After months of hype surrounding Daft Punk’s newest album, with fans teased by both a series of musical snippets and a number of ‘leaked’ fakes, the music world was eventually gifted with the first single from the new album, ‘Get Lucky‘.
Now that it’s officially out in the music world, ‘Get Lucky’ is reaping the benefits with huge sales, this week sending Daft Punk to the top of the ARIA Singles chart. Not only that, but the funkified new single has already gone Gold, and made Daft Punk the first ever French group to make it to #1 in Australia in the process.
The song, featuring Pharrell Williams and former Chic frontman Nile Rogers, debuted at #2 last week, but this week clawed up to the top spot, knocking off Passenger’s tune, ‘Let Her Go’ from pole position.
This is the first time a French group have made it to the top spot on Aussie charts. According to Noise11, any previous French chart-toppers have been solo artists, the list of which begins with Paul Mauriat back in March 1968 with the instrumental track ‘Love is Blue’. There were also the dance tracks from music producers Bob Sinclar, who hit #1 in 2006 with ‘Love Generation’ and of course David Guetta’s #1 with Akon, ‘Sexy Bitch’ in 2009.
While its the Parisian robotic pair claiming the top of the week’s ARIA singles chart, Aussies are still going strong. Flume is still ‘Holdin’ On’ at #24 on the charts, while Birds Of Tokyo – recently named the most played Aussie band on local radio – are continuing to enjoy the success of their single ‘Lanterns’ at #26.
But it’s no surprise that Daft Punk have claimed the #1 spot, and enjoying the demand in sales that comes after the huge teaser campaign for Random Access Memories launched earlier this year. The first musical taste of ‘Get Lucky’ was heard in the 15-second Saturday Night Live teaser back in March. Then it made a surprise appearance at the Coachella festival, before it dropped, unannounced on the iTunes digital store. Just as quickly, the song’s disco beat and Pharrell’s smooth vocals have being blasted all over the radio. The funkified new single has already gone Gold, and made Daft Punk the first ever French group to make it to #1 in Australia
Due out on May 17th, whether you’ll be attending the official launch of the album in the small rural NSW town of Wee Waa, or just listening to the album stream online, there is no doubt the release of Random Access Memories will be a big day for music. Especially given its intriguing mix of A-list collaborators, that have each been interviewed as part of the ongoing The Creators Series.
So far the interviews have focused on Giorgio Moroder, Todd Edwards, Nile Rodgers, as well as Pharrell Williams and Panda Bear from Animal Collective.
The latest episode features Grammy-nominated pianist and songwriter Chilly Gonzales. In the new video he discussed the way he brought his knowledge of harmonies to the new album. For example, Gonzales aided in the shift between chords in blocks of songs, explaining he was asked to “look for a common chord which could exist safely in the A minor world of the first three tracks, but also has a function in the B flat minor of the next batch.”
He praised Daft Punk for understanding the way that music flows and shifts, despite not being technically trained in harmonics. He said it shows that they “have absorbed a lot of what classical composers were obsessed with,” that is – a ‘bridge’ between different chords of music that feels effortless rather than forced or clumsy.
“Musical key dictates so much of what someone feels,” said Gonzales, adding that Daft Punk have worked really hard to create that evocative sense to their newest release. They have captured the ‘colours’ previously used in classical music that can still be very touching to modern ears.
Gonzales admitted that he is not often interested in collaborating, but that “you make exceptions for people who are in possession of some true key to the zeitgeist”. When it came to the end of their time working together, Gonzales considered himself more of a “cameo actor, rather than a lead actor of any kind.” Concluding it takes a great director, like Daft Punk, “to use the person properly.”
“They’re a very warm, familiar group despite their mysterious image. Every musician feels an emotional connection to them and we always have the feeling that they’re ahead of us,” he enthuses.
The result is Random Access Memories, possibly the most anticipated album of the year. It can be pre-ordered online on CD & vinyl here, and Daft Punk’s own track-by-track run down can be found here.
Random Access Memories tracklist
Album line-up:
1- Nile Rodgers (Guitar), Paul Jackson, Jr. (Guitar) – 4:34
2- Instrumental – 5:21
3- Giorgio Moroder (Synth) – 9:04
4- Chilly Gonzales (Piano) – 3:48
5- Julian Casablancas (Vocals) – 5:37
6- Nile Rodgers (Guitar), Pharrell Williams (Vocals) – 5:53
7- Paul WIlliams (Vocals and Lyrics) – 8:18
8- Nile Rodgers (Guitar), Pharrel Williams (Vocals) – 6:07
9- Paul Williams (Lyrics) – 4:50
10- Instrumental – 5:41
11- Todd Edwards (Vocals) – 4:39
12- Noah Benjamin Lennox (Panda Bear, Animal Collective – Vocals) – 4:11
13- DJ FALCON – 6:21
Tracklisting:
01. Give Life Back to Music (ft. Nile Rodgers)
02. The Game of Love
03. Giorgio by Moroder (ft. Giorgio Moroder)
04. Within (ft. Chilly Gonzales)
05. Instant Crush (ft. Julian Casablancas)
06. Lose Yourself to Dance (ft. Pharrell Williams & Nile Rodgers)
07. Touch (ft. Paul Williams)
08. Get Lucky (ft. Pharrell Williams & Nile Rodgers)
09. Beyond
10. Motherhood
11. Fragments of Time (ft. Todd Edwards)
12. Doin’ It Right (ft. Panda Bear)
13. Contact (ft. DJ Falcon)
