Duran Duran
Rio

THE REVIEW

John Taylor’s rhythms, funky à la Chic, Andy Taylor’s rock side, Roger’s punk past, Rhodes’ continuous search for sound and perfection (a fan of Japan), the sinuous voice of Simon bring to life the Duran Duran of the first album with dark rock atmospheres and lighter tracks where Nick Rhodes' perfection blends wonderfully with penetrating bass and drum lines. In the second album, Rio, described as a masterpiece, it’s hard to find points of contact with the previous one. Duran Duran are chameleons in terms of look and sound up to the present day because they are always experimenting. Rio, outstanding rhythmic section and an amazing bass by John Taylor. An exotic and sensual track where Andy Hamilton also plays bass.

Gem of the Album "The Chauffeur", famous for its censored video and a song of rare beauty, where a beautiful synth loop accompanies a mournful and dreamy singing, then the drums break in and the flute at the end.
New Religion, another great success marking the "Duran style", edgy rhythms, dark atmospheres, counterpoint—a track ahead for "1982".

Hungry Like the Wolf, Hold Back the Rain—two more rock and funky songs. Rio represents a mix of Duranian atmospheres made of rock, funky, dark, and melodic combined with pop, original and unique sounds. Save a Prayer is the hit that became successful only later in the "Arena" collection, certainly much listened to, yet this song remains a second gem of this album and, in my opinion, a unique song, different—I don’t know how to explain it other than with the term masterpiece... synth loop, reggae rhythm, and Simon's voice perfectly accompanying the melody.

Listening to Duran Duran after having heard them on the radio for entire years is no simple task, precisely because they were chameleonic over the years and appeared banal, but when going through the various albums, you realize the incredible sound and rhythm research by DD. Even after the split and the arrival of Cuccurullo, formerly of Frank Zappa, in the end, you realize that a common thread ties all of Duran’s work together, it is the elegance of the always clean sound and the perfect mix of styles and musical tastes, precisely due to the musicians who make up the group and a Nick, a keyboard genius. Today, the five are all together again. For those who want to enjoy the first two albums in video form, there are DVDs where you notice, with slight embarrassment, that they play well on stage and that Simon is a charismatic leader, anything but a Boyband.

And now a personal consideration on the fact that the music of Duran is often confused with simple pop, but in my opinion, it is rich in artistic individuality. Then, there wouldn't be a review without a critique, so here you go: on one hand, sounds and rhythm are perfectly curated; on the other hand, the singing is not the same. Simon Le Bon’s voice, unique and unmistakable, currently also technically better, is perfect for certain tracks, but for others, it may be the element that makes a certain track less demanding and more commercial... this is my opinion.