The French duo Daft Punk have finally released their highly anticipated album Random Access Memories, but does it live up to the hype? Here’s a track-by-track review.
1) Give Life Back to Music
An eclectic mix of glittering synth and 70’s rock gives way to a funky, upbeat guitar track undoubtedly played by Nile Rodgers himself. Vocoded voices command you to “Give life back to music”, Daft Punk wants to bring back the soul that gave music emotion, something they did extremely well with this track.
2) The Game of Love
“The Game of Love” takes you for a spin with its slow tempo, melancholy tone and seductive vocals. Daft punk sets the stage with a robot playing the game that is love – reminiscent of “Something About Us” from their album Discovery.
3) Giorgio by Moroder
Giorgio Moroder narrates his musical rise to fame over a subtle disco/synth track. Following “My name is Giorgio Moroder, but everybody calls me Giorgio”, a sharp, arpeggiated synth line takes over, bringing us back to a ’70s discotheque. The sudden cuts in the synth/electronic background replaced by orchestral arrangements were perfectly placed and executed. One of the best tracks on the album.
4) Within
Another sudden shift in mood occurs with a moving piano intro. Compared to buoyant atmosphere of the first track, “Within” turns another direction, featuring a vocoder singing about being lost and not understanding his place in the world. Well crafted, but forgettable.
5) Instant Crush
A synth intro is followed by the vocoded (surprise!) lyrics of Julian Casablancas, singing about his relationship with his wife Juliet. Disappointed by his inability to spend more time with her he sings “I want to take you to that place near the rush, but no one gives us any time anymore”. Light on vocoder, heavy on emotion, this song is a fresh turn from the previous tracks.
6) Lose Yourself to the Dance
Nile Rodgers graces us again with a slick guitar riff played behind Pharrell Williams telling us to “Lose Yourself to Dance”. Another groovy, upbeat track with catchy vocals and a liberal use of vocoder.
7) Touch
An 8-minute epic with a truly eccentric mix of sounds. From sci-fi blasters to child choirs, this track has it all. An unusually long (1:45) and stagnant intro is soon erased from memory as the gears of this vast track start to turn.
8) Get Lucky
An extended intro and delayed lyrics sets the album version apart from the single. The vocoder takes over later in the song and is perfectly placed in contrast to Pharrell’s vocals. This is the definitive version that is clearly superior to the radio edit. Hopefully, 6-minutes of sensual, funky, disco groove will get you lucky.
9) Beyond
The intro sounds similar the 20th Century Fox opening, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. However, the build up from the intro is lost to a drab, monotone vocoder singing a melancholy tune to a repetitive synth/drum background.
10) Motherboard
An ambient track free of vocals, “Motherboard” reminds me of Royksopp’s “Eple”, creating a grandiose atmosphere with vibrant synth and crisp percussion. The outro is especially notable with a dreary synth line that comes crashing to a halt with the sound of water fading away.
11) Fragments of Time
Todd Edward’s attempt to step away from the sounds of his track “Face to Face” on Daft Punk’s ‘Discovery’ falls flat. His vocals over an old western themed guitar track fail to deliver the same level of depth, emotion and eccentric editing as his previous works.
12) Doin’ It Right
“Doin’ it Right” is marred by its simplicity. Being the most basic and bare bones track of the album, there is a clear lack of substance in this song leaving you wanting more.
13) Contact
An absolutely brilliant track that is easily the best in the album. In the intro, an astronaut describes an unidentified bright object in space. It’s the robots themselves ready to enlighten us with their style of music that combines elements of pop-synth taken from Justice and ‘Aerodynamic’ guitar riffs. Big drum solos and a huge build in the middle takes you on an epic journey into space at light speeds. A fitting ending to one of the most anticipated albums of this year.
This album was greatly anticipated by old fans and newcomers alike. While I enjoyed the album as a whole, there were several songs that needed much work and felt out of place. Nevertheless, this album will undoubtedly be sampled by other artist for years to come.
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