As someone born in 1991, with a sister and upwards of a dozen acquaintances born in 1993 seeing "1993-2021" is fucking me up big time
Daft Punk, one of the most influential and popular groups to emerge in the past 30 years, have announced their retirement via a video titled "Epilogue" posted Monday morning. The duo's longtime publicist, Kathryn Frazier, officially confirmed the split to Variety and declined to provide further details.
The eight-minute clip begins with a scene from the duo's 2006 film "Electroma" that features the pair, Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo --- who for many years have concealed their features behind a robot concept--- walking around the desert, wearing in their familiar space helmets and leather jackets. After a few moments, one of the members looks at the other, removes his jacket and reveals an energy pack on the back. The other touches a button on the pack. The first member walks away quickly, and then explodes. The scene cuts to a sunset, or possibly a sunrise, as a choral version of the group's song "Touch" plays. The song is from the duo's 2013 "Random Access Memories" album, which in many ways was a culmination of their career. The album, which included the global hit single "Get Lucky" won the Grammy Award for Best Album the following year. The duo has largely kept a low profile since then, with their most prominent work being a collaboration with the Weeknd on two songs from his 2016 album "Starboy," the title track and "I Feel It Coming." While their rep declined to say whether the duo will continue working together under different names or whether other new projects are in the works, it seems likely, considering the group's famously contrarian and convention-mocking history, that they will continue to release music, videos and whatever other projects strike their fancy. It is even possible that this announcement could be the beginning of a new project.
Composed of Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter, French electronic duo, Daft Punk has retired/exploded after nearly 30 years of making music as depicted in their last video "Epilogue". The two met in 1987 while in school in Paris and originally began performing together as an indie-rock band named Darlin' (after the Beach Boys song) with future Phoenix guitarist/keyboardist and fellow Frenchman, Laurent Brancowitz.
I have never been a big EDM guy or claim to be a Daft Punk super fan, but as a blogger who loves the art of music, I have to pay my respects to the forefathers of a genre. I just never really got into that genre. TBH I used to bash it when I was younger, I was one of those "DJs just press buttons" ass holes as if guitar players don't just "touch strings" and Tame Impala isn't one of my favorite "bands". We don't need to unwrap the true POS pre-2018ish Dozo was right now. Vineyard Nights singer DJ Bean's thought's on Daft Punk explain my stance marvelously; not super into them, but can appreciate them.
Many people (classic blogger speak when you have no concrete examples, but generally have an idea of something) credit Daft Punk with popularizing EDM. As someone whose dance moves make Dr. Loveless look like Usher, that genre just wasn't for me. Not to go full music hardo, but I can actually vaguely remember Daft Punk breaking onto the scene. When I was in 4th grade we had a show and tell day with CD's and someone actually brought in a copy of Discovery. "One More Time" was so huge that fuckin' elementary schoolers knew it. Since my brain makes no sense I can also remember three other featured CD's from that musical show and tell were Blink 182's Take Off Your Pants and Jacket, Alien Ant Farm's ANThology and Pink's M!ssundaztood.
Until super recently, like maaaybe three weeks ago, I had never heard the album in its entirety. One of my roommates has the vinyl for Discovery and all three of us vibed tf out to it within the last month. 
(proof my roommate owns a copy of that album)
I mean no disrespect, but to me, Daft Punk was sort of like the electronic version of Santana since many of their songs (that I knew) featured someone else singing.
When I think of Daft Punk, after Kraft Punk, Random Access Memories is what comes to mind. That was THE album of 2013 (literally, it won Album of the Year at the 2014 Grammys) and 2013 was my first 21 summer so it holds a special place in my heart. "Get Lucky" was on at every bar, probably four to nine times a night. To steal a phrase that wasn't as prevalent back then "that shit slapped". It was everywhere. Last year, Rolling Stone named it the 295th greatest album of all-time. R.A.M. saw Daft Punk collaborate with artists like Niles Rodgers, Pharrell and Julian Casablancas, but I swear these dudes have worked with everybody under the sun. My personal favorites collabs are probably "Starboy" and "I Feel It Coming" from The Weeknd's 2016 album of the same name as the former, but "Get Lucky" is pretty close to a perfect song. They've been featured and sampled in countless songs too; perhaps most notably Kanye West's 2007 smash "Stronger". Plus, the only LCD Soundsystem song I know references Daft Punk in the title. From what I've learned from friends today, Daft Punk hasn't released an album since and haven't toured in even longer, but as of now Daft Punk is no more; even though many people (oops I did it again) don't believe this is the last we'll hear of them. Not to recycle a reference that you like didn't read on Friday, but the music these guys made over the years; I don't really listen to it. But the fact that they did it, I respect that. Congratulations on a fantastic career, Daft Punk. They didn't break up, they retired!
P.S.
Kraft Punk cannot die. Even if I spam it into the ground online, but I fucking LOVE Kraft Punk. It may be my favorite Eric Andre bit of all time. Makes me laugh every time. Fuck cringeworthy bios like "I'm just a Jim looking for a Pam", whenever I return to online dating I'm putting "Will you be my cheese wife?"
Credit to me for getting 5 likes (as 6:51PM est 2/22/21) with a typo.
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