As an avid alternative rock listener, electronic dance music (EDM) is not my cup of tea. I struggled to get through Daft Punk’s albums due to the aggressive tone of their music.
I might not enjoy their music, but the artists themselves and their creativity, I can appreciate. Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo were making music in their bedrooms when EDM was a laughable genre.
Daft Punk changed EDM; they have inspired countless up and coming artists. They wore gold and silver helmets while performing, they wanted their music to be the center of attention, not them. They believed in their music, throughout their entire career.
Daft Punk’s legacy is not them, but about their music, which I applaud. The duo explored all different sounds and themes, they didn’t stick to one. Daft Punk was nothing less than visionary.
The French music duo, released their first album, Homework, in 1997. Throughout their music career, Daft Punk came out with many well-known songs, including “Get Lucky,” “Harder Better Faster Stronger,” and “One More Time.” Ultimately, they announced their breakup in February of 2021.
Most of their music sounds similar, upbeat and fast-paced. The songs had complex sounds happening simultaneously, it was overwhelming to listen to. I have to applaud them for their creativity, though; it takes skill to release four original albums with just computer generated music.
The best album they released was in 2013, Random Access to Memories. This album featured computer generated voices, which were not my favorite, but they had a running theme to them. Each song sounded straight out of the 70’s, comparable to disco music. This 2013 album ventured out to a different sound for the duo. In an interview with NPR, Thomas Bangalter, Daft Punk member, said, “This record is really about the music we wanted to listen to right now, and so it’s this kind of summer disco jam.”
Other albums produced in the early 2000s didn’t seem to have the same creativity incorporated into them as the 2013 album. Their earliest album was released in 1997, it was clear that the duo were still trying to find their sound as most of their songs sounded generic.
The 2005 album, Human After All, was my least favorite. It was hard to get through; the songs all sounded exactly the same. There was no clear theme and the songs also featured a generated robot voice.
It’s not that I found their music distasteful; rather, I found it repetitive. The use of the robotic voice did not help, as it made it feel like a sci-fi movie. I think the reason I didn’t like their music was it just felt like dance music, there was no deeper meaning. The lyrics were usually just the names of the songs.
Overall, Daft Punk’s music did not hold my attention. Although I can appreciate the amount of effort and creativity that went into each and every song, it is probably for the best that they split after 28 years. However, their impact on the music industry will be their legacy. According to an article in The Guardian, “By resurrecting disco, soft rock and 80s R&B, and bringing spectacle to the world of dance music, the French duo changed the course of pop music again and again.”
Tessa Brennan, Staff Reporter
