The Chemical Brothers are the Grammy Award winning electronic music duo of Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons (occasionally referred to as Chemical Tom and Chemical Ed).

Initially they called themselves The Dust Brothers, after the noted United States production duo of the same name, but the threat of legal action from the originals led them to change their name in 1995. Along with The Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, The Crystal Method and others, they were pioneers of the big beat electronic dance genre which achieved mainstream popularity in the 1990s, and are known for high-quality live sets.

Ed Simons was born in Herne Hill, South London, on 9 June 1970 to a barrister mother and a father who was not around much when Simons was growing up. Simons' two main interests when he was young were airplanes and musicals. Simons attended two South London public schools, Alleyn's School and Dulwich College. During his school years, Ed developed a fondness for rare groove and Hip hop music, having frequented a club called The Mud Club from the age of 14. By the time he left school, his two main musical interests were two Manchester bands, New Order and The Smiths. After finishing school with 11 O levels and 3 A-levels, Ed continued on to study History, especially Late Medieval History, at the University of Manchester.

Tom Rowlands, a childhood classmate of Simons', was born on 11 January 1971 in Kingston Upon Thames. When Rowlands was very young, his family relocated to posh Henley. He later attended Reading Blue Coat School in Berkshire, during which time he became obsessed with Scotland, developing a fondness for the bagpipes in particular. In his early teens, his interest in music broadened to other genres.

/ more...