DAFT PUNK “RANDOM ACCESS MOMENTS”

I remember being transfixed by Daft Punk’s video for “Homework” – the title track for their timeless electronic masterpiece. There were tiny robots dancing to “around the world”, the simple chorus repeating itself over and over. It was hypnotizing, and I remember thinking we’re all robots in search of dollars, food, companionship, you know, the rat race. Never before had this concept been illustrated to me so succinctly. It was burned into my memory.

They sound like a 1970’s cover band from the future, but since they weren’t actually here in the ‘70’s, they only know how to play the music as a band from the future!

I feel like I’ve grown up with Daft Punk, so the correlation to RAM, or “random access memory” in their new album title blew my mind, like one of those cosmic hippy trips you read about. I thought to myself: There are millions that feel the same way I do about Daft Punk! This feeling of connectedness came over me (as opposed to the usual feeling of alienation); next thing you know I’m tapping my feet, bobbin’ my head to “Give Life Back to Music” – the opening track to Daft Punk’s modern disco homage to their hero Giorgio Moroder.

Don’t get me wrong. This is not merely an electronic band spewing seventies music to sound cool. Nope, Daft Punk don’t play that way. This group knows how to honor the past by bringing it into the future. The music is the star of their show, not the band. They are the men in robot masks after all, and have been all along.

The timing for the release of Random Access Memories could not have been better. Temperatures are warming up, flowers beginning to bloom, and, most importantly, the big outdoor music festivals are coming into towns all over the world. They sound like a 1970’s cover band from the future, but since they weren’t actually here in the ‘70’s, they only know how to play the music as a band from the future! What a way to welcome the world back to the thunderous groove of Daft Punk.