It’s Halloween, and the US release date of Duran Duran On Track has finally arrived! It’s also the perfect time to look back at the band’s last studio album, Danse Macabre.
Duran Duran’s Halloween-themed LP didn’t make the cover of Duran Duran On Track, which features Rio, Seven And The Ragged Tiger, The Wedding Album and Paper Gods, with Future Past on the back cover. In this series, I’ve also covered All You Need Is Now (along with the preceding Red Carpet Massacre), as well as taking a look back over the years at some of the band’s other albums, including Duran Duran and Notorious.
In my original review of Danse Macabre, I called it a joyful gift for Duranies. The band have resurrected the album each Halloween season in the form of deluxe editions, special concerts, and this year, a reboot of one of their most beloved tracks, “Shadows On Your Side,” which has gotten mixed reviews from fans, to say the least. (Despite this, I still stand by my original assessment of the entire project.)
The album shone a spotlight on Duran Duran in the wake of their induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and proved that they were capable of turning around a studio LP in under a year—and mature enough to invite both former guitarists back into the fold.
The ambitious LP managed to make a collection of new songs and cover versions of their own tracks and others sound surprisingly cohesive—and arguably put to rest the legacy of the ill-fated Thank You. In addition to the original 13-track album, 2024 saw the release of a De Luxe version with new songs, including a disco-inflected cover of ELO’s “Evil Woman.” And this year’s “Shadows On Your Side” works fine as a remix, though any new version could never top the original.
Whether the band decides to get back into the Halloween spirit every year is still in question. Last year’s sold-out show at Madison Square Garden in New York is being followed with one in Manchester, in their home country.
Duran Duran On Track is available now in the UK and the US. Check out Linktree for order links. I also have a limited number of author-signed copies available for purchase via PayPal.
And if you’re already enjoying the book, please leave a review on Amazon or wherever you purchased your copy.
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