#NOISE008: The Story of Daft Punk
On Thomas Bangalter's 50th birthday, a look at the history of Daft Punk, the chart-topping duo he formed with Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo.
Having met at school in Paris, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter teamed up with Laurent Brancowitz to form the guitar band Darlin’ in 1992.
An early review dubbed their sound “daft punky thrash” – and when Laurent moved on to join the band Phoenix, Guy-Manuel and Thomas modified the phrase for the name of their new electronic music project.
The duo’s debut album, 1997’s “Homework,” yielded the Grammy-nominated “Da Funk” single, which was used in the movie “The Saint.” Their second album, “Discovery,” was a top 10 hit in a number of countries.
Shunning the traditional star concept, they initially donned masks for public appearances, but soon adopted a futuristic cyborg look, sporting elaborate, led-illuminated helmets, leather jackets and metallic gloves.
Successive releases saw Daft Punk’s global popularity continue to grow. Following Grammy wins for the album “Alive 2007” and the single “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger,” the duo composed the soundtrack for the 2010 movie “Tron: Legacy.”
Their rise to superstardom was confirmed in 2013 when the album “Random Access Memories ,” propelled by the hit “Get Lucky” – which featured vocals by Pharrell Williams – debuted at the top of the Billboard charts and hit No. 1 in 20 other countries.
In 2016, Daft Punk achieved their first No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot 100 with the song "Starboy," a collaboration with The Weeknd. A follow-up single, “I Feel It Coming,” hit the the Top 5 a few weeks later.
In February, 2021, after 28 years, four albums and six Grammys, the enigmatic duo announced the breakup of Daft Punk.
Subsequent solo projects have included Homem-Christo producing for Travis Scott and Bangalter collaborating with Lil Nas X.
