The truth about Daft Punk Helmets - Why do they wear them ?
Why does Daft Punk wear helmets ?
Daft Punk are certainly the most iconic duo of recent years. Not only because of their music, but also because of their strong artistic identity. Their desire to stand out from the crowd and their thirst for anonymity led them to wear helmets.
The duo's origins
Their story began in high school, when Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo became friends. But more than that, they are above all music fans. For Thomas, this passion was passed on to him by his father Daniel Vangarde, real name Daniel Bangalter. He was a music producer in the 70s and 80s. It was this heritage that introduced Thomas to funk, disco and pop music.
Firsts steps as professional musicians
The Parisians formed their first rock band, before turning to electro with the rise of raves. In 1993, they formed Daft Punk, named after a newspaper review of their Darlin' project. They quickly conquered the underground scene. In 1996, they scored their first international hit with Homework. Success was sudden, and it was then that the idea of masking themselves germinated in the back of their minds.
Unanticipated success, a catalyst for change
At first, they just wore disguises, not very elaborate masks, during interviews. This phase bought them time to come up with the perfect idea.
The “real” story behind their appearance
Daft Punk are budding musicians, but above all they're passionate about new technologies. So they came up with a story about the year 2000. The official story is as follows: on September 9, 1999, at 9:09 a.m., their recording studio exploded, turning them into robots.
The beginnings of Daft Punk helmets
In fact, in 1999, they went to Hollywood to call on Alterian's services and met Tony Gardner. At the time, the studio was known for making replicas, practical effects and casts for the cinema.
The origins of the designs
The initial idea stemmed from Thomas Bangalter and Tony Gardner's shared fascination with the film Day the Earth Stood Still. The character of Gort, a humanoid robot, inspired Tony to create his first sketches. Influenced by Japanese culture, which is very popular in France, the duo wanted to have hair on their helmets to get closer to the Anime style. As for Guy-Manuel's helmet, the inspiration came from the Nasa astronauts with their gold helmets. The group wanted to be able to wear the helmets during events, but also integrate LEDs for communication. Thomas Bangalter's helmet broadcast messages using a matrix of horizontal LEDs. Guy-Manuel's helmet, on the other hand, used a huge vertical LED screen to broadcast images and expressions.
It's worth noting that the design was chosen with technical constraints in mind. The reason Guy-Manuel's helmet has cables running out the back is that the hundreds of LED cables had to be powered by the backpack. In addition, the separation in the middle of Thomas Bangalter's helmet allowed him to wear the helmet in two parts, as the electronics took up too much space. Also, the nostrils on this helmet not only allow air to enter, but also enable Thomas to see through them to play his music.
To achieve such a feat, Tony Gardner made molds of the faces and hands of the two Frenchmen. He then used water-based clay to make the first sketches of the helmets.
Nowadays, they are way easier to find and to wear. You can buy a Daft Punk helmet for sale on our website. 
Anonymity=freedom
This choice to wear robot helmets is genius for 4 reasons:
- They become timeless. Indeed, it's impossible to age badly if their faces are covered.
- It protects them from the star system, which they refuse to play. Hence their animated film Interstella 5555.
- They retain 100% control of their image.
- With the rise of the talk box, the choice of robots becomes coherent with their overall work.
Evolution of Daft Punk helmets
Over time, the duo became aware of the difficulty of wearing these costumes during performances. An important choice was therefore made: to simplify the helmets while retaining their original identity. For the release of Human After All, the duo adopted a simpler style, removing the LEDs from the helmets and the smile from Thomas Bangalter's helmet. In 2009, the helmets were made by Ironhead Studio, also based in Los Angeles. Other editions followed, including the film Tron and the 2014 Grammy Awards.
Conclusion
Today, Daft Punk have retired after years of influencing electronic music and introducing the French Touch to the world. Their timeless tones still resonate in everyone's heads today.
Their helmets have become their trademark and their visual identity, and have played a major role in their success. Daft Punk has succeeded in injecting a wind of originality into the construction of characters, and today influences other artists such as Deadmau5 and Marshmello.
