Gonna do something a little bit different here. I'll be writing this post as I listen to each song, so it would be the most accurate "first impression" I can make. For a little bit of background, though, the only other album that I've listened to that falls under the same genre as Daft Punk's Discovery is Justice's Cross, which I absolutely adore. So, I'm setting myself up for high expectations for the more popular French DJ duo (I'm already surprised enough that there's more than one duo, in all honesty). Discovery does seem a bit long as a house album, though, so I'm curious as to how Daft Punk fills up that one hour.
I don't know if it's just the nostalgia rushing in, but One More Time is such a jammer. If I had to choose a song to define this genre of music, it would probably be this one.
Aerodynamic was also a very enjoyable song, though I wish the funky beats that were prominent in the beginning stayed for a little bit longer. The ending felt just a tiny bit too empty, in my opinion, but not enough for me to push the entire song away.
The simplicity of Digital Love goes well with the fact that it had actual lyrics (as any more beeps and boops might've made the track too cluttered), and the guitar riffs were a pleasant surprise considering the sound of the track before it.
Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger hit me with the second wave of nostalgia, and I must say that this song deserves being the big hit it was. Aged like fine wine.
Listening to Crescendolls made me surprised because I feel like a track like this would easily be eaten up by many music listeners alike, yet I've never seen anyone talk about it. It might be because of the repetitiveness of the track (you can obviously say that for the other tracks, but it's a bit more prominent here in my opinion), but a groovy beat like this must easily get a lot of people moving quickly.
Nightvision feels like some sort of interlude, especially considering the length of the track. I really like the ambience to it, but I wish it was longer.
Superheroes is the track where I start to recognize Daft Punk's mastery at, like GatoDelFuego mentioned, vocal sampling. I don't why I love how vocal sampling sounds in songs in general, but the way it's integrated in this track, as well as the other tracks with it, makes it quite the earworm.
Funnily enough, after I finished typing the blurb above, hearing the immediate vocal sampling in High Life couldn't have been better timing. This track in particular reminds me of that one trend a few years ago where people would make funky remixes of Japanese songs from the 80s and 90s (I don't know the specific name for the genre), and I used to really love them, so this track clicked with me pretty easily.
Something About Us is a pretty chill track that I enjoyed a lot as well. The bass and drums in particular alongside the vocals is probably my favorite part of the song, but the stronger use of more traditional instruments compared to other tracks alongside sounds that almost seem to emulate such instruments really make this track shine.
It honestly felt like that I already listened to Voyager earlier in the album, which is probably due to how many of the sounds and beats used in this song are similar to those from other songs. This isn't really a complaint, since it's still a pretty groovy song, but I wish it had something to distinguish itself more from the others. The bass is really hitting in this one, though.
Veridis Quo feels a bit too long considering the feeling and sound of the track, but perhaps that's what Daft Punk was going for here. I like the flute-like melody on top of the electronic beats (at least, I think that's the sound from a flute), but this was probably the first song where I got a bit bored as it played.
Short Circuit is definitely has the most unique sound out of the tracks so far, and while I can see some people seeing the beats and effects as a bit obnoxious, I personally like it. The glitchy sounds towards the end, though, do sound a bit weird and off-putting.
The vocal sampling in Face to Face really shines on the track and is definitely one of the best uses of it on the album. The singing on the track is also pretty unique compared to the other songs with lyrics, and while I guess I can see how it can detract from the sound of the album, it definitely makes it one of my favorite tracks.
My criticism of Too Long is, well, in the name; it's an enjoyable track, but not enjoyable enough for me to stick around for the ten minutes. Much of beginning in particular is too long of a build up, and having to wait around five minutes for the song to hit its high point doesn't feel that worth it for another listen. For a track as long as this one, it definitely would need more variety in its song too keep me interested.
It's hard for me to rate an album like this because calling it things like "repetitive" would be unfair for the purpose of the album. It definitely would help if I listened to it at a party or something rather than sitting at my desk doing schoolwork, but I can still see why this album is considered one of the definitive dance/house albums. Definitely an enjoyable first listen, and I will definitely return to some of these songs for another listen.
I don't know if it's just the nostalgia rushing in, but One More Time is such a jammer. If I had to choose a song to define this genre of music, it would probably be this one.
Aerodynamic was also a very enjoyable song, though I wish the funky beats that were prominent in the beginning stayed for a little bit longer. The ending felt just a tiny bit too empty, in my opinion, but not enough for me to push the entire song away.
The simplicity of Digital Love goes well with the fact that it had actual lyrics (as any more beeps and boops might've made the track too cluttered), and the guitar riffs were a pleasant surprise considering the sound of the track before it.
Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger hit me with the second wave of nostalgia, and I must say that this song deserves being the big hit it was. Aged like fine wine.
Listening to Crescendolls made me surprised because I feel like a track like this would easily be eaten up by many music listeners alike, yet I've never seen anyone talk about it. It might be because of the repetitiveness of the track (you can obviously say that for the other tracks, but it's a bit more prominent here in my opinion), but a groovy beat like this must easily get a lot of people moving quickly.
Nightvision feels like some sort of interlude, especially considering the length of the track. I really like the ambience to it, but I wish it was longer.
Superheroes is the track where I start to recognize Daft Punk's mastery at, like GatoDelFuego mentioned, vocal sampling. I don't why I love how vocal sampling sounds in songs in general, but the way it's integrated in this track, as well as the other tracks with it, makes it quite the earworm.
Funnily enough, after I finished typing the blurb above, hearing the immediate vocal sampling in High Life couldn't have been better timing. This track in particular reminds me of that one trend a few years ago where people would make funky remixes of Japanese songs from the 80s and 90s (I don't know the specific name for the genre), and I used to really love them, so this track clicked with me pretty easily.
Something About Us is a pretty chill track that I enjoyed a lot as well. The bass and drums in particular alongside the vocals is probably my favorite part of the song, but the stronger use of more traditional instruments compared to other tracks alongside sounds that almost seem to emulate such instruments really make this track shine.
It honestly felt like that I already listened to Voyager earlier in the album, which is probably due to how many of the sounds and beats used in this song are similar to those from other songs. This isn't really a complaint, since it's still a pretty groovy song, but I wish it had something to distinguish itself more from the others. The bass is really hitting in this one, though.
Veridis Quo feels a bit too long considering the feeling and sound of the track, but perhaps that's what Daft Punk was going for here. I like the flute-like melody on top of the electronic beats (at least, I think that's the sound from a flute), but this was probably the first song where I got a bit bored as it played.
Short Circuit is definitely has the most unique sound out of the tracks so far, and while I can see some people seeing the beats and effects as a bit obnoxious, I personally like it. The glitchy sounds towards the end, though, do sound a bit weird and off-putting.
The vocal sampling in Face to Face really shines on the track and is definitely one of the best uses of it on the album. The singing on the track is also pretty unique compared to the other songs with lyrics, and while I guess I can see how it can detract from the sound of the album, it definitely makes it one of my favorite tracks.
My criticism of Too Long is, well, in the name; it's an enjoyable track, but not enjoyable enough for me to stick around for the ten minutes. Much of beginning in particular is too long of a build up, and having to wait around five minutes for the song to hit its high point doesn't feel that worth it for another listen. For a track as long as this one, it definitely would need more variety in its song too keep me interested.
It's hard for me to rate an album like this because calling it things like "repetitive" would be unfair for the purpose of the album. It definitely would help if I listened to it at a party or something rather than sitting at my desk doing schoolwork, but I can still see why this album is considered one of the definitive dance/house albums. Definitely an enjoyable first listen, and I will definitely return to some of these songs for another listen.
