In the spring of 2005, Daft Punk released Human After All. It was largely dismissed as a huge piece of crap by fans and critics alike. Although it offered a few gems, it was underwhelming compared to the French duo’s mind-blowing previous albums, Homework and Discovery. A band once considered the uncontested pacesetter for electronic music was reduced to an easily dismissed novelty.

Then, in the summer of 2006 at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in California, they played their first live show since 1997 and everything changed. Garbed in full robot gear, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter appeared on stage in a giant pyramid made out of high-resolution LED panels. Within moments, the sense of apprehension that had pervaded the crowd disappeared, replaced by sheer electronic ecstasy. Fans were awestruck by seamless mash-ups of songs drawn from the entire Daft Punk catalogue.

Mingling the most boring Human After All cuts with classics that would have once been deemed untouchable, the duo transformed misses into unmistakable hits. The show was widely acknowledged as nothing short of legendary, and in the following year the band embarked upon a world-wide tour. Alive 2007 captures the audio component of the concert for those who weren’t lucky enough to witness the spectacle first-hand.

Although the non-stop visual assault was one of the tour’s major drawing points, the soundtrack has no problem standing on its own. From the first moments to the last drawn-out notes, Daft Punk delights by infusing the entire show with hints of their biggest hits, sometimes well before they launch into them in earnest. Snatches of “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger” foreshadow the song’s actual performance, which is masterfully paired with “Around the World.” The complementary melodies push back and forth and blossom into an even more mind-melting experience than when played separately.

Thanks to the perfectionism of the musicians involved, the sound on Alive 2007 is immaculate. The quality of the music is maintained and the excitement of the crowd is showcased with cheers, clapping and singing along, but not so much as to overwhelm. When “Aerodynamic’s” opening salvo of bells abruptly lurches into the fist-pumping refrain of “One More Time,” the fans are clearly held in thrall by their robot overlords, erupting in response to the change of course. As moments like this crop up again and again on the album, it’s hard not to want to react along with them with applause and screams of approval.

One of the greatest moments of the set comes when Alive 1997 (their first live disc) is revisited with a fusion of Homework tracks “Rollin’ and Scratchin’” and “Alive,” but even that cannot compare to the majestic encore. In a move that must have made them feel more than a little vindicated, de Homem-Christo and Bangalter end the set with a massive medley centred on the title track from Human After All. Accompanied in the live setting by the utterly jaw-dropping visual of thousands of human faces appearing on the pyramid in quick succession, this is the show’s finest moment. How satisfying it must have been to expose thousands of people to their misunderstood masterpiece and to see them all figure it out in unison.