When international DJ and general nice guy Darren Emerson announced in April that he was leaving Underworld to focus on his spinning, alarm bells started ringing. Apparently it was Emerson, the streetwise, Essex deck wizard who helped hone, modify and shape the Underworld sound from their previous foppish incarnation, Freur, to the world beating, teeth rattling stream of consciousness techno that made tracks like Rez , Cowgirl and Born Slippy such instant classics.

Indeed, in more recent years, the list of underground producers re-working Underworld material increased, with the likes of Frangois Kervorkian, Slam, Dave Clarke and Tom Middleton lining up to offer their services.
So, while we can only speculate as to whether these producers will hang around to remix Underworld now their mate Darren has left, Smith and Hyde continue to ply their trade.
Last month saw the re-release of Cowgirl, remixed by progressive guru John Digweed and fast rising tribal house act Futureshock, a development that proves the credible underground are still interested in Underworld's music. October also saw the release of Underworld's first live album, Everything, Everything. A collection of live versions of classic Underworld material, it s but one part of a whole new jigsaw Hyde and Smith are piecing together.
We re still working on the DVD to accompany the album, so I'm extremely busy, Rick Smith explains. There's a section on the DVD that, when you put it into your PC, it'll allow you to go to a private website that you can t access on the Internet. We've been making a lot of music recently, and the idea is that the music appears on this site, like work in progress for the next Underworld album. It s a departure for us because in the past, we've always been very private about it, but we've enjoyed the fact that bits and pieces of the album have been going public before they're finished.
So what does the new Underworld music sound like, sans Emerson?
When we record an album, we always try and have a simple focus, Smith answers. With the new album we re using and developing the websites in tandem with the music we re doing. You'll hear stuff online without a groove, very ambient, difficult; I suppose you could call it very odd! However, there will be another few pieces that are groovy. We still love a good groove, electronic music is in our blood. There's no change on that front.
Smith s remains calm when I ask him about the reasons for Emerson s departure.
It hasn t affected the way we work, because Karl and I have been together for twenty years now, he says.
Last year, I felt strongly that we should document our work with new technology, but I had no idea at that stage that Darren was unhappy and was going to leave. I believe he left for the reasons he gave in the press; he wanted to concentrate on his DJing. We haven't spoken for quite a while, but that's not a bad thing. Darren leaving hasn't affected us in an adverse way; in fact it means we don't have to put things in boxes anymore.
Smith is referring to the duo s involvement with Tomato and his experimental record label, Bungalow With Stairs, Underworld's ongoing online adventures, as well as rumours that Hyde and Smith are to collaborate with dance music's other famous live double act, Orbital.
Yeah, we've talked for years and years about a game we d play, where we keep exchanging a track, back and forth, but nothing s ever come of it, Smith says.
In the meantime, the duo has two more live shows planned before the year s end in Dublin and Japan, giving their fans a chance to see the new Underworld set-up. While Smith claims that they won t air much new material, he is promising an even more exciting performance than their previous Irish shows.
When myself and Karl play live nowadays, we don't even make eye contact; there's only two of us, so the communication is very direct and simple and quite intense.

Everything, Everything is out now on V2 Music. Underworld play The Point Depot, Dublin, November 18th. Darren Emerson DJs at The Winter Party, Mosney, Co. Meath on November 11th.