Giorgio Moroder. Does that ring name a bell? If you happened to listen to Daft Punk’s masterpiece release Random Access Memories (2013), then it should. Track number three on the electronic duo’s latest album is titled “Giorgio by Moroder” and it’s an ode to the Italian music producer, songwriter, and DJ. Moroder’s enchanting accent consumes the first half of the track as the highly influential synth-pop-disco-electronica artist describes the early days of his career which peaked in the 1970s and bled into the ’80s. “In the beginning, I wanted to do an album with the sounds of the 50s, the sounds of the 60s, of the 70s, and then have a sound of the future.” And so he began to experiment with the synthesizer, which he describes in Daft Punk’s song as “the sound of the future.” He ends the monologue with this: “Once you want to free your mind about a concept of harmony and music being correct, you can do whatever you want. So nobody told me what to do and there was no preconception of what to do.”
Flashforward to 2015, and Giorgio Moroder is putting the final touches on his first studio album in 30 years. “Daft Punk are the reason why I am here,” he told Rolling Stone. Following the success of RAM, Moroder was inspired to DJ parties again at the ripe age of 74. “I noticed that the audiences were so young, like 18 to 40,” he says. “I felt so young. I mean, I’m 74, but I still felt like part of this young generation. Some of those guys knew my songs and were not even born when they came out. It’s nice to hear a 20-year-old guy or girl sing along with the lyrics.” This would inspire a new track called “74 is the New 24” featured on Moroder’s upcoming record Déjà Vu.
The video embedded above includes snippets of every song included on Déjà Vu, out June 12. Moroder managed to snag big talent for his long-anticipated release. Sia, Kelis, Foxes, Marlene, Charli XCX, Matthew Koma, Mikky Ekko, Kylie Minogue, and Britney Spears have all lent their vocal talents and the overall vibe here is electric. Mash play to preview the album, and head over to Moroder’s YouTube channel to hear the previously released singles in full.