Daft Punk vs. Basement Jaxx
Sasha Frere-Jones makes a good point about Daft Punk vs Basement Jaxx. One which I totally agree with. I’ve always thought that Basement Jaxx was a band I liked more in theory than in practice. In practice there is something so powerful and tribal about Daft Punk. So raw and pounding and basic. And, let’s be clear, so cool. Robots are just cool.
When I run, I listen to Alive 2008 and I listen to ‘Television Rules the Nation’ and I raise my fist in yuppified glory as I run through Central Park and I point at people and tell them that television rules the nation. Do you remember the first time you heard those Daft Punk songs? Those late nights. Those gleeful smiles when ‘Da Funk’ comes on and it feels so good?
Here’s what my initials namesake has to say:
I first heard “Discovery” driving across the flatlands of Peoria in a rental car. I drove circles around my destination just so I could get the end of the album without stopping. It was one of the most satisfying musical experiences I can remember, and certainly better than the gig I was in town to cover. On top of all that, Daft Punk mounted a genuinely entertaining live electronic-music tour. This is odd, not because live electronic music is necessarily a contradiction in terms—it just doesn’t usually work. But then, not everybody can afford a neon pyramid.
It’s both more and less than the neon pyramid but it’s a good point. Listen. The bottom line is that robots are cool. That’s just true.
August 12th, 2009 at 5:22 am
Great post and I totally agree. Daft Punk have crafted songs that hit you right where good dance music is supposed to. I still claim them to be one of the best live shows I have ever seen. And yes the robot outfits are pretty cool.
August 12th, 2009 at 8:06 am
I try Basement Jaxx a lot but it's almost, and this is weird to say, too
British. Too many caterwauling vocals and big moments like that and not
enough pounding insistency.
August 12th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
Great post and I totally agree. Daft Punk have crafted songs that hit you right where good dance music is supposed to. I still claim them to be one of the best live shows I have ever seen. And yes the robot outfits are pretty cool.
August 12th, 2009 at 3:06 pm
I try Basement Jaxx a lot but it's almost, and this is weird to say, too
British. Too many caterwauling vocals and big moments like that and not
enough pounding insistency.