DAFT PUNK
Discovery (EMD/Virgin)
Reviewed by Jason Thornberry

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I haven't heard a single album that utilizes the vocoder as effectively as 1988's Cacophony by Rudimentary Peni until now. If you only previously made time for bands clutching sweaty guitars this could (should) be your introduction to house music. When you hear somebody say "French duo" you immediately think of Air, right? How about Shiny Parisian Automatons? Seriously. Formed in 1992, this pair of DJ's (Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter) were quickly swept up in a bidding war, before Virgin issued 1997's Homework. The best disco hits you never heard get sliced, diced, filtered through an ocean of different effects, and are transformed on Discovery, which is catchier than the flu in a crowded elevator in mid February.

© 2001 - Jason Thornberry