TOP 5 ALBUMS OF 2013
#4. Daft Punk - Random Access Memories
Full Album
Daft Punk - Beyond
Well it's December and that means time to reflect on the past year in music. This year saw highly anticipated releases from household names such as Kanye West and Justin Timberlake, brilliant introductions from the likes of Jake Bugg and Chance the Rapper, and grizzled vets proving they still have what it takes to compete in the music biz in 2013 including David Bowie and Paul McCartney. All of these albums were great but they still could not make the cut (you'll see some in the honourable mentions section to come). So without further adieu I shall continue Some Strange Storm's Top 5 Albums of 2013.
With the recent surge of EDM (Electronic Dance Music for those unaware), especially and finally in the USA, the undisputed Kings, Godfathers, Legends, whatever you want to call them, of the genre had been absent for quite some time prior to this year. In late 2010 the duo of Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter released their first new material in over five years causing widespread hysteria in the music world. Turns out they were only releasing an original score for the Disney film Tron: Legacy which really only contained one EDM/Daft Punk song, the futuristic party-starter "Derezzed". Then three years later, in Spring 2013, word finally got out that the duo was releasing an LP of all new, original material and the industry went berserk. A 30 second teaser trailer which was played during the Coachella music festival and during an episode of SNL showed the robot-masked Daft Punk alongside R&B crooner/producer Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers, guitarist and producer extraordinaire of the disco group Chic. I vividly remember being shown this while at a hostel in Thailand and it got me extremely excited for the album and that particular single, "Get Lucky", to come.
The album begins with the proclamation "Give Life Back To Music" which features fantastic orchestration paired with the instantly recognizable riffing of Nile Rodgers; a sound that thankfully graces much of the album. This is quite the statement from a group that basically created the EDM genre through blips and bleeps of computers and synths. Yet here they are ready to move past it, bringing back live instruments and production to a genre that has been loathed by many as being too artificial. Basically they're proving that they can make an incredible EDM album without computers and are moving forward, ahead of the competition. Following the opener is the 9 minute epic "Giorgio by Moroder" which features a spoken word intro by Giorgio himself as he tells of his beginnings in the discotheques in Berlin in the early 1970's. The song then goes through a whirlwind of buzzing synths and spacey beats before crashing down with gorgeous strings.
There isn't a single throwaway track on the album but other standouts include "Instant Crush" featuring Julian Casablancas of The Strokes on lead, auto-tuned vocals over a laid back groove, another epic in "Touch" which showcases the voice and songwriting of Paul Williams and includes a brilliant middle frame of exuberant horns and strings, and "Lose Yourself To Dance" and "Get Lucky" which feature vocals by Pharrell Williams and guitar from Nile Rodgers. The latter is the definition of a perfect pop/dance song. Rolling Stone named it their song of the year and by now you have heard it a million times and may be sick of it but hopefully, like me, you still can't get enough of it and turn it up every time it's on.
The track I chose for today is "Beyond", co-written with Paul Williams. This is classic Daft Punk that uses auto-tuned robot vocals over a killer groove but also reflects their new live instrumentation with flourishes of orchestra strings and beautiful pedal steel guitar fills. I struggled to choose just one song from this excellent album and didn't want to use my personal favourite track "Get Lucky" since unless you live at the North Pole you have most definitely heard it many times before. Daft Punk decided to come back into the music world just when EDM was getting its most attention, putting a ton of pressure on the masters to come through with a hit. Well they certainly delivered, in fact they went above and beyond the call. Now if only they could do an epic world tour and finally start headlining all of those festivals that they are consistently rumoured to be at. I know I'll be there.
Stay tuned for #3
The album begins with the proclamation "Give Life Back To Music" which features fantastic orchestration paired with the instantly recognizable riffing of Nile Rodgers; a sound that thankfully graces much of the album. This is quite the statement from a group that basically created the EDM genre through blips and bleeps of computers and synths. Yet here they are ready to move past it, bringing back live instruments and production to a genre that has been loathed by many as being too artificial. Basically they're proving that they can make an incredible EDM album without computers and are moving forward, ahead of the competition. Following the opener is the 9 minute epic "Giorgio by Moroder" which features a spoken word intro by Giorgio himself as he tells of his beginnings in the discotheques in Berlin in the early 1970's. The song then goes through a whirlwind of buzzing synths and spacey beats before crashing down with gorgeous strings.
There isn't a single throwaway track on the album but other standouts include "Instant Crush" featuring Julian Casablancas of The Strokes on lead, auto-tuned vocals over a laid back groove, another epic in "Touch" which showcases the voice and songwriting of Paul Williams and includes a brilliant middle frame of exuberant horns and strings, and "Lose Yourself To Dance" and "Get Lucky" which feature vocals by Pharrell Williams and guitar from Nile Rodgers. The latter is the definition of a perfect pop/dance song. Rolling Stone named it their song of the year and by now you have heard it a million times and may be sick of it but hopefully, like me, you still can't get enough of it and turn it up every time it's on.
The track I chose for today is "Beyond", co-written with Paul Williams. This is classic Daft Punk that uses auto-tuned robot vocals over a killer groove but also reflects their new live instrumentation with flourishes of orchestra strings and beautiful pedal steel guitar fills. I struggled to choose just one song from this excellent album and didn't want to use my personal favourite track "Get Lucky" since unless you live at the North Pole you have most definitely heard it many times before. Daft Punk decided to come back into the music world just when EDM was getting its most attention, putting a ton of pressure on the masters to come through with a hit. Well they certainly delivered, in fact they went above and beyond the call. Now if only they could do an epic world tour and finally start headlining all of those festivals that they are consistently rumoured to be at. I know I'll be there.
Stay tuned for #3
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