Although the official release is still several days away, the new Daft Punk album feels like it's already arrived. This past week, fans were able to stream Random Access Memories via iTunes, and earlier this morning the French duo hosted the album's launch party in Wee Waa, Australia.
Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo may not have been in attendance, but that didn't stop devoted fans from making the trek to rural Australia to watch the epic unveiling. Wee Waa, generally a quiet place, has a measly population of 2,000 people, but 4,000 tickets were sold. Let's just say that the party shook things up a bit when thousands of avid fans inundated the dainty little town.
The launch didn't feature a live performance, sigh, but did consist of a gigantic LED dance floor and firework display. Although fans were hoping for the musical robots to descend from the heavens in their spaceship, the locals gave them the next best thing: Daft Punk sausages, "punk pies" and "techno treats."
There are plenty of videos from the launch party pouring in, making the rest of the world extremely jealous that they weren't there. However, the videos served their purpose. It's easy to see how amped fans were to be apart of such a monumental release. The energy is alive, and it only boosts the excitement of a subsequent live performance, which unfortunately may be a few years away, but will eventually happen.
Until then, enjoy the slew of fan videos from the launch party and prepare yourself for May 21.
Random Access Memories will hit stores May 21 via Daft Life Limited, an imprint of Columbia Records.