Duran Duran release a De Luxe edition of their ‘Danse Macabre’ album: packed with spectral themes in time for Halloween

It’s been a banner year for Duran Duran fans. In July, the band released official reissues of their first five albums on vinyl and fully remastered CD, these being their self-titled debut LP (1981) as well as Rio (1982), Seven and the Ragged Tiger (1983), Notorious (1986), and Big Thing (1988) – all of which have been out-of-pressing for several years until now.

Proving they’re not just a band that’s good at recycling old material, Duran Duran headlined the Latitude Festival in Suffolk, England earlier in the year, on the back of sellout UK and US arena tours that coincided with the release of their 2023 album Danse Macabre that went top 5 in the UK. Later this month, too, the lads will be performing a series of US concerts (see dates and venues here).

But the big news this month is the release of ‘Dance Macabre De Luxe’, a reissue of their masterful album of last year, packed with awe-inspiring covers and new remixes – all lent an unearthly, delightfully morbid touch.

Released this year in time for Halloween, highlights on the album include the eerie treatment of Nightboat that opens the record (the De Luxe edition has a new opener – more on that soon), a whirling mix of Love Voudou that ought to have dervishes dancing avidly, a sombre cover of Bury a Friend (which I actually like far better than Billie Eilish’s original), and dandy reinventions of classic rock songs like Talking Heads’ Psycho Killer, the Stones’ Paint It Black, the Specials’ Ghost Town, and Siouxsie & The Banshees’ Spellbound, all of which Simon Le Bon and band take up with such keenness and gusto, they make each song sound fresh and like their very own.

Dance Macabre De Luxe includes four new bonus songs that – unlike most added tracks that are usually tagged at the end of a familiar LP – are scattered throughout the album, or more so curated and positioned just so, so that there’s a certain clever flow. Masque of the Pink Death now serves as the album’s opener, almost like a darker prologue to the postmodern treatment of Nightboat. There’s a carnivalesque vibe to Pink Death that brings to mind the opening credits of Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story: Freak Show and it sets the listener up for a marvelous sonic adventure.

A highly percussive rendition of ELO’s classic track Evil Woman sits nicely between covers of Supernature and the title track Danse Macabre. But while the beats are uptempo, the sentiment is pretty dark, with Simon’s vocals shifting from dulcet in verse to high-pitch in chorus and back, a rollercoaster of vocal technique to keep up with the woman that’s driving him mad / keeping him hooked.

Also new to the De Luxe edition is a ‘Dark Phase’ mix of New Moon, an ethereal – a capella in part – take on New Moon on Monday that at first has you missing the oomph of the original but after repeat listens, comes across as a masterful, more minimalist mix. Incidentally Andy Taylor returns to the fold to contribute to this version of New Moon, but while it’s nice to have one of Duran’s key guitarists on board for the ride, I think the song does miss a certain heavy bass that John Taylor could have added.

Vinyl lovers get extra bonus tracks, these being Spooky (Brides of Duracula track), The Visitor (Instrumental), Instructions for a Séance  (spoken word by Nick Rhodes), and Dialogues of the Dead (Instrumental). Once again, the vinyl version pulls out as a useful ouija board, complete with planchette to spell out the names of loved ones crossed over to the other side. Do try this at home, kids!

All up, I was already impressed with last year’s release of Danse Macabre. With the bonus tracks in this year’s De Luxe edition, I’m caught between ecstatic and delirious, and I’m sure Halloween 2024 will be an even greater affair with this as its eclectic soundtrack.

Antonino Tati