They're still the way you remember them. Sort of. If you were around in the early '80s and tuned into this new channel called MTV, then you know all about Duran Duran: five stylish British guys who always looked coolly detached and glamorous. The band was among the first acts to exploit the video medium, using grand cinematic styles. Remember the video for "Rio"? The dudes were jet-setting playboys. And in the clip for "Hungry Like the Wolf," they were great adventurers reminiscent of something out of Raiders of the Lost Ark.
And, yes, there was the music: synth-heavy and lyrically ambiguous. Fun. Energetic. Infectious. And definitely of its time. So now, after 21 years apart, the original Duran Duran lineup is back together again: Simon LeBon singing, Andy Taylor playing the guitar, Nick Rhodes tickling the keyboards, John Taylor handling the bass and Roger Taylor manning the drums. (The three Taylors are not related, by the way.) The new reunion album is called Astronaut. In stores today, it immediately reminds you of what made the band so irresistible: The neon glow of the music is still intact, bolstered by hard, industrial-strength grooves.
The last Duran Duran album recorded by the original crew was Seven and the Ragged Tiger, released in '83 at the height of the group's popularity. It was an international success, spawning the monster hits "The Reflex" and "Union of the Snake" and going platinum several times over.
But after the 1985 single "A View to a Kill," the title track of the James Bond flick, the guys had had enough of the industry pressures (and each other) and decided to go on hiatus. Different permutations of the group members recorded and toured over the next decade. But none captured the energy or matched the commercial success of the original lineup. (Over the years, Duran Duran has sold 70 million albums worldwide.)
After the BBC aired the popular documentary, Wild Boys: The Story of Duran Duran, in 2000, John Taylor called Andy Taylor who phoned the other members, and within 24 hours the guys agreed to get back together. It was relatively simple and painless. Time had mellowed the men and all agreed that nothing they had done apart could top what they did together in the 1980s. So the group started writing songs and launched a world tour in 2003 to build anticipation for the new album.
