Search results: daft punk

Review: You might have heard about this LP..... After a pre-release campaign that took on Hollywood-esque proportions, French pair Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter return as Daft Punk with their fourth studio album Random Access Memories sporting a A-list cast of guests and contributors. Given the input of disco icons Giorgio Moroder and Nile Rogers it's entirely understandable that the overbearing sound on Random Access Memories is one of classic disco with lead single "Get Lucky" a good indicator for what to expect. There's also a smattering of yacht rock within the thirteen track set, whilst the ubiquitous Panda Bear turns up on the midnight stutter funk album highlight "Doin' It Right". Those expecting a return to Daft Punk's Homework heyday will be disappointed but Bangalter and de Homem-Christo are touching forty so the polished, expertly constructed disco direction makes perfect sense.

Review: The fourth and final studio album from the now disbanded French electronic duo, Daft Punk, Random Access Memory gets a re-release on Sony complete with an exclusive poster and 16-page booklet. This release pays tribute to late 1970s and early 1980s American music, particularly the sounds hailing from Los Angeles at the time. For this seismic album, the band developed and enriched the minimalist production style typical of their previous releases though collaborating with session musicians performing live instrumentation, limiting the use of electronic instruments to simple drum machines, a custom-built modular synthesiser, and their signature vintage vocoders. Spanning an impressive selection of genres from disco, to prog rock and pop, the album also boasts a serious list of chart-topping collaborators - from Nile Rodgers, to Pharrell Williams, to Giorgio Moroder. Featuring hit single, 'Get Lucky', this album is already considered a defining release of the 2010s pop/electronic landscape.

Review: Daft Punk's defining album comes directly from the horses' mouths, seeing a new vinyl edition in 2022 released via the ex-duo's own Daft Life Ltd. label. With no frills or fluff, every original track on their third album from 2001 appears here in crunching glory, not sounding an inch rougher or time-weathered. Aptly, 'Discovery' was described by the duo as a reflection of their childhood memories, when they listened to music with a more innocent ear; 20 years on, Discovery can certainly be said to have lived up to that original inspiration.

Review: The album that started it all for Daft Punk sure explains why they were one of the biggest acts in dance music for so long. Even now, all these years later, it is still a mind blowing work that blew electonic music wide open. Homework landed in 1997 and showcased astonishing production skills, a dizzyingly wide-array of influences and spawned plenty of stone cold dance classics such as 'Around The World,' 'Da Funk' and 'Teachers' which shouted out all of the French duo's biggest influences.

Review: With each album, Daft Punk threw down something new for their mammoth fanbase to deal with. Never ones to repeat themselves or play it safe, Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo ruffled feathers when they followed up the pop-tastic heights of Discovery with the rock-tinted stylings of Human After All. In hindsight, with the world-beating project brought to an end, the album sounds like Daft Punk through and through, not least on lead single 'Robot Rock', but full credit to them for not taking the easy route to give the fans what they want. As we reflect on the legacy of one of the biggest dance acts of all time, it's a fine time to revisit this album with a sparkling new pressing as part of the Daft Life Ltd series.

Review: For the next installment of Argentinian label Music Broker's tribute series, they have selected some of seminal Parisian duo Daft Punk's finest works and remixes, spanning the last two decades, along with some of the music that inspired them. The Many Faces Of Daft Punk: A Journey Through The Inner World Of Daft Punk features disco royalty such as Niles Rodgers, Giorgio Moroder and Cerrone, while more contemporary producers from the house music spectrum feature also, such as Detroit's Scott Grooves (featuring Parliament/Funkadelic), The Micronauts and Versatile's I:Cube receive de Homem-Christo and Bangalter's midas touch. the latter's 'Disco Cubizm" from '96 being a particular highlight on the remix side of things. Not to mention their roaring rework of indie-pop darlings Franz Ferdinand's classic 'Take Me Out'.

Review: 'Alive 2007' is known as one of the most influential live albums ever, and this new reissue via Daft Punk's parent label Daft Life cements that influence. Performed at the French venue Bercy, we feel much harder, better, faster and stronger as we listen eagerly to the the pair's signature talkboxes, samples and hooks, this time drenched in crowd jeers and natural reverb. In this instance, Daft Punk manipulated their established material, transposing and deconstructing the structures of their studio tracks and paving the way for the future of live electronic music performance.

Review: Originally released in 2003, Daft Club was the first official compilation of any Daft Punk material, and they chose to gather together some of their most prominent remixes from the likes of The Neptunes, Cosmo Vitelli, Basement Jaxx and Slum Village along with a few other exclusives and obscurities like 'Aerodynamite' and 'Overture'. It's a must for any fan, especially now we know (or at least assume) there won't be any more DP material to come in the future. Repressed to fox the resellers, you can finally grab this one on wax once more, and you don't need to be told it's packed full of bangers.

Review: Now celebrating its ten year anniversary, there's a sobering realisation to the fact that the swan song LP from French robo-duo Daft Punk is already a decade old. While divisive amongst the fan base, the organic instrumentation and sonic homage to classic disco still feels like a creative endeavour the pair of Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo needed to add to their catalogue before graciously bowing out (or powering down) on their own terms. Following the expansive deluxe edition already released earlier in the year, this drumless version strips away any and all notable percussion to allow the velvety basslines, glistening synths and retro grooves to take centre-stage. With re-imagined approaches to hits such as 'Instant Crush' (featuring The Strokes' Julian Casablancas) as well as the myriad of Pharrell Williams collaborative bangers from 'Lose Yourself To Dance' to the once inescapable 'Get Lucky', the project is a unique and vital addition for lifers, newcomers and boogie enthusiasts alike.

Review: It was big news when Daft Punk were enlisted to record the soundtrack to Disney's remake of Tron. While the film has perhaps faded from view slightly, the soundtrack remains a popular notch in the French duo's latter-day legacy. Here, we get treated to a reissue of the big budget remix collection which came out in 2011. It's a neat snapshot of the electronic music landscape at the time, ranging from The Glitch Mob to M83, Moby to Paul Oakenfold, Boys Noize to Photek and the late, great Avicii. You certainly wouldn't get the same cast of characters together for a similar package now, making this a document of the era as well as an essential collection of premier league dance music.

Review: After his last album incorporated neon and darkwave stylings into his ever-expanding musical fold, we unanimously agreed back at the beginning of 2021 that it was high time The Weeknd put out a 'greatest hits' album. In February, our wish was granted in CD form, and now, 'The Highlights' has seen an official rerelease on double gatefold ultra-heavy vinyl, doing thorough justice to The Noise's cosmic collabs with Daft Punk, Kendrick Lamar and Ariana Grande. Spanning cuts all the way through from 'Thursday' to 'After Hours', this album does a remarkable job of unifying the best tracks from this devlishly suited, R&B hitmaker's career.

Review: Todd Edwards is affectionally known as Todd the God because of his skills. Those skills are two fold - he famous fomented this own style of garage with quick beats and cut up vocals used like an extra instrument in the mix. But he is also a badass DJ who can slam through house and garage with high energy and plenty of charger. As such, he is rightly celebrated here with an overdue entry into Defected's long running House Masters series. All his most famous joints make the cut, from the bumping remix of St Germain to the lively vocal soul of his dub of Kim English via originals like his jazzy, chord laced anthem 'Push The Love.'

Review: For its next compilation, Wagram sets its sights on underground house music and assembles what it thinks are the best of the genre. It's a collection that sure will get any dancefloor going, with a focus on the emotional end of the spectrum and plenty of big players. As you would expect from a French label, this is slated towards French artists with worthy inclusions from DJ Deep, I:Cube and DJ Gregory next to big names like the one and only deep house pioneer Kerri Chandler who offers 'The Way It Goes' with Troy Denari and Louie Vega & Jay Sinister's 'Diamond Life' amongst many more.

Review: Anyone lucky enough to have caught James Murphy and his entourage of highly talented musical friends live will attest that it's here LCD Soundsystem truly excel. And whilst this London Sessions album recorded in the aftermath of such a performance at last year's Glastonbury Festival does not replicate such an elation filled experience, the chance to hear some of the band's best tracks recorded live makes this worth investigating. It's basically a showcase for how tight a group of musicians Gavin Russom, Pat Mahoney and Nancy Whang are, most notably on "Get Innocuous" where Russom really goes to town on the synths and "Daft Punk Is Playing At My House" which gets embellished with a liberal dose of tightness, tautness and spikiness. The band has such an all encompassing back catalogue that you could spend all day dissecting which tracks they should have included here, and it's a mark of the aforementioned tightness that even the somewhat risible "Drunk Girls" sounds markedly improved here.