need for this AND You've Come a Long Way on this list? I don't think so but I had a good time.

When I saw this I wondered what new things another Fatboy Slim would bring to the table after having already had the hit-packed “You’ve Come A Long Way Baby” from a few years after this. I’m not sure if there was anything new or not, but the infectious melodies quickly dispersed by desire to judge and I just really enjoyed the music. Terrific!

It's not as banger filled as other fatboy slim but I think this is undeniably a fantastic album. I really enjoyed having it on at work.

Just awesome. Not his most famous work but full of life and energy.

I hadn't heard much of Fatboy Slim's earlier stuff but this album is a cracker. Loving the retro album art too (although it wouldn't have been retro in the 90s obvs)

Michael Jackson Tina Turner Michael Jackson look what you've done I love this album. Literally every track is fantastic. 5/5

9/10, love the style and bopped to every single beat on the album.

I've always kind of liked "Better Living..." better than "You've Come a Long Way..." by Fatboy Slim. It is more straightforward in what it is doing, electronic music-wise, but that makes it feel more consistent, even though the tracks were recorded at different times. It doesn't feel quite as exciting this many years out, for me, but I still think it is really great and has a lot of really great tracks and is also still very much a view into that time when electronic music really started to take over, and we got so much in the following 5-6 years...

Drive a la techno Infectious you best dance beats Samples, sounds, on point

Ta hype

It must have had something to do with the circumstance but I found this to be an effective way to shake off some cobwebs. By this point, Fatboy Slim's deft touch of the materials at hand resulted in some of the more enjoyable and all around effortless songs in his catalog, especially with the one-two-three punch of Punk to Funk, The Sound of Milwaukee and Michael Jackson towards the end. Is it better living through chemistry? In my experience, I best believe.

cool

Excellent little Tuesday morning rinse up. First Down gives me big Jungle Love 2017 feelings

Not his biggest, yet still excellent

Simply excellent. Maintains energy without falling into incomprehensibility. Wish I had discovered this album earlier. Five stars.

Loved it

matias if you ever see this i am very dissapointed

Llegamos al miércoles después de unos días muy movilizantes y vamos con el debut de Fatboy Slim, un artista que relaciono directamente con MTv y, por ende, con mi infancia. Es probablemente el disco más experimental, ácido si se quiere, de su discografía. No lo recordaba y me encantó: apunté varios temas para mi lista de Spotify de los ácidos 90s. Hasta mañana.

I can't find anything bad to say about Fatboy Slim. He seems like a fun guy. He just wants to make fun music and his music *is* fun. I don't often find myself thinking that I want to listen to Fatboy Slim, but when I do it's always a good time. I'm sure it's always fun to be Fatboy Slim, regardless of the decade. That floppy disk, though.

This is very fun and scratches a nostalgic itch for mid-'90s electronic music that I didn't know I had. It neatly captures a sound I intensely associate with that time that I have a surprising amount of affection for. It also made my walk to the grocery store sound waaaaay more exciting than it actually was. Currently adding several of these songs to my running playlist.

Good

'You've Come A Long Way, Baby' is a definitive big beat album — maybe **the** definitive one, if you ask me. Almost nothing can top it, in terms of tone, tempo, energy, sampling... In terms of anything. Even in length, despite my thought that not **everything** needed to be 5+ minutes. It's an album I've loved dearly since I first heard "Praise You", and it continues to this day. That's basically how my review of 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby' went back when my group got it, in slightly more-or-less words. And I stand by this opinion greatly. I've listened to it quite a bit since then, and I never get tired of "Gangster Trippin" or "Right Here, Right Now" or, of course, "Fucking In Heaven". Of every electronica-related album my group's gotten thus far, this one easily takes a spot in the top five — heck, put it in top three. Yet, despite my love for 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby', I've rarely ventured into Norman Cook's further discography. There's been a visit or two to the Attack Hamster edit of "Weapon Of Choice" and that's about it. So imagine my surprise, then, when the Randomizer throws out that there's actually a **second** Fatboy Slim album on this list — and it's his **debut**, no less. I mean, I'd seen this cover before, but I'd somehow never put it together that... Heck, that it was even a Fatboy Slim album. The words at the top just somehow always managed to pass me by. So, hey, wow, I finally get to adventure into another Fatboy Slim album! About time I finally got around to one, eh? Looks like I'm bound for more of the same great stuff I've heard on the follow-up! Well... Let me explain. First, let me throw out an old, classic qualifier: "it's not bad." Fatboy Slim knows what's doing as a DJ and I appreciate it very much. There was just... Something about this album that doesn't sit right with me for most of it. Like, it was very recognizably Fatboy, and it's very much the kind of music he makes, but... It was just slightly different enough in a way that it's a little off-putting. I ended up putting it this way to myself: the stank. Fatboy Slim, as I typically enjoy him, has a bit of a stank to his music. Y'know, **attitude**. Even the more "serious sounding" songs on 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby' have some stank to 'em. And of course: "Fucking In Heaven". Now **that** is some **stank**. I ended my 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby' review with the challenge to name another album with that song (or, I'll say now, at least one **like it**), and I think I can say pretty certainly that this album doesn't. There are just some tracks that sound oddly typical, like it could have come from any electronic or big beat DJ at the time. And I get it: it's his debut. He doesn't exactly have the stank figured out yet. But then there are others where, even if you'd presented them to me with the name filed off, I'd **very easily** be able to tell that it's him ("Going Out Of My Head" especially). So... Y'know, it flips. And I kinda just wish it'd just flip over and get stuck on the side that sounds like proto-'You've Come A Long Way, Baby'. I realize as well, I'm largely talking about this thing for what I'd **want** it to be rather than what it **is**. Nothing exists in a vacuum, so it's not entirely**unfair** to compare this to 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby', but to the extent which I've done so far... Yeah, maybe a little. I mean, this is a "pre-evolved" Fatboy Slim, so to speak. I can't expect the same stuff from him that I've gotten from his older self. Heck, from an opinion I've read, this is more a compilation than a proper album. I gotta meet this thing where it is. But even then... It was a little hard to get to the end of this thing and **not** want to just hop over to some cuts from this album's big brother. I suppose if you have a problem with the stank Fatboy Slim would spin on his later albums, this is the one for you. And it's not like there's nothing to enjoy here if you **do** like that stank — "Going Out Of My Head" is the best for that, and "Give The Po' Man A Break" don't do too bad neither. Throw in the bonus cut "Michael Jackson" as well; I enjoyed it quite a bit. But, yeah. 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby' continues to remain definitive. This album didn't do too much to change that. Still, if nothing helps, it helps me appreciate just how far Fatboy Slim **did** come once he got around to making his second album. So, I guess my conclusion is this: while it may not be Fatboy's best, I think it's still worth a listen anyway; it's a good time. And, hey, better living through this than certain other kinds of chemistry, eh?

Loved this!

there's something really special about listening to this while already being pretty familiar with his work immediately following this. you can hear "You've Come a Long Way Baby" brewing in this.

This isn’t the genre I’d personally enjoy but the album is not bad. Many tracks do repeat themselves a lot but this kinda works. I didn’t feel they tried too hard to make me remember anything. +0.5 stars for Going Out of My Head. A very weak 4 for me.

I've been putting off putting together a presentation for work for about a week now. Today was the final day I had to turn it in. I sat down, put this album on, and cranked out a week's worth of procrastination in 1 hour. Absolutely perfect album to get work done to! Right place and right time for this album.

While not nearly as good as the subsequent album, this is still an enjoyable listen. Fatboy Slim was really my first love when it came to electronic music. 3.5/5

Fun, energetic electronic album. Favorites include Sonf for Lindy, Santa Cruz, Going Out of My Head. Enjoyable listen, the second half of the album starts a slightly different vibe with more repeated, rhythmic electronic beeps and bops.

Not his best work but it set the stage for his next, very popular album which defined late 90s popular dance music.

i'm genuinely flabbergasted at just how much exponentially better this is than you've come a long way baby

Nice album. Enjoyed a first listen to that.

Love the beats!

kinda like entroducing. i really liked this album. and want to revist again

I felt like this was a very strong debut album from Fatboy Slim. I really enjoyed the electric feel that this album had to it with the processed rhythms as well as the sampling of sounds and vocals. Overall, I really dug this album and would listen to it again in the future!

8.5/10

Enjoyable

This is just one of the many albums that shows you why Norman is so well regarded

Having only heard his later stuff I was surprised by this. Well rounded effort and an easy listen

3.5

This was about what I was expecting it would be. Was digging it while driving between Seattle and Portland, and had an easy 3 from me, but hearing a track featuring my favorite Fela Kuti track upped this to a 4.

Norman Cook does exactly what his name says. I was very familiar with his work on YCALWB, and I see in this album where a lot of the ideas came from. That being said, it does have more flaws than that album, at some points being repetitive. Yet it keeps you hypnotized on even the most boring songs. Better than "The White Album." Sue me. 4/5

This album was a huge part of my teenage years. I remember some of my friends refusing to listen to Fatboy Slim because we were all about what we called “real techno,” the kind you’d only hear at raves or find on DJ mixtapes in underground clothing stores. They wrote off anything mainstream as “techno wannabe,” thinking they were too cool for him. But the truth is, Fatboy Slim was an incredible producer with a knack for finding unique and special samples. He had a way of transforming them into something completely different, giving them a whole new vibe from the originals, and that’s what really made his music stand out to me.

This was a fun surprise. Fatboy Slim’s debut delivers a mix of big beats, funky samples, and just enough weirdness to keep things interesting. You can hear the early blueprint for what would become his signature sound later on. Tracks like “Santa Cruz” and “Everybody Needs a 303” bring a lot of energy, and the album keeps a good pace throughout. It’s a snapshot of late ‘90s electronic music before it really exploded. Even if you’re not big on electronic stuff, there’s enough variety and groove here to keep you engaged

I have never listened to this album before, however, even though it is defenitely not my genre I really appreciate it. All those electronic rythms are stuck in my head and while i was listening I felt absorbed.

This album was a huge part of my teenage years. I remember some of my friends refusing to listen to Fatboy Slim because we were all about what we called “real techno,” the kind you’d only hear at raves or find on DJ mixtapes in underground clothing stores. They wrote off anything mainstream as “techno wannabe,” thinking they were too cool for him. But the truth is, Fatboy Slim was an incredible producer with a knack for finding unique and special samples. He had a way of transforming them into something completely different, giving them a whole new vibe from the originals, and that’s what really made his music stand out to me.

Much better than I expected

I thought this album was totally new to me, but more than a few of the album tracks were very familiar. I guess it was everywhere in the mid 90s and beyond. It's a thrilling start of the reign of FBS, though some of the songs feel a little formulaic with their sample styles

Excelente álbum. QKZxHBB Hades.