DURAN DURAN
POP TRASH
ALBUM HOLLYWOOD, EDEL RELEASE:
JUNE 13, 2000 REVIEW: JUNE 8, 2000
"Pop Trash" raises an interesting question. What would Duran Duran be without Simon LeBon? My guess is dead and gone. What saved Duran Duran from total oblivion after their first half of the eighties, ending with the fantastic James Bond theme song "A View to a Kill" in 1986, was, and still is, Mr LeBon's charismatic vocals. He can't help this album to acceptable levels, but without him "Pop Trash" would have been just that, trash.
American alternative rock seems to be the recipe for the 2000 version of the band. Hints of Duran Duran magic can be found, but it requires thorough searching, given the massive guitar noise smothering most tracks. "Someone Else Not Me", "Playing with Uranium" and "Pop Trash Movie" proves that they're still breathing, but just barely.
On the most part, the album title tells it like it is.
