One of my favourite quotes is this one from Ernest Hemingway: The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one eighth of it being above water.
For me, this is the perfect analogy for Daft Punk's transcendental fourth studio album Random Access Memories. Released this week in 2013, its arrival was loudly trumpeted by the Class A addictive single Get Lucky - the visible part of Hemingway's iceberg. But it was what was going on beneath the surface that defines this record of unfathomable depths.
The beating heart of the album is Touch, a blissful eight-minute odyssey featuring composer/actor Paul Williams. He's written for both the Carpenters and The Muppets and somehow the magic of both is contained within.
To quote the original Guardian review, Touch "shifts from electronic noise to delirious high-camp disco by way of backwards tapes, a lengthy synth solo and a brass section that sounds as if it arrived in the studio direct from the orchestra pit of a Broadway musical". For me, it's the song of the century so far.
Elsewhere, the album is a luxurious compendium of thrills, spills and perfectly selected guests - a history lesson with Giorgio Moroder, five-star lounging with Julian Casablancas, mysterious electronica with Panda Bear and, of course, full-on pop magic with Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers.
For a band built on samples, they are in scarce supply here, but epic closer Contact launches with Australian pop band the Sherbs, before blasting into orbit with such fury that track co-producer DJ Falcon revealed that the studio speakers blew upon completion of the playback. Listen to it and you'll hear why.
A classic without compare, it remains in a category of one.
Paul Williams, what an extraordinary man. I didn't know he did this too!
Love this