You could call them archetypal post-modernists, but The Chemical Brothers are beyond such an obvious classification of their artistic achievements, abilities, or intentions. They may not have been the first DJs to reach cult status, and they won't be the last, but they've done more than made passably interesting music. During the course of the '90s, they changed the very vernacular in which we all speak.

Where do I begin in describing what The Chemical Brothers have truly done to popular culture? Their three studio albums and their countless remixes of other artists' tracks have had such an widespread influence on fashion, music, club culture, and even mainstream advertising, you could say they've created a monster on the verge of being out of control. It doesn't matter if you actively dislike their music, you can't get away from it. Their loops of fury have entered the sub-conscious of society, whether we want it to or not.

Ain't it cool?

Ed Simons and Tom Rowlands have helped to breed the fuck up beats of Death In Vegas guru Richard Fearless, launched Beth Orton's solo career with her haunting turn on "Alive Alone," and with "Three Little Birdies Down Beats," gave everyone from The Crystal Method to Lo-Fidelity Allstars the recipe for American success. Fatboy Slim didn't name his first album Better Living Through Chemistry for nothing. The Chemical Brothers aren't dance purists either. They don't stop the rock influences from taking over, in fact they embrace it. Tim Burgess and Noel Gallagher gave the duo credibility among rockists by making memorable guest appearances. And just as the Brothers have expanded their collaborators' electronic ideas for their own music, Tom and Ed have constantly rethought and altered the sound they patented not so long ago.

Their debut album, Exit Planet Dust, emerged from an elektro-bank of block rockin' beats that cascaded over the heads of the crowds on one too many mornings at their weekly slot at the Heavenly Sunday Social event. The crowds that fled to outdoor parties in the country which started at dusk and finished under the sunshine, underground warehouse parties in London that blasted all night, and clubs from Brighton to Glasgow playing that house/rock/indie/funk megamix found themselves lost in the K-hole, hooked to the Brothers' music. Response was immediate and clear - In Dust we trust said the masses, and the younger siblings of those from the acid house generation found life is sweet when it comes in Chemical form.

Things took off for the Brothers from their opening "Song To The Siren" salvo, but nothing prepared them for the rise of (drum roll please) "electronica." Dig Your Own Hole , as we were told by the powers that be, was to be the first album to give the American rave generation the full impact of big Chemical beats. The industry chose to get up on it, like this was the new rock 'n' roll. It certainly sounded like it. Under the influence of ecstasy soaked psychedelia, it also featured rock's calling cards like hip-shaking moves, crash-bang recklessness, anthemic production values, and other parent-irritating aesthetics. The industry told us not to leave home without it, and for a while, the kids followed their advice - that is, until it became obvious to them that they were being sold a product. Even Tom and Ed knew that the "electronica revolution" was a load of bullshit and never played into it, which is not very rock star-like when you think about it.

The sad part of the whole fiasco is that Dig Your Own Hole is a modern-day symphonic masterpiece. Where their counterparts often make a paint-by-numbers muddle, the Brothers are after a greater picture. Their concept is simple - dance music need not be one-dimensional nor strictly for dance floor consumption. An album becomes more than a collection of mixes, it becomes a melting pot of The Beatles, Daft Punk, and Primal Scream. They'll take anything that sounds great and piece it together in the most unimaginable and twisted way. Surrender could have been the setting sun of big beat, but instead, The Chemical Brothers re-branded their vision and style. They delved into Euro-disco on "Got Glint?" and "Hey Boy Hey Girl." They reprised their "The Private Psychedelic Reel" experiment with Jonathan Donahue on "Dream On." Even the methodical ambient trance of "Asleep From Day" signaled a change in The Chemical charter. This was an album of blatant genius and uncommon creativity; it signaled a long and likely groundbreaking residency in clubs and CD players world-wide.

Just as anyone who has sat in a music appreciation class can tell you, there are lots of world-renown classical compositions that have lasted the test of time because they changed how people heard the music. Similarly, the very fabric of Tom and Ed's sound is so fundamentally appealing, yet so intricately astute and revolutionary, it's no wonder that the "big beat" phenomenon has reached such a wide spread audience. If there is nothing that provides a greater physical and mental release than a night at the club, then The Chemical Brothers are shamans of the soul, preaching to one nation under Chico's groove. To them, the music comes first and it's all about letting people find their religion out on the floor. So pay no mind to those waiting for the big beat to fade away into obscurity; shut up and dance and let forever be as maddeningly free and explosive as The Chemical Brothers' ultrasonic beats.

Visit The Chemical Brothers Mothership

Read our Chemical Brothers Live At Red Rocks feature

Check out these Chem Bros reviews: Exit Planet Dust, Dig Your Own Hole, Brothers Gonna Work It Out, Live At The Social, Surrender