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Daft Punk - RAM lOTl - They're nice robots, they chose to stay.

S

Shaneus

Member
Nyx said:
Probably the worst album I'll hear this year.

Be honest, if the exact same album was released by Unknown Band A, no one would have cared.

Very generic beats, way too much use of the vocoder and just too many vocals, hardly electronic, what happened to the French house duo that released Homework?

But hey, to each his own, for all fans I hope the album will last for years.
Click to expand...
I'm like a metronome in thinking that I really like some parts of it, and what your opinion is. And I think you're right... it feels like there are a lot of people who like this because they think they should because it's Daft Punk. Which I don't have a problem with in most instances... there's a lot of music I only ever listened to because a friend liked it, but I was able to work out why I thought it was good after a few listens. But a lot of people seem to be "Screw you, this is fucking awesome" or whatever, without being able to explain why.

And I don't think that the songs I don't like immediately will grow on me over time, either. I can tell that Get Lucky isn't going to get better because I just think there's too much vocal that takes away from the music underneath, Motherboard is just kinda flat and boring and Julian Casablancas should've had his "real" voice used rather than something that was filtered to shit (see this for an example)

I like the parts of the album, yes. Do I like it as a Daft Punk album? No. Do I like it as an album as a whole, regardless of who it's by? I don't think I do.

Nyx said:
Very generic beats, way too much use of the vocoder and just too many vocals, hardly electronic, what happened to the French house duo that released Homework?
Click to expand...
Honestly, *exactly* what I thought, at least as far as the vocoders and vocals go. I'm willing to forsake that there's less "electronic" in it and whilst I applaud them for sticking to their guns in that regard, I can't help but think the album would've been better if they didn't.

Apologies to all for this post being all over the shop. I have a cold and I'm not thinking straight... though I still think I covered all that I was hoping to in this post.
 
B

bomma_man

Member
peterb0y said:
Disco is very cheesy at times. Lounge, imho, is also undeniably cheesy. That isn't a criticism, its just sort of the genre- and for me it works and excels when it leans into the cheese and turns up the brightness. For me, the strongest moments on RAM do the same.
Click to expand...

Agreed.

I adore disco because, not in spite, of that balance it walks.

I wish the whole album was disco honestly.
 
M

MikeHaggar

Member
peterb0y said:
Its not reaaaally a disco album. It has heavy lounge influences dips into prog at times, plus there is a really cinematic undercurrent to whole thing. A lot slower and more ballady than you'd expect from a straight disco album.
Click to expand...

it's absolutely not a disco album. it's a collection of songs that were inspired by music they like from the 70's and (early?) 80's. and it covers a wide-range of styles. hence the 'random' in random access memories.
 
T

tanuki

Member
Shaneus said:
Julian Casablancas should've had his "real" voice used rather than something that was filtered to shit .
Click to expand...

Conversely, as someone who doesn't think much of Julian Casablancas as a vocalist, I think the vocoder and auto tune on his voice is fantastic. It makes the song for me, especially those little descending lines in the chorus. So good.
 
P

PBY

Banned
MikeHaggar said:
it's absolutely not a disco album. it's a collection of songs that were inspired by music they like from the 70's and (early?) 80's. and it covers a wide-range of styles. hence the 'random' in random access memories.
Click to expand...

Damn- I totally missed the connection between the title and the the music thematically. Thanks.
 
O

olympia

Member
Shaneus said:
Apologies to all for this post being all over the shop. I have a cold and I'm not thinking straight... though I still think I covered all that I was hoping to in this post.
Click to expand...

It's cool dude. I really like the album but I'm far from decided on it. It certainly has flaws but I thought it's a very thoughtful and well-crafted album.

peterb0y said:
Its not reaaaally a disco album. It has heavy lounge influences dips into prog at times, plus there is a really cinematic undercurrent to whole thing. A lot slower and more ballady than you'd expect from a straight disco album.
Click to expand...

MikeHaggar said:
it's absolutely not a disco album. it's a collection of songs that were inspired by music they like from the 70's and (early?) 80's. and it covers a wide-range of styles. hence the 'random' in random access memories.
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's not a disco album, but it certainly is a tribute to disco.
 
F

Fjordson

Member
MikeHaggar said:
it's absolutely not a disco album. it's a collection of songs that were inspired by music they like from the 70's and (early?) 80's. and it covers a wide-range of styles. hence the 'random' in random access memories.
Click to expand...
Uh...this seems so obvious, but I didn't even make that connection :lol nice connection.
 
D

DominoKid

Member
tanuki said:
Conversely, as someone who doesn't think much of Julian Casablancas as a vocalist, I think the vocoder and auto tune on his voice is fantastic. It makes the song for me, especially those little descending lines in the chorus. So good.
Click to expand...

agreed

MikeHaggar said:
it's absolutely not a disco album. it's a collection of songs that were inspired by music they like from the 70's and (early?) 80's. and it covers a wide-range of styles. hence the 'random' in random access memories.
Click to expand...

iWokt3zurwldL.gif

goddamn i feel stupid.
 
S

Servbot24

Banned
Going in for my second listen... the magic of it wore off incredibly fast :(

This album is so scientifically referential I wonder if it's even possible to love the music more than the fact that I'm listening to it
 
M

MNC

Member
Multiple listens, Album is at most 'good'.

Give Life Back To Music
Giorgio By Moroder
Touch
Get Lucky
Motherboard

These are the onle ones I care about. I applaud Daft Punk for constantly trying new things, and we got some new good songs out of it :)
 
P

PBY

Banned
Servbot24 said:
Going in for my second listen... the magic of it wore off incredibly fast :(

This album is so scientifically referential I wonder if it's even possible to love the music more than love the fact that I'm listening to it
Click to expand...
You've hit on why I'm having a hard time nailing down my feelings for it.
 
M

Mr_Appleby

Member
MikeHaggar said:
the song in no way conveys that his words should be used as a reference for the goals of this album. the song is about him and he's talking about himself.
Click to expand...

I was (clearly, i thought) talking in context of that song where the music does correlate to the words. Go to the bit where he talks about putting the click on tape, and listen to the music, that's where it works best. nor do i think it's a coincidence that one moment he talks about not following the rules of correct music and next the music gets noisier. it's a clever idea but i think it could have been done a lot better, and that it's a shame it wasn't. and that mostly sums up my opinions of the whole affair.
 
S

Shaneus

Member
peterb0y said:
You've hit on why I'm having a hard time nailing down my feelings for it.
Click to expand...
Pretty much. Some songs have kind of improved for me (Fragments, for example) but the others just don't seem to get better, unlike the vast majority of Daft Punk songs created prior to this album, regardless of genre.

I like that as polarising as the album obviously is, there's no-one who's trying to call out anyone else's opinion as bullshit or uneducated or whatever. If there's one thing that's unifying about it, it's that no-one's opinion about it is wrong (unless it's purely hyperbolic, like some of the "professional" reviews I've read).

<3
 
M

MikeHaggar

Member
Mr_Appleby said:
I was (clearly, i thought) talking in context of that song where the music does correlate to the words. Go to the bit where he talks about putting the click on tape, and listen to the music, that's where it works best. nor do i think it's a coincidence that one moment he talks about not following the rules of correct music and next the music gets noisier. it's a clever idea but i think it could have been done a lot better, and that it's a shame it wasn't. and that mostly sums up my opinions of the whole affair.
Click to expand...

when you listed your problems with it you criticized the song that follows for going against giorgio's comments. that was the reason i made that comment. no hard feelings or anything, just really enjoying discussing the album right now.
 
N

Net_Wrecker

Member
"I don't know whether that does you any good, but there's something out there..."

DUN DUN DUN DUN DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN DUUUUUUUUUUUUN DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN


Contact is amazing.
 
S

Semblance

shhh Graham I'm still compiling this Radiant map
Gave it a whirl earlier and so very little actually stuck. Felt like a number of these tracks were going in one ear and then out the other. Maybe this'll grow on me, but woof. I didn't expect this at all.
 
S

Servbot24

Banned
Anyone feel that the music and vocals on Lose Yourself to Dance feel very disconnected? Pharrell sounds like he's trying to get the music stomping and it just... doesn't care.
 
R

remnant

Banned
I can understand the disappointment if your someone who casually taps into daft punk. You like robot rock or stronger, but don't really delve into their music. You know them more for their amazingly loud live shows than actually sitting down and listening to an album. If so, than i can see why this album is so hard to like. It's a hard left turn, a much softer, sensual album than anything they made before. This album, amazingly reminds me a lot of Beck's Sea Change.

That said, it's a fantastic album
much like Sea change
it's bold and very unique. I've always thought of Daft Punk as being the Radiohead of EDM. Always being a little ahead, a little bolder and possessing amazing ability to really delve into and explore whatever the hell it is they want. I think they do that here, and for me it works.

it's going to be interesting to see their live shows based off of this album.
 
F

Fjordson

Member
Servbot24 said:
Anyone feel that the music and vocals on Lose Yourself to Dance feel very disconnected? Pharrell sounds like he's trying to get the music stomping and it just... doesn't care.
Click to expand...
I like the music, don't care for Pharrell's vocals.

aznpxdd said:
Yep love it. Is it just me or does it reminds anyone else of Something About Us?
Click to expand...
Haha, it definitely does. I think it's my second favourite track on the whole album, love it.
 
O

okdakor

Member
MikeHaggar said:
it's absolutely not a disco album. it's a collection of songs that were inspired by music they like from the 70's and (early?) 80's. and it covers a wide-range of styles. hence the 'random' in random access memories.
Click to expand...

You're right, it's the sounds of their youth (they're from 74-75), not only disco. I'm a bit younger, but it's definitely this, a big mish mash of "memories". And I guess it's why I had these feelings of almost déjà-vu during the listening, the album has the sound (and cheezyness) of good memories from my youth. It's certainly related, I caught myself thinking "I know that song" at some points, only to realize that it's actually not true... it's familiar, they captured the spirit perfectly.
But it's not just nostalgia triggered feelings. There are ambitious and epic tracks, the album is really good.

And, this album is made to be listened on vinyl... Like when the record player was in your parent's living room.
 
D

Dave Meltzer

Banned
Servbot24 said:
Anyone feel that the music and vocals on Lose Yourself to Dance feel very disconnected? Pharrell sounds like he's trying to get the music stomping and it just... doesn't care.
Click to expand...

Williams is really bad. He can get away with it on Get Lucky to an extent but he can't on Lose Yourself To Dance.
 
D

dmshaposv

Member
The song that is absolutely not doing anything for me is Game of love and within. Thankfully within is short, but GoL overstays it welcome.

Everything else is good.

Doin it right is a good song, and I really like the build up then panda bear's halting delivery kills it for me.

Fragments of Time is possibly the cheesiest song of the bunch but works.

Highlight is definitely Give life back to music (love the guitar on this), Giorgio, Get Lucky, Lose yourself to dance, motherboard and contact.
 
O

olympia

Member
K I'm fully on board with Fragments being the favorite song of this album

familiar faces i've never seen/
living the gold and the silver dream/
making me feel like I'm 17
 
D

Dave Meltzer

Banned
dmshaposv said:
The song that is absolutely not doing anything for me is Game of love and within. Thankfully within is short, but GoL overstays it welcome.

Everything else is good.

Doin it right is a good song, and I really like the build up then panda bear's halting delivery kills it for me.

Fragments of Time is possibly the cheesiest song of the bunch but works.

Highlight is definitely Give life back to music (love the guitar on this), Giorgio, Get Lucky, Lose yourself to dance, motherboard and contact.
Click to expand...

Fragments of Time sounds like the theme to some lost 80s time travel based movie. It's great.

I don't know who the guy singing is but he should have stole Pharell's songs.
 
R

relaxor

what?
Let's see this is pretty darn good. I'm hearing several transcendent moments, more than enough hooks for the kiddies to like. Daft Punk are wearing their heart right on their sleeve at all times but it feels triumphant to me. I like the Casablancas track, Paul Williams song was righteous, first two were kind of classic DP - one of the many similarities this album has to MBV, I liked that country song near the end that thing just got cheesier and cheesier, thought the Synth track near the beginning slayed, last song was a little obvious. These are solid, foundational Daft Punk tracks, and the ones with guests are brand new.
 
D

dmshaposv

Member
Dave Meltzer said:
Fragments of Time sounds like the theme to some lost 80s time travel based movie. It's great.

I don't know who the guy singing is but he should have stole Pharell's songs.
Click to expand...

Yeah, much of the reason why fragments of time works for me is Todd Edward's vocals.
There is a strong sense of nostalgia, in the way he has sung it.

In comparison, vocalists like Pharell and Panda Bear disappoint. Pharell is better on Lose yourself... than Get lucky, btw.
 
D

dmshaposv

Member
Also, Nile Rodgers throughout the album is outstanding.

He's definitely half the reason all the guitar licks/hooks make this a great progressive-funk-disco record.
 
B

Burli

Pringo
Oh dear, predominantly negative responses to the album wherever I look, I haven't listened yet but I really needed this to be a good one..
 
D

dmshaposv

Member
relaxor said:
For sure, I did not like the Panda Bear song much. That halting delivery on the beat is just ... not for me.
Click to expand...

The low-quality leak the other day sounded much nicer because it got cut before panda bear's halting verses.

Such a dissapointment, because the underlying music is great. As is the combined harmony with his voice and the "doin it right" vocoder vocals.

Burli said:
Oh dear, predominantly negative responses to the album wherever I look, I haven't listened yet but I really needed this to be a good one..
Click to expand...

Its a very good album. Definitely ambitious.

After two listens I can confidently say its middle tier daft punk. Discovery> Homework >>> Alive and RAM >>> Human after all.
 
S

Servbot24

Banned
Panda and Daft Punk are just not a good mix. The underlying music does have kind of an Animal Collective plod to it though.

Listening to Discovery after this is super refreshing, which is not a good sing when you're supposed to be making the music of the future
 
R

relaxor

what?
dmshaposv said:
The low-quality leak the other day sounded much nicer because it got cut before panda bear's halting verses.

Such a dissapointment, because the underlying music is great. As is the combined harmony with his voice and the "doin it right" vocoder vocals.

Its a very good album. Definitely ambitious.

After two listens I can confidently say its middle tier daft punk. Discovery> Homework >>> Alive and RAM >>> Human after all.
Click to expand...

Yeah I dig Panda Bear's stuff in general but this was too artificial to be not-vocoded and too human to be so lacking in pizazz.

Oh and I don't think I was ebullient enough in the above review. Touch, I even remember the title because of its simple story, was marvelous! Paul Williams brings such a propulsive energy to the music he's attached to, ecstatic and to me the beating heart of the album. (The coda may be a little much though)
 
P

Pikma

Banned
I'm waiting til my CD arrives but reading your opinions so far, my hype is starting to deflate. Can't wait to see them play live at last though.

I'm taking this btw:
avatar15veadr.jpg
 
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