A Daft Punk collaborator has revealed the duo are sitting on a lost album that would have served as a follow-up to 2013’s ‘Random Access Memories‘.
Quinn, the session drummer who worked with the duo – comprised of Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel – on the duo’s final album, opened up about his experience working on ‘Random Access Memories’ in an interview with the student-run media organization alt.news 26:46.
“On ‘RAM’, I was pretty much the last person to come in on the record,” he said (per Consequence Of Sound). “The next record [Daft Punk] were working on, I was the very first person.”
Quinn went on to share that he was able to witness Daft Punk at the beginning stages of the songwriting and recording process. “Thomas [Bangalter] had this keyboard, and actually had a computer program, and he was just experimenting. He was just hitting things. We were literally just trying to get vibes across. He was on the beautiful mixing board in there. I’m out in the studio, I started on my weird drum set… Whatever he would give me, I would answer and try to come up with something.”
“That unnamed record, I think will be a lot of spontaneous things,” he said, speaking about the LP that would serve as the successor of ‘Random Access Memories’. “I remember playing this one thing — my piano board, the insides of a piano — I put my kick pedal on the strings and played it like a kick drum. I remember those guys really loving that. I don’t know if it’ll make the record. It was the craziest, weird-sounding things.”
Speaking about the status of the album, Quinn said: “I keep checking in. I’m told they’re working on it. It’s coming out of the locker. I asked Daft Punk permission to talk about it for another article, ’cause they’re very secretive as you know. And the greatest guys.”
Last year, NME explored how ‘Random Access Memories’ became the most hyped album of its era in a special retrospective feature. In a five-star review of the album, NME shared: “By assembling a cast of their favourite musicians and delving into their adolescent memories, Daft Punk have created something as emotionally honest as any singer-songwriter confessional – and a lot more fun to dance to. Go out and rejoice: there’s something new under the sun.”
The French house pioneers announced their breakup back in 2021. The pair have since spoken about the breakup in recent years, with Bangalter admitting he was “relieved” over the way that the band ended.
“The question I ask more myself is why we did end it rather than how it could last for so long,” he said. “It’s a lot like a story or mini saga – sometimes there’s a TV show that has a special place in people’s hearts and it keeps that place, and it runs for one, two, three, four, five, sometimes 10 seasons.
“There’s a moment where it ends and I think it’s actually interesting to have this opportunity to start, have the middle and to end it… [I was] relieved and happy to look back and say: ‘OK, we didn’t mess it up too much’.”
In other news, Bangalter recently revealed that he once bought a ticket from a tout to his own Daft Punk gig outside of the show.
He was also recently announced as the composer of the DAAAAAALÍ film soundtrack. The news was announced on Instagram on January 9 via Ed Banger Records (Justice, Breakbot), who will release the soundtrack on their label.
Additionally, Daft Punk released the drumless edition of ‘Random Access Memories’ last November.
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