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Daft Punk prove that French rock and pop doesn't always have to be a joke. Their Random Access Memories is the most eagerly anticipated album of 2013
Those old enough to remember a time when French rock and pop were routinely sniggered at outside their homeland might raise an eyebrow, but it's really no surprise that the most eagerly anticipated album of 2013 comes from Parisian duo Daft Punk. Random Access Memories has been the subject of fevered speculation precisely because Daft Punk have proved themselves the kind of artists that change the sound of pop music: everyone from Madonna to Skrillex has made records bearing their influence.
Ever since their 1995 single Da Funk first appeared, a pattern has emerged: Daft Punk do something, vast numbers of other people try and copy it, but by the time everyone else has caught up, the duo have moved on. You can complain about the hype surrounding Random Access Memories if you want, but you can hardly blame people for being eager to see what Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo do next.
Right from the start, the duo seemed entirely unconcerned with fitting in: it was as if French pop's lowly global standing enabled them to disregard accepted notions of cool and create their own version, relying entirely on their own tastes and instincts. Their 1997 debut album, Homework, came in a gatefold sleeve that loudly proclaimed the duo's love of Peter Frampton, Andy Gibb and Kiss – names that would have brought about an attack of the vapours in most dance artists of the time.
Similarly, Random Access Memories almost entirely abandons their computer-generated sound in favour of slick disco, performed by crack LA session musicians. It has had a mixed reception: curiously, the very thing people love about it – its luxurious, expensive-sounding glossiness – is exactly what its detractors hate. But whatever you make of it, past experience suggest you shouldn't bet against vast swathes of other artists sounding exactly like it in 18 months' time.
