Daft Punk
L.A. Sports Arena, Los Angeles, CA
July 21, 2007

V and i seem to regard trips down south as mere inconveniences these days, as we're finding ourselves making the six hour drive more and more frequently for less-and-less necessary tasks. Last weekend, we undertook the trek in order to see Daft Punk on their 2007 "Alive" tour. Never mind that we'll be seeing them again in a few days in Berkeley. Suffice to say, i wasn't incredibly excited to put that much effort into seeing the French electronica standards, despite their show-stealing performance at day 1 of Coachella in 2006. We spent the day hanging out with Naomi and Phil, taking in a play, some Pinkberry yogurt, and a swank Ciudad dinner, before finally committing to driving over to the L.A. Sports Arena. We arrived after openers Ratatat had finished, a regrettable occurence but not one we particularly mourned. After surveying the merch booth, i hung out in the hallway while V used the facilities. While standing against the wall, a showgoer approached me and offered me a hot dog he had wrapped in his hand. Because i was stuffed as well as because i feared what was really in the wrapper, i declined. He then explained that he was trying to do some drugs, and needed to get rid of his food beforehand. Aha. Still, no thanks. After this prelude, we entered the loge seating, said hi to friend Michelle and Frank, then got seats near the top of the arena. The duo emerged around 11pm, clad in their stereotypical space suits and helmets and standing atop the electric pyramid they had used at Coachella. After a brief crescendo, the beats and beeps of "Robot Rock" from their latest album Human After All began thumping, along with an intricate lightshow from the lattice of triangles flanking the pyramid. Despite my usual lethargy and apathy at shows, i was up bouncing along with the thousands of other ravers in the venue. The energy was maintained for the duration of the set, with the lightshow expanding to gradually include the pyramid outline and then faces. Particularly resonant was the rainbow that shone on a rim encircling the arena during the classic "Around the World". Old favorite "One More Time" popped up in several spots in the mix, with the central breakdown swapped out in favor of the finger tapping guitar riff of "Aerodynamic". The industrial-themed-in-lyric-but-not-in-music "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" as well as the more recent "Technologic" and "Prime Time of Your Life" also figured prominently in the set. After an hour and a half of fervent dancing, the boys performed the climactic "Da Funk" and subsequently exited the stage to thunderous applause, making the shape of a pyramid with their hands while walking off. They returned five minutes later to perform an additional two songs. Most impressive about the encore was that when they reappeared, the lines of their suits and helmets were now lit in red, making the pair look like the villains from Tron. After the end of their final song "Human After All", the two slowly turned around, revealing that the familiar Daft Punk logo was also lit in red on their backs. They then descended the pyramid and brought the curtain down on a mesmerizing show. I'd gone from being disinterested in driving down for the show to anxiously awaiting seeing them in a week at the Greek Theater.

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