Daft Punk's Thomas Bangalter finally removes his helmet to reveal himself and release completely different music
Rhiannon Ingle
Featured Image Credit: Abaca Press / Alamy Stock Photo
Daft Punk's Thomas Bangalter has finally removed his helmet to reveal himself as he gears up to release completely different music than he's ever done before.
Bangalter, who makes up one half of the famed music duo, is completely reinventing himself after nearly three decades of being one of the figureheads of electronic music.
The French artist seems to be retiring his iconic helmet as prepares to release his latest musical project, Mythologies.
You can check out the new music below:
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Daft Punk pretty much ruled the 1990s after cementing themselves as a driving force behind the French house movement - combining the elements of house music with funk, disco, rock and pop.
The pair, also compromised of Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, released banger after banger from their more recent stuff like 'Get Lucky' featuring Pharrell Williams all the way back to 'Da Funk' and 'Around the World' from the 90s.
Between them, the two stars collected an impressive arsenal of accolades including six Grammy Awards with four of those received in just in 2014 alone.
Daft Punk went on to split in 2021 - bringing their 28-year-long journey to an end.
Speaking of the decision and why he wanted to create a distance between himself from the heavily technology-influenced music, Bangalter told the BBC: "Daft Punk was a project that blurred the line between reality and fiction with these robot characters.
"It was a very important point for me and Guy-Manuel to not spoil the narrative while it was happening."
While admitting that he loves technology, Bangalter revealed: "I’m somehow terrified of the nature of the relationship between the machines and ourselves.
"Now the story has ended, it felt interesting to reveal part of the creative process that is very much human-based and not algorithmic of any sort."
It seems that we've finally come to an end of an era, as Bangalter is now working on a score for traditional symphony orchestra - quite a stark contrast from his funky electronica that launched him to fame.
Speaking to the New York Times, Bangalter said there's 'nothing sensational' about his composing work behind Mythologies - a ballet that premiered last summer in Bordeaux, France.
"It’s down to earth," he continued, "my relationship to physical appearance that I feel now."
This new project is the first that Bangalter has embarked on since Daft Punk dissolved two years back and sees the musician work on a 90-minute instrumental score for traditional symphony orchestra.
"With electronic music, it’s so hard and it takes so much time to infuse emotion in the machines," Bangalter revealed.
"So to write a chord or a melody and have the performers - human beings - play it and have this instant emotional quality to it, is really quite exhilarating.
"It’s not the fight you have against machines."
Talk about a rebrand.
However, it is important to note that Bangalter has been spotted here and there without his iconic headwear.
The musician has previously been seen at a film premiere in France in 2015 as well as spinning the decks at the Winter Music Conference in Miami way back when in 1999 with no futuristic helmet in sight.
Daft Punk also took to LA’s Mayan Theatre in 1997 for the extremely rare occasion where neither party of the elusive duo performed with the helmet for a full set.
Nevertheless, when Bangalter stepped out for a bow after the premiere of his new ballet, it was the first time many had seen him without his traditional headgear, as his career begins to take a completely unexpected direction.