Who are Digitalism? The name’s been creeping up everywhere in the last twelve months. With a bagful of killer tunes, they’ve discreetly infiltrated the electronic scene and have gained a solid reputation almost overnight but not a lot is known about this mysterious duo.

There’s of course the unstoppable epic “Zdarlight” a magnificent instrumental based on a chunky groove and an intense guitar/synth breakdown. It ended up conquering DJs from all background and gave French label Kitsuné its first club hit. Minimal yet subtly intense, this slow-burner eventually turned out to be one of 2005’s true underground anthems (and still going, the new Discodrome and Moonlight remixes have just surfaced).

It is significant to mention their reinterpretation of Daft Punk’s “Technologic” is a truly special affair that pushed further the ideas of “Zdarlight” to great effect. Attracting pretty unanimous praise, they have also reworked the likes of Tiga, Futureheads, Sono, Test Icicles, Tom Vek, Cut Copy, Futureheads, Munk, Cajuan and Martin Peter.

Digitalism are 23 Jens “Jence” Moelle and 26 Ismail “Isi” Tüfekci. They met in 2001 in Hamburg’s main record shop Underground Solution. They started collaboration in 2002. Their first bootleg “Seven Nation Army” was rather successful. Then the guys recorded “Idealistic”, where included a track with unmistakable brattish vocal (“I Have An Idea That You Are Here, I Have The Idea That You Were Near…”) Idealistic proved so strong that it was given its own release. Quickly noticed by Kitsuné, label’s head-honchos Gildas Loaec and Masaya Kukori were quick to license the track and take the pair under their wing.

These confident boys operate with enviable easiness, the kind of innate intuitions that money can’t buy. Refreshing and naughty their teenage edge fits well with their hometown’s tradition for brash punk sounds but the pair’s musical boundaries go beyond attitude. The spiky riffs and troubled vocals cohabit with a certain idea of groove, raw and stripped down to the bare essentials, the kind of dirty electric indie punk that’s built on razor-sharp rhythms and slick minimal sequencing.

Digitalism are going back to basics. These pranksters in crime like nothing better than dishing out an unpretentious electro collision of rough-edged hooks (mentalism?) over stripped down to the minimum groove structures to which they occasionally add the depth of a lead singer Jence who means it.

It’s early days yet but we’re possibly witnessing the birth of a another crucial duo à la Chemical Brothers or Daft Punk.

Since 2005/2006 the duo got busy with deejaying at F.U.N. (Berlin), I Love Neon (Montreal), Fujirock (Japan), Fabric (London), Culture Club (Gent), Maffia (Italy), Paris Paris (Paris), Bar Rouge (Shanghai), as well as on Soulwax’s Nite Versions tour. They even played live at renowned indie-rock festival Les Inrockuptibles (Paris). With unadulterated excitement, they are now putting together the Digitalism live-experience and are getting ready to visit some of the planet’s most famous discotheques: Culture Club (Ghent), Fabric (London), Dirty Dancing (Bruxelles), Turnmills (London), Maffia (Rome)…

With leading character Jence planning to take the mike more regularly, this audacious electro act is only a step away from turning into a grungy pop band ready to take on the world, you’ve been warned!