Duran Duran “Danse Macabre” 2023. “Smog” variant. Today, June 20th, is bassist John Taylor’s birthday (b. 1960); D2’s 16th studio LP was released on Simon’s birthday (October 27th) but my special fan club pre-order got lost in the mail last year so I didn’t get a copy until mid-November (the fan club version finally arrived, about 2 months late) so I saved it for John’s. Danse Macabre went to #57 in the US and to #4 in the UK; besides being notable for a Duran Duran release (!), it’s also notable that it’s the first record since 2004 to feature Andy Taylor on guitar (not on all tracks).

As the title suggests, Danse Macabre is dark and a bit spooky (it’s a Halloween party-themed record), with remakes of two very old Duran songs: “Nightboat” (from their first album Duran Duran, 1981) and “Secret Oktober 31st” (originally just “Secret October,” b-side to “Union of the Snake,” 1983), vaguely Harry Potter’d up, plus a remake the 1993 The Wedding Album track: “Love Voudou.” The majority of the LP are covers, most of which are terrific picks: “Paint It Black” (Rolling Stones), “Spellbound” (Siouxsie and the Banshees), “Supernature” (an electro-disco number from ’77 by Cerrone),  an extra-funky “Psycho Killer” (Talking Heads)” and “Ghost Town” (The Specials). The best cover, though, combines the Duran original “Lonely in Your Nightmare” (an absolutely gorgeous song from Rio) with Rick James’ “Superfreak” which equals “Super Lonely Freak.” The cover I’m not familiar with (and less crazy about) is “Bury a Friend” (Billy Eilish) but I do appreciate the band’s drive to always look forward even while glancing back.

There are a couple of new compositions on the album: “Black Moonlight” is fantastic and features long time collaborator Nile Rodgers, the title track – also great – “Danse Macabre,” and the LP closer “Confession in the Afterlife.”