Daft Punk's Random Access Memories

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DE9IchvpOPk

Milow's international breakthrough came with the release of the single "Ayo Technology", a song originally written and recorded by 50 Cent, Justin Timberlake and Timbaland, from the album Milow. The single peaked at number one in The Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland, Belgium, peaked at number two in Germany, Spain, Austria, and peaked in the top ten in France, Italy and Finland. The song was a huge commercial success, receiving a platinum certification in Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Austria, Denmark and gold certification in Spain and The Netherlands.

I think that Travis on Britney Spears is a slightly different though linked phenomenon, in that it never really rose above its own look-at-me status (it feels like an acoustic duo covering hits at the pub).

The plaintive indie cover which liberates the melancholy heart from the shiny cage of the pop song is drawing from, like, Susanna and the Magical Orchestra as much as it is from the lol-irony tradition.

The "Believe" cover is poised between these two paths.

Has there been a plaintive indie cover of Fairground Attraction's "It's Got To Be Perfect", I wonder.

As Tim pointed out on another thread, Frente's Bizarre Love Triangle was way ahead of the curve here, but more in a Susanna way than Travisesque lols. Radio 1's Live Lounge (source of the Daughter cover) is responsible for turning it into a longrunning trend. Who can forget Razorlight's Hey Ya! or Snow Patrol's Crazy in Love? I wish I could.

The reverse, ie pop acts covering indie, is often better, eg Amy Winehouse's Valerie or Sugababes covering Hard-Fi.

The Beatles 'Please Mr Postman' vs Stevie Wonder 'We Can Work It Out'

true, but the reverse also tends to demonstrate how superior the pop acts' own material is

xp

see also britney's "i can't get no satisfaction"

haha well 'i can't get no satisfcation' is not exactly an indie song

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ll0SslHsZ6I

I really want to blame the Lemonheads for this phenomenon, even though the closest thing that they get to the exact formula is probably their awful 2002 version of Xtina's 'Beautiful' which was well after 'Believe'. It definitely feels like the overly sincere cover version has been something that Dando was working on from pretty early on in their career though, thinking of stuff like the Manson cover version on Creator, then Suzanne Vega's 'Luka', then 'Mrs Robinson', then god knows what after that. All that ridiculous sensitive-puppy, wounded emoting, yeucchhh.

"the experience is working, the nubile subects react positively to this DISCO creation..."

genuine lols over here

Frente's Bizarre Love Triangle was way ahead of the curve here,

Frente's version was a cover of Even As We Speak's cover

re: whigs

the way they covered R&B songs felt a little more in the spirit of, i dunno, creedence and the rolling stones than whatever lineage exists of punk/indie/alt bands up to that point who, if they covered R&B at all, it wasn't frequently and would probably have some element of parody or ironically 'flat,' dispassionate delivery. although there was definitely some edge of irony or playfulness in the whigs' covers too.

― some dude, Saturday, May 26, 2012 11:05 AM Bookmark

That Even As We Speak cover's great. I've never heard it before. Apparently Devine & Statton (ex-Young Marble Giants) got there even earlier, in 1989.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDMEeHp4fx0

This obviously has nothing whatsoever to do with the Daft Punk album.

re: whigs

the way they covered R&B songs felt a little more in the spirit of, i dunno, creedence and the rolling stones than whatever lineage exists of punk/indie/alt bands up to that point who, if they covered R&B at all, it wasn't frequently and would probably have some element of parody or ironically 'flat,' dispassionate delivery. although there was definitely some edge of irony or playfulness in the whigs' covers too.

― some dude, Saturday, May 26, 2012 11:05 AM Bookmark

― The Reverend, Monday, April 29, 2013 1:52 PM (4 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

big difference with the whigs is that dulli wasn't really doing the cheap contrast of "oh let's do an R&B/rap song in this completely nerd white way" he was actually trying to translate #swag into a grunge R&B context.

this tangent unfortunately reminded me of this cover which I despise:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0z1Mo7O6dE

That Even As We Speak cover's great. I've never heard it before. Apparently Devine & Statton (ex-Young Marble Giants) got there even earlier, in 1989.

Even As We Speak's was 1987!

actually trying to translate #swag into a grunge R&B context.

feel like this might refer better to Dulli originals than to their covers. also resistant to Al's suggestion that there's irony in their choice or performance of covers - playfulness yeah though

lol'ing that the whigs ended up in a daft punk thread but

re: there was definitely some edge of irony or playfulness in the whigs' covers too

i wouldn't say they approach them with any more irony or playfulness than what's in some of their own tracks. poor greg forever bein' doubted

Chilly Gonzales.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kc3I0Ent9Zg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kc3I0Ent9Zg

i had a dream last nite that i was selected to do the warmup dj set for daft punk's premiere live performance of Random Access Memories material and i was super nervous but spent a lot of time preparing and did an adequate job

then when daft punk took the stage it was a total disaster, like a real life "shreds" video. they got so embarrassed they tried to do "one more time" instead but that was a disaster too and they were booed off the stage

then i got home to my computer to see that instead of posting the next "the creators project" video they accidentally uploaded a video of george clinton high on crack instead

i woke up very anxious for daft punk

xpost

despite the fact that I don't like gonzales, that's an interesting take.
like, in the internet/singles download era, a "pop" album composed as a global piece of music, taking care of the keys of each track and the evolution of the whole thing !

I would *love* a dream like that

I've never even heard of this guy but I do think it's incredible that DP are so involved with things old-school like album sequencing and the progginess of key change bridges between tracks.

it's not that proggy! it's just basic musical sense

^, but i assume ARB was being sarcastic

maybe his phone likes to auto-correct "progressions" to "progginess"

I lap that stuff up. I could listen to that fellow talk basic musical theory all day. They should get Howard Goodall to do one next.

looking forward to the Paul Williams vid.

yeah cut the shit guys give us the paul williams vid

ooh, good vid

Two to one says we get Casablancas next.

(Not an amazing claim given that there's just him and Williams left, but it's a sure bet, you see.)

i demand omar hakim

^

where's Fonzi Thornton?

(Not an amazing claim given that there's just him and Williams left, but it's a sure bet, you see.)

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, April 30, 2013 4:35 PM (16 minutes ago) Bookmark

does DJ Falcon not count?

really like the little melody he plays from the Moroder track

I dunno, does he count? (I really don't know! Guess we'll see!)

loved the chilly vid but it kinda waas like this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcyufyBZLXc

I love that clip so goddamn much.

so glad it's not gonna be a saul williams vid

Get Lucky Edit
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hHSH9sJUEo

Fuck yeah a minor. The most louche of all the keys. La Ritournelle is in that, no?

Q review http://imgur.com/a/sYWEk

PROG DISCO

oh i just came, sorry

The first column of that review made me want to hate this album, the second half made me very excited indeed.

BELIEVE

I still dont like the cover. It seems like 2013 is the year for bad, lazy artwork.

All the anticipated records have had some halfassed artwork (yeah yeah yeahs, david bowie, justin timberlake, rihanna, mbv, strokes, azealia banks, phoenix, the knife, charli xcx, atoms for peace, daft punk). All lame.