Daft Punk Biography

The electronic music iconic duo Daft Punk consists of Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter. They are known for the rich mix of various musical elements from their songs and for their mysterious visual image, usually hidden. Daft Punk was formed in 1993, proposing an interesting combination of disco, funk, techno, rock and synthpop. Fame came along with the release Discovery in 2001 and its lead, “Better, Harder, Faster, Stronger”. Their most recent global and massive success is the single “Get Lucky”, which got featured in top charts from 32 countries and won 4 Grammy Awards. Daft Punk then reached Billboard Hot 100 with the song “Starboy”, in collaboration with The Weeknd.

Music

The two members started actually as a trio, playing in a rock band called Darlin’. Admitting their current music is pretty average, that rather amused than discouraged them. The newly formed Daft Punk attended a rave party in 1993 where they met the founder of Soma Quality Recordings. He liked their demo and thus, two years later, the duo recorded their first commercially successful single, Da Funk. In 1996 they signed with Virgin Records and, one year later, released their debut album, “Homework”. The UK publication Muzik called it “one of the most hyped debut albums in a long long time”. The most popular song is All Around the World, known for its repetitive, catchy lyrics. Their next album, Discovery, is an ode to the freedom and open-mindedness of childhood. It contains a lot of 70s and 80s influences but mixed with heavy auto-tune.

In 2013, the hit “Get Lucky” featuring Rodgers and Pharrell Williams is played for the first time at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. A week later, the song was released as a digital download and became Daft Punk’s first UK No. 1 single, for a whole month and the most-streamed song on Spotify ever. Another massive success is the collaboration with The Weeknd. The duo is featured on the songs “Starboy” and “I Feel it Coming”. They also performed with him at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards.

Visual Art & Appearance

In 2003 Daft Punk produced a SF & fantasy animation, Interstella 5555: The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem, which tells the story of an interstellar pop band. They also directed a movie in 2006, a SF & drama art film, Daft Punk’s Electroma, about two robots on their quest to become human. The film links to the mixed reviews their previous album, Human After All, received. In 2009, Daft Punk composed the soundtrack for “Tron: Legacy”, a mix of orchestra and electronic music.

Daft Punk are famous for their lack of desire to be seen or heard, apart from their music. They rarely show their faces in public and are either replace by animated characters or are wearing costumes. They consider artists can easily influence fans and stated, in one of their few interviews, that showing themselves is “dangerous”.

Photo credits: FactMag