Building on the foundation of the excellent Homework, Daft Punk adds pop elements and scored a minor hit on the follow-up Discovery. Much like Fatboy Slim, this is electronica meets pop, as opposed to the flat-out techno and thumping beats of Homework, but it's just as good as that effort.
"Aerodynamic" is much better, with a fuzzed electric guitar in the middle and a bit of trippiness to it that carries the song. "Digital Love" is a funny attempt at one computer wooing another, apparently, while "Harder Better Faster Stronger," the song of many commercials, is loaded with vocoder-enhanced "lyrics" and a catchy '80s style beat. Also, "Veridis Quo" is sort of a new-age-meets-pop techno blend that manages to be atmospheric at the same time.
Only three songs go over the five-minute mark. The production is crisp and clean, most of the samples and loops are catchy and there is enough variety to keep even the most hardcore techno fan interested.
But not everything works. "Short Circuit" is annoying, "Crescendolls" goes nowhere fast and "High Life" sounds good for a while but gets old. However, the boys redeem themselves with "Face to Face," the only real "song" on the album in that it has a chorus, sung lyrics and a point. Other highlights include the driving "Voyager" and some good keyboard work on "Superheroes," as well as an ambient little piece called "Nightvision" that ends just in time. "Too Long" is just that and ends the album on a real negative note.
Overall, this is a good place for the novice techno fan to begin and has enough interesting moments to make it worth putting in rotation every now and again.