Well, this is a surprise.
A collaboration featuring Daft Punk and Jay Z called ‘Computerized’ mysteriously surfaced online over the weekend, appearing on both YouTube and streaming sites before spreading to a variety of blogs and music media.
You’d think given the high-profile crossovers of both Daft Punk’s and Jay Z’s latest albums that the unheard track is an off-cut from Random Access Memories or Magna Carta Holy Grail, instead ‘Computerized’ is reported to have been recorded around the time the French robots were producing the Tron: Legacy soundtrack.
In fact, users on a Daft Punk sub-reddit indicate that ‘Computerized’ contains musical elements from the Tron score (not least in the name) including ‘Overture’ and ‘Son’, providing the backdrop for a previously unheard verse from Hova, as Consequence Of Sound points out, waxing lyrical about the digital age… and text messaging.
In any case, ‘Computerized’ had been quietly shelved until now. The actual track features the characteristic vocoder vocals of the Parisian pair, as well as the strings and electronic textures of their Tron work, while Jay Z delivers lines that name-check Apple and Blackberry (clearly proving its recording took place ahead of his huge deal with Samsung) and a bizarre point mid-song where the rap titan’s vocals begin straining ever upwards.
While the first instinct may be to write off the track as a very well-put together fake, Pitchfork is claiming that the tune is in fact a legitimate previously unreleased track – though there’s no confirmation from either Jay Z or Daft Punk’s people about the tune’s veracity. Curiously, another rumour suggests that Kanye West – a good friend of both artists – had something to do with the hook-up and may even have produced ‘Compterized’.
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On one hand, it’s pretty surprising that two of the biggest act’s in music managed to keep news of their getting in the studio together a secret, let alone keeping it under wraps for nearly four years. But then again, both the dance duo and the rapper have both proven to be master sleights of hand.
Remember, Daft Punk kept the A-list roster of Random Access Memories a mystery until ready, and Mr Z’s Magna Carta Holy Grail was finished well before he was willing to let people know about it.
So why haven’t we heard about it until now? Well because, ‘Computerized’ is kind of sub-par and clearly didn’t meet the high quality control standards of either artist involved.
‘Computerized’ follows shortly after ‘Gust Of Wind’, the collaboration between Daft Punk and Pharrell, began appearing online. The tune is taken from G I R L, the new solo album from Pharrell Williams, who has just completed a tour around the country as part of the Future Music Festival 2014 lineup.
