by Stacia Proefrock
This album showcases a Duran Duran that is but a hollow shell of the band that enjoyed pop successes in the early '80s. Only Simon LeBon and Nick Rhodes remain from the original lineup -- Warren Cuccurullo, who has been featured on several recent Duran Duran albums, joins them to make a trio. Some of the smooth, spacy ballads that were characteristic of their 1993 self-titled release show up here, but more often than not LeBon is lost in a swamp of overproduction. Completely absent from this music was the aggressiveness and sexuality that made early Duran Duran great -- kinder, gentler records could probably be expected from the band as they age, but this album feels careless and flabby instead of introspective. Notable exceptions include the ascorbic &Mars Meets Venus,& which skewers the American self-help movement over Bowie-influenced dance-pop beats, and the delicate if slightly sappy &Lady Xanax.&