"Daft Punk"

Daft Punk consistes of two French musicians, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter. The duo became popular around the late 1990’s and created the fusion of house and synthpop. Daft Punk is recognized for creating songs thought of as essential in the French house scene. Ironically the pair was influenced by The Rolling Stones and The Beach Boys the same as many other great artists. Daft Punk headed the front of elaborate entertainment in musical concerts.           

One characteristic of the group was that they would perform elaborate shows at their concerts, wearing advanced technology full-face helmets with LED graphical displays and effects. The group always incorporated visual effects with their music to create a unique experience. Daft Punk also focused on story line components associated with their musical creations. A second characteristic of the group was that they were very experimental with electronic music, combining synthpop and house. Daft Punk was the first to fuse the two genres and benefited greatly from it, receiving a Grammy for their album “Alive” in 2007.

Daft Punk composed 24 tracks for the hit movie Tron: Legacy, released in 2010. The band collaborated for 2 years with Joseph Trapanese on the films score before it was finally ready. An 85-piece orchestra was implemented in the scores and was recorded live at a studio in London. The musical reach of Daft Punk is clearly far beyond only house and synthpop. Following the release of the movie, both members of Daft Punk were awarded the rank of “Knight” in France into the “Orde des Arts et des Lettres.” The “Orde des Arts et des Lettres” is a serious Order of France in recognition of significant contributions to the arts.

My professional opinion of Daft Punk is that the duo is flawless. The mix of every individual track fully immerses the listener into the song, taking the listener captive by all of the musical elements. Their songs all “breathe” and have a feeling of life to them. The songs sound like they are pumping like a human heart, which makes it near impossible to not start to bob your head while listening. The fuse of house and synthpop is very subtle and smooth. I have personally attended a Daft Punk show in Atlanta and I can also vouch for their impressive theatrical performance, and extensive light shows. I enjoy every aspect of the dynamic duo that come to create Daft Punk.


Sources for "Daft Punk" post on (10/17/11):  


Daft Punk Biography


Orde des Arts et des Lettres