Artist of the Day: Daft Punk

So Daft Punk, in response to a leak, have put up their new LP to stream on iTunes. As in-house electronic nerd, I feel like I should address this and tell you how much of a great thing this is and how much I love it, but I'm not. Random Access Memories has split the musical world in two between those who love the new release and those, like myself, who are a little disappointed.

I suppose it's easy to dislike Daft Punk. Not necessarily because they are bad, but a cringe-worthingly corporate marketing campaign (I've seen presidents with less shiny advertising) doesn't really invite sympathy when it comes to a pretty shaky release. And while Daft Punk have always gotten away with a fair bit of cheese, RAM may have added a little too much for this particular writer to handle.

That isn't to say it's bad, per se, just disappointing. The second half of the album makes up for the first's shortcomings, with a certain song featuring Panda Bear standing out as the clear favourite. It's okay then, pretty good, decent, worthwhile, passable... that would be okay for a friend of a friend's demo tape but not for one of the most famous electronic outfits in the world. Then again, some seem to like it. Maybe I just can't understand the disco cheese.