Future Past is perhaps the quintessential title for
Duran Duran in 2021, when the veteran New Romantics trade in their legacy while keeping their focus directly on the future. Occasionally, the gilded synthesized surfaces of
Future Past recall the futurism of New Wave, but
Duran Duran take pains to not re-create the past by inviting a fresh set of collaborators into the studio. Swedish pop star
Tove Lo and English rapper
Ivorian Doll are duet partners, Japanese pop band
Chai provide a chorus cameo, while
Mike Garson -- the pianist best-known for his work on
David Bowie's
Aladdin Sane -- graces the finale "Falling." Much of the actual vibe and sound of
Future Past is due to the behind-the-scenes collaborators, specifically producer
Erol Alkan and
Blur guitarist
Graham Coxon, a pair who are responsible for co-writing and producing the lion's share of the album. Together,
Duran Duran,
Coxon, and
Alkan craft a dense, shape-shifting tapestry that gets punctured by the guitarist's melodic squalls and the group's thick hooks. Their work orbits "Beautiful Lies" and "Tonight United," a pair of neo-disco tracks produced by
Giorgio Moroder strategically placed in the middle of the album. Much of
Future Past feels like modern disco, music that blurs the distance separating the club and home and that plays with genre as fluidly as it plays with technology.
Duran Duran are taking some calculated risks here which sometimes means they stumble -- occasionally, the ballads feel a shade strident -- but the restlessness makes for a kinetic, exciting album. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
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