Astronaut

Duran Duran were the consummate '80s pop band: In an era that prized flash, style, and instant gratification, they were about as flashy, stylish, and instantly gratifying as you could get. Like much from the '80s, though, their catalog hasn’t aged well, and by more or less dissolving around 1984, they haven’t provided a steady diet of new material to showcase their artistic evolution. So naturally Astronaut, the original members' first album in two decades, should reflect the myriad changes they’ve undergone as artists and people since their younger years, right? Maybe not. Songs with slick beats, swirling synths, processed guitars, and sweeping choruses serve as a slingshot back to the Me Decade. The slinky funk shuffle “Bedroom Toys” sports a more pronounced R&B groove than Duran Duran conjured back then, but most everything else offers no more than a reprise of the mindless, hooky dance-pop that was their trademark. It’s a nice ride for nostalgia buffs but otherwise pretty pointless.