"Bonjour! Or should I say hello? Well, doesn't really matter. I'm Thomas, Thomas Bangalter. Nice to have you here. But don't touch anything."
"Hey, stop being so rude. He's a new guy, probably wants to see how we do some silly music. Right?" Guy-Manuel asks.
"Haha, anyway. Enjoy your journey!" Thomas and Guy-Manuel say in unison.
At some small studio in Paris, 1992...
"Okay, we finally finished the demos. Do you think people will like them?" Guy-Manuel asks.
"Yeah, I'm sure. Its all just experimenting. I kinda feel like we could make a band of sorts." Thomas replies.
"Oh yeah, we could do that! We just need a third guy for the drums....do you know anyone?" Guy-Manuel says.
"Well, I have a friend in school, named Laurent. He can play drums just fine. Should I ask him?" Thomas says.
"Laurent? You mean Laurent Brancowitz?" Guy-Manuel says.
"Yes. Let me call him."
(After some time, they all meet and do some studio sessions together)
"This could work, actually! But what should we call our band? Nothing too crazy, I think." Laurent says.
"You remember Beach Boys?" Thomas asks.
"Yeah, they had a couple hits. Like Darlin'." Guy-Manuel says.
"Wait....what if we call ourselves Darlin'? It's pretty simple, and kinda fitting." Laurent says.
"Okay, Darlin' sounds pretty good. Let's keep it!" Thomas says.
(Soon enough, they got their first singles released on a Shimmies in Super 8 by Duophonic Records)
"Hey guys, look! We got some reviews already!" Thomas says.
"By who? That Melody Maker?" Guy-Manuel asks.
"Yeah. Some people like our stuff while some....don't. There's actually this one review that caught my eye. Its by Dave Jennings." Thomas replies.
"Dave Jennings?? He's a professional reviewer!" Laurent says.
"Yes. But listen up, I'll read it out loud." Thomas says.
"So these guys are some band named Darlin'. Not sure what they are trying to be, but it is not good. Just some daft punky thrash, that's what it is."
They all burst out laughing.
"I can't! This is just so funny to me! Hahahaha!" Thomas says while trying to hold back laughter.
"At least he's honest!" Laurent says and laughs as well.
"Haha...well, no wonder there were barely any listeners." Guy-Manuel says.
"Guys, I don't know....maybe this isn't going to work. I think...I might have to leave Darlin'." Laurent says.
While still being surprised, both Thomas and Guy-Manuel understand the situation.
"Its all up to you, man. We had a good time, despite all the hate." Guy-Manuel says.
"Yeah, true. I think there's just so many bands like us out there, which explains why our music doesn't stand out. But we aren't giving up on music. You should also keep going." Thomas says.
"I will, guys. We'll keep in touch, okay?" Laurent says while packing his stuff.
Laurent walks to the front door, and is about to leave.
"Yeah, we'll keep in touch! Good luck!" Thomas says.
"Don't give up, and best of luck!" Guy-Manuel says.
"Thanks guys! Bye!" Laurent says and leaves.
The duo sits in silence for a moment.
"So, what now?" Guy-Manuel asks.
"I might have an idea. I got a good bunch of money on me, due to my recent birthday. Maybe we could buy some electronic instruments, and try to do stuff with them?" Thomas says.
"I mean...sure. But isn't that type of music a bit underground-ish here?" Guy-Manuel asks.
"Yeah, but there's so much possibilities. We just have to change our band name." Thomas says.
"What would that be?" Guy-Manuel asks.
"Let's call ourselves Daft Punk."
YOU ARE READING
Daft Punk: Mind of A Robot
Non-FictionGuy-Manuel De-Homem Christo and Thomas Bangalter - two dudes that totally changed the way where electronic music was going back in the day. These guys were not recognized by their faces, but by their robotic personas instead. This is their story, at...
