Beyond

The song *Beyond* by Daft Punk, with its duration of 4 minutes and 50 seconds, immerses us in a sonic experience that evokes American music from the late 1970s and early 1980s, particularly that which emanated from Los Angeles. Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, the masterminds behind this French duo, moved away from the minimalist production of their previous works to bring this track to life. To achieve this, they recruited session musicians, with the help of Chris Caswell, who contributed live instrumentation, limiting the use of electronic elements. The lyrics for *Beyond* were written by Paul Williams, who also collaborated on the album's direction. He described the piece as "hyper-cosmic," highlighting the purity and poetic nature of its verses, and shared how his conversations with Williams about the album's direction helped materialize his ideas.

The recording of *Random Access Memories*, the album to which *Beyond* belongs, spanned from 2008 to 2012. The sessions took place in several iconic studios: Henson, Conway, and Capitol Studios in California; Electric Lady Studios in New York; and Gang Recording Studio in Paris, France. This album, released on May 17, 2013, through Columbia Records, was the fourth and final studio work by Daft Punk. The duo, consisting of Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo (born February 8, 1974) and Thomas Bangalter (born January 3, 1975), had already gained notoriety in the late 1990s with their house and synthpop style, establishing themselves as key figures in French house. Throughout their career, they were represented by Pedro Winter (Busy P), founder of Ed Banger Records, from 1996 to 2008.