unfortunately they ended their own careers with that awful midi cheese-rock album 3 years ago.

"†", though?

i mean i don't listen to electronic music so i am not an authority, but this album was extremely palette-able to outsiders like me.

it's rare that an act or an album can sell you on a genre you generally don't even like.

but that's almost a bonafide qualifier of greatness.

imo, they eclipsed their biggest influence (daft punk) by just building upon existing ideas and programming that much further than daft punk ever did, or could.

the glitchy production ideas and techniques, the song arrangements (their biggest strong-suit as an act), their live show and the impact it left on edm dj's in their wake, their image, their art direction.

talent, style... exposure.

ed banger actually became something of a "movement" on the strength of them, uffie and the sebastians for a good 18 months in the mid-late 00's.

i mean even if they weren't the best new act of the 00's, they're undeniably in the conversation.

and if it isn't them then who was it?

listen to "cross" and bear in mind that the ideas and programming are from 2006/2007 and we constantly hear and entertain electronically programmed music that isn't nearly as intricate (or satisfying) some seven years later.

they had crossover success yet still had indie "authenticity" + critical adulation.
and they did so without resorting to making retro-fetish rehashes of some previous genre/era.