Wednesday, July 18, 2012

A Diamond in the Mind: Live 2011

Even if you don’t play them anymore, if you listened to pop music in the 80s, you know the music of Duran Duran. Watching them in concert, though, is more than a trip down your musical memory lane because when you strip away the slick production of their hit singles you discover that they’re a good live band. It’s not always easy to see, given the over-the-top stage they play on and the frantic editing of the concert film, but there are enough moments in it where the camera settles down enough to just show them playing to make it worth the effort. Singer Simon Le Bon is in particularly good form for the show, from the opening number, Before the Rain, which really showcases his voice, to the hits he runs through during the show, like The Reflex and Rio. Watching the Blu-ray extras you get a better sense of just how important a document the Live 2011 film really is because the voice of Duran Duran was almost silenced for good when a throat injury made it impossible for Le Bon to sing.

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